Islamic State (Isis) has ordered its followers to kill three Sydney imams: the Grand Mufti of Australia, Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed (pictured); Sheikh Shady Alsuleiman; and Sheikh Ahmed Abdo. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

Ive been called many things in my time working for the Muslim community in Sydney, but there is a recurring name that has stuck: sell out. Although often associated with musical acts that move from indie niche to mainstream success, abandoning their fans and values in the meantime, it has come to mean something slightly different to Muslims.

To Muslims, selling out refers to making a compromise on your beliefs and is often associated with engagement with power structures. On the surface, this logic is based on the idea that engagement with these structures, especially in the west, can never be genuine and can never be on Muslim terms.

It is upon this logic that Islamic State (Isis) has ordered its followers to kill three Sydney imams: the Grand Mufti of Australia, Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed; Sheikh Shady Alsuleiman; and Sheikh Ahmed Abdo. All three are known for their work in engaging different communities and working with government, policing agencies or with other faith groups.

By trying to excommunicate these sheikhs and essentially branding them as sell outs, Isis is seeking to justify its call to violence against them. The use of such inflammatory rhetoric, as a form of propaganda, is neither new nor exclusive to Isis, and has been used time and again by groups from across the political spectrum. However, it is vital to note that what lies beneath the rhetoric from all sides is an important point on engagement.

Its important to state (although it has been said in a variety of ways, ad infinitum), that the violence of Isis is abhorrent and unacceptable. The best way to thumb our collective nose at their desire to be part of a discussion about faith and engagement would be to have that conversation without their input or presence.

The term sell out is used as a counter to a power imbalance, as a means of expressing distrust in the avenues for engagement between Muslim communities and state power structures. And it is here where the conversation must begin when discussing the reasons for branding such individuals in this way.

Engagement in and of itself must be underscored by a power balance between the participating parties. Without this balance, what will result is a skewed conversation, one that is almost theatre in the way it follows a pre-determined script. What is not to be spoken about is ignored, what is focused upon is the symbolism and platitudes that are used to maintain the status quo.

By taking part in these so-called conversations without the ability to frame the discussion or the ability to have it on our terms, Muslims become complicit in our own silence. Moreover, we are also complicit in the injustices eked out under that silence, having been unable to break the cycle of violence and enforced obliviousness.

The wounds and trauma of the Syrian civil war, the Iraq war, the invasion of Afghanistan, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Israeli occupation of Palestine, the Lebanese civil war, and the current violence in Yemen all of these conflicts are partly the result of the interference of western powers, both recent and long-standing. Colonisation continues to deeply affect communities, with the trauma lasting generations as the entire region seeks to reconcile its history with its present, and its people with the interests of foreign powers.

These scars, fresh or deep, are at the forefront of any conversation on power and politics, no matter the level or relevance. Conversations at all levels must be framed by these injustices, by a global, historical, political context that would seek to be guided by a need to recognise and right those injustices.

So, when the Muslim community is in conversation with government agencies or police, on any particular issue, whether it be criminality, socio-economic challenges, obstacles to education and so on, the coordinates of that conversation need to be reset.

Unfortunately, when discussing something apparently irrelevant to international politics or history, respectability politics plays a huge role, with nobody wanting to appear rude or inconsiderate. However, it is essential we shelve such considerations in the face of a growing need to reshape the way we think about engagement with government and police.

And its here where the notion of the sell out remerges, because without its global or historical context these conversations will continue to exclude and alienate any group or party seeking to have their scars recognised and healed.

Without it, genuine progress will be hampered by the notion of the sell out, both in conversations with institutions of power, and with a community continuously sidelined and dismissed.

At the end of the day, its not that I dont want people to call me a sell out, its that I want to see the roots of that notion no longer dismissed as just a rhetorical tool used by fringe groups. There are genuine problems with the way we, as a community and as a nation, see engagement, and until we fix that, the issues we face will never be addressed.

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Anatomy of a sell out: why Isis targets scholars for working with the government - The Guardian

Sara Ramirez is calling out her old network.

The 41-year-old actress, who starred for 10 years on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, took to Twitter on Thursday to slam the network for a joke about bisexual people that aired during a recent episode of The Real O'Neals.

WATCH: 'Grey's Anatomy' Star Sara Ramirez Comes Out as Bisexual

On the episode in question, which aired on Jan. 17, Noah Galvin's openly gay character, Kenny, compared being bisexual to having "webbed toes" or "money problems."

Ramirez, who played bisexual character Callie Torres on Grey's, and identifies as bisexual herself, said that she was "truly disheartened and disappointed" by the joke, and that she would "invest my brand where I'm respected."

The actress addressed ABC and The Real O'Neals in her tweet, encouraging them to "own" and "address" the mistake, to "empower our #Queer and #Bisexual youth & community w/accurate positive reflections." She also asked fans to sign a Change.org petition imploring ABC to "end biphobia and bi-erasure" on the comedy.

WATCH: Shocker! 'Grey's Anatomy' Star Sara Ramirez Exits Show After 10 Seasons

In another tweet, Ramirez reacted to Galvin's response to the joke, saying it "wasn't enough for me."

RELATED: 'Real O'Neals' Star Noah Galvin Slams Colton Haynes, Eric Stonestreet & More, Immediately Apologizes for 'Hurtful' Comments

The Real O'Neals star, who found himself surrounded by controversy last year after slamming Eric Stonestreet's portrayal of a gay man on Modern Family and mocking Colton Haynes' decision to come out as gay, addressed the joke last month on Twitter.

The 22-year-old actor said he "respects and loves the bi community," though defended the joke, saying it represented "a panicky teen expressing his 'deepest fear' which was his boyfriend leaving him for a girl." "I'm sorry if we offended anyone. I hope you know our show fights for visibility and inclusivity and we will do better in the future. BUT, we also have to remember, it's a comedy."

WATCH: 'Greys Anatomy' Boss Addresses Sara Ramirez's Exit: 'I Had a Different Plan'

Excerpt from:
'Grey's Anatomy' Star Sara Ramirez Calls Out ABC for 'Biphobia ... - Entertainment Tonight

Even the Daily Mail is splashing business rates on its front page. What has this most unglamorous of taxes done to deserve that?

For many businesses, rates are a bigger headache than corporation tax. After all, they only have to pay the latter if they are profitable. There is no such escape from rates. The trouble is the way they are levied. To figure out how much it owes, a business first needs to know the theoretical amount that someone would pay to rent the premises it occupies. This rateable value is determined during a periodic exercise by the valuation office agency. The business has to pay roughly half of the rateable value as a tax each year. It doesnt matter if the business is doing well or seriously struggling, it still has to cough up.

At the best of times, the tax is unfair in the way that it hits some kinds of trade harder than others. A bookshop in the High Street of a pretty country town might not make much money. But it has to pay business rates that reflect the gentrified area in which it is located. Conversely, a small office in an out-of-town development might contain a few highly paid executives for whom the business rates are not a significant cost.

In short, business rates are oppressive for a retailer which has to locate close to its customers. One result is that charity shops, that get an automatic 80% rebate, have colonised high streets where regular stores are priced out. The Government periodically promises a review of business rates but the chance of serious reform founders on the need to raise the same amount of money after any changes. Nonetheless, there are plenty of exemptions and reliefs, such as those for village shops and pubs, which mean everyone else has to pay even more.

Make sure you're not missing out on your free, daily Per Diem email & Iain Martin's weekly letter.

The current hullabaloo, reflected in the Daily Mail and other papers, is simply the regular revaluation exercise intended to keep rates fair. Although the total amount to be raised isnt increasing much, there are, inevitably, winners and losers. The winners, which allegedly include Amazons warehouses, are quietly satisfied. The losers, comprising popular brands and small shops, are outraged. Numerically, it also looks like the losers may outnumber the winners, further increasing the volume of their complaints. The Government itself has made matters worse. The revaluation was supposed to happen in 2015 but, since it did not want the resulting controversy to hit just before a general election, it postponed the changes until this year. As a result, many ratepayers are seeing much bigger revaluations than they would have done had the exercise taken place two years ago as scheduled.

In some ways, business rates are the commercial equivalent of council tax. Like with council tax, the revenue raised goes to fund local government. A total of 26 billion a year is collected and, through a complicated formula, it is redistributed to local authorities. Unlike council tax, business rates are not automatically spent in the same area in which they are collected. My local authority of Tunbridge Wells, being quite a wealthy borough, keeps a tiny proportion of the rates it collects. Councils dont even get much say on what the level of rates should be. Since the 1980s that has be set by central government. Going forward, local authorities will get to keep increases in the money raised from business rates in their patch, but conversely they are on the hook if they do not manage to collect enough.

The Government will be very keen to face down the current resistance. Assuaging those seeing increases in their rates will cost money that it does not have. David Gauke, Financial Secretary to the Treasury and a politician who radiates seriousness, has been dispatched to calm things down. Number 10 will be hopeful that when Article 50 is debated by the House of Lords next week, public attention will be distracted from business rates (that most people know nothing about) and the Daily Mail will come back onside.

However, all this could merely be a dress rehearsal for what would happen if there was ever a council tax revaluation. Council tax is calculated from the value of our homes in 1991, which is now hopelessly out of date. But given the regular angst caused by business rates changes, it is no surprise that ministers have repeatedly refused to countenance a revamp of residential property taxes. That would just be asking for trouble.

James Hannam is the author of What Everyone Needs to Know about Tax, to be published by Wiley on Budget day.

Make sure you're not missing out on your free, daily Per Diem email & Iain Martin's weekly letter.

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Business rates: the anatomy of a tax controversy - Reaction

Winder-Barrow (Winder, Ga.) forward Olivia Nelson-Ododa is the top ranked player in the ESPN HoopGurlz 100 for 2018 and has everyone from Connecticut to South Carolina to Maryland and many others all giving chase. Now Nelson-Ododa has agreed to give USA TODAY exclusive access into her world by chronicling everything from intimate details about her recruitment to her everyday life in a blog.

Hi world!

This is Olivia with my first blog so I hope you guys like it.

Sadly, Im done playing for the year.

I had a knee injury on Jan. 31 and its been tough to sit out for sure.

Right now we know that its not anything major like MCL or ACL, but I have an appointment this week so well know more about recovery time and things like that.

Im just working on staying positive and being there for my team as we go into the playoffs.

I feel like I was playing really well this year and I was excited about the playoffs coming up. I was working on the weaknesses in my game and I felt like everything was growing in a positive direction then the injury happened.

Like I said, Im just trying to stay positive because I know that Ill be back.

Im definitely excited about summer ball.

I try not to pay a lot of attention to rankings, but being No. 1, Im really motivated to stay there. I know that other players are hungry and theyre coming for that so I use that as motivation to work on my skills and fix any holes I feel that I have in my game.

I want to be the best and even though Im ranked No. 1 I work like Im not.

My recruitment is going pretty well right now, Ive got offers from UConn, Stanford, South Carolina, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Maryland, UCLA and a lot of other schools.

Right now Im focusing on developing relationships with coaches and trying to get out to see some of the schools.

But the best part for me is just talking to them and getting to know them away from the court.

Like I bonded with the coach from FSU over our love for dogs. I have a black lab, a mini-pit bull and a German Shepherd so she wanted to see pics of the dog and all that.

I thought that was cool.

Sometimes it can get stressful dealing with all of the coaches, but I tell myself, Youd rather have to put up with all of this than to not have any schools calling.

One thing I do is use Sunday as my family day, so Im not calling any coaches on that day. Thats been good for me.

Since Im so close Ill occasionally go and see Georgia Tech and Georgia games. I went to South Carolina last month to see the game against Alabama. I dont have any visits planned now, but I want to get out to see more schools now that I have more time.

School is going pretty well. I started my second semester and even though classes are challenging theyre definitely a lot less stressful than last semester so thats a positive.

My favorite subjects are English, Social Studies and Science; my least favorite would be Math.

I do have to tell everyone that I just started watching Greys Anatomy on Netflix and Im loving it! I know Im really late with that, but if you havent seen it go check it out!

OK guys thanks for reading my first blog.

Stay tuned for the next one. Ill be back again soon.

Dont forget to follow Olivia Nelson-Ododa:

Twitter:@OliviaKNelson

Instagram: olivianelson_17

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The Olivia Nelson-Ododa Blog: Season-ending injury, staying positive, Grey's Anatomy and more - USA TODAY High School Sports

Hain Celestial (NASDAQ:HAIN)seemed like a perfectly positioned company. As consumers learned more and more about where their food came from, the organic movement only became more powerful.

That's why, in November 2014, I invested my own money in the stock. But as I did more research on the company, I became wary of a narrowing moat. When I sold my shares in January 2016, it was long before accounting issues and an SEC investigation were brought to light, sinking the stock even further this week.

Image source: Getty Images.

As I gained more experience as an investor, I began to look very skeptically at the growth-via-acquisition strategy. While there are certainly success stories,the graveyard of value-destroying acquisitions is constantly growing.

Hain is the poster child for this strategy. Under the leadership of founder and CEO Irwin Simon, the company has grown by buying up popular organic brands that had made a name for themselves independently. With the cash and scale that Hain could provide, the thinking went, these brands could flourish on a national and international platform that would otherwise take decades to accomplish.

The problem is, you have to have an excellent system in place to manage all of the disparate businesses, and it seems Simon did not have such an infrastructure. One review by a former employee on Glassdoor.com offered a detailed warning back in October 2015:

Having a young, natural product brand adhere to a strict corporate budget can be detrimental to its survival. On several acquisitions, Hain failed to achieve continued rates of growth on behalf of the acquired brand mostly because it could not fund new projects... Hain's current acquisition model essentially operates on limiting up front costs as much as possible; they slim down an acquired brand's team to the bare minimum, which only allows for the brand to sustain rather than grow its market segment.

That's crucial, because if the brands that Hain is acquiring don't produce the type of growth that the company expects, it means that it likely overpaid for them in the first place. This eventually leads to significant goodwill writedowns.

As you can see below, the company's goodwill -- and long-term debt -- has been growing steadily over the past six years.

Data source: Hain Celestial annual and quarterly reports.

With that as the context, we can fast-forward to last summer. As investors were preparing to review the company's annual report, Hain said it would not be able to file in a timely manner. At the time, the company's statement seemed benign: "the Company identified concessions that were granted to certain distributors in the United States," and it simply needed to clear up the matter.

Indeed, in November, it appeared it might be in the clear. A release stated that the company "found no evidence of intentional wrongdoing in connection with the Company's financial statements."

The problem, however, is that quarterly filings have been besieged by delay after delay. It has been over 285 days since the company last published financial statements, over 180 days since the accounting issues were first disclosed, and 90 days since an apparent "all clear" was issued, signaling no intentional wrongdoing.

That's a long time with absolutely no information for investors to digest. And this week, things seemed to worsen. The company saidin a post-market Friday news dump that the scope of its own investigation was widening and that it wouldn't be providing the missing quarterly reports promptly. It also said that the SEC had opened a formal investigation, though when it started is not certain.

So what are we left with? It's impossible to value the business based on traditional metrics. We have no idea how accurate the numbers from the past are, and we have absolutely no data to go on over the past three quarters.

Using the last four quarters that we do have, the company now trades at 17 times earnings and 21 times free cash flow. If it turns out that there's nothing nefarious about what it's been doing and the brands are stronger than I'm giving them credit for, it would make today's prices seem pretty fair. However, with uncertainty reaching a fever pitch, investors need to accept that this is as much a guessing game right now as anything else. Proceed with caution.

Brian Stoffel has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Hain Celestial. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Link:
The Anatomy of Hain Celestial Group's Drop and Why You Should Proceed With Caution - Motley Fool

Luxury car drivers do not behave the same way as drivers in other segments when they are off the road, according to a study released Feb. 15.

One surprising statistic was that luxury car shoppers were 55% more likely to frequent Costco than non-luxury car shoppers," says Jon Schulz, CMO of Viant. Conventional wisdom might lead folks to assume that non-luxury car shoppers would have a higher penetration at a warehouse discount store like Costco.Retail habits can often surprise even the most seasoned advertising professional.It definitely pays to do your homework here.

Viants "Anatomy of an Auto Shopper" explores the unique characteristics of four key shopper segments: luxury car, non-luxury car, utility vehicles (CUV/SUV), and truck.

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The report covers everything from make/model/brand affinities by ethnic groups to how these preferences impact shopping habits (CPG products and retail location).

The utility segment is surging as the car segment continues to hover near historic lows.Eighty-two percent of respondents age 35+ are utility drivers, compared to 67% of car drivers and 69% of truck drivers. Nearly two-thirds of these customers prefer domestic brands, which spells opportunity for some and a challenge for others.Given the rapid growth, this is clearly a group that auto marketers want to get much more familiar with, Schulz tells Marketing Daily.

Since they are migrating from non-luxury car, they share some traits, but also have some very unique characteristics which make them a bit more challenging to pinpoint, he adds.

The top utility vehicle choice among African Americans, Caucasians, and Hispanics is the Ford Explorer, whileAsians favor the Honda Odyssey.For the luxury car segment, the top choice for Asians, Caucasians, and Hispanics is the BMW 3-Series, whileAfrican Americans prefer the Cadillac CTS.The Honda Accord is the most prevalent non-luxury car for all ethnicities.

Marketers are already sold on the accuracy and targeting of people-based marketing, but thats only been available within a few walled gardens. Giving them the ability to now target like this across the open Web, where people are spending the majority of their time, will help move the needle for marketers, Schulz says.

For example, understanding grocery product or retailer preferences, and actual transactional datacan inform partnership opportunities and/or cross-promotion, Schulz says. Certainly, TV viewing habits of targeted shoppers can inform media plans and better align spending not only on TVbut across all channels, to the actual behaviors of desired customer segments. There is still an art to advertising, but adding deterministic data into the mix makes approaches more scientific and measurable.

One automaker that appears to already be mindful of these findings is Nissan.

We cited a Nissan example in the study around their efforts to grow share with the Hispanic auto buying market, Schulz said. These types of highly targeted campaigns with custom creative drive measurable results. It is definitely easier to simply run a few different creative messages to everyone, it just doesnt provide the same impact.Audience segments can behave very differently and require custom approaches.

There is a definitive shift among consumers away from traditional broadcast and cable television consumption to streaming services, OTT and online video.

Our study reinforces the shift to live sports and news programming and away from more traditional prime-time programming for both better audiences and to minimize the DVR impact, Schulz says. TV still commands a large pool of advertising dollars despite falling ratings and high cost per point.

Big television platforms like the Super Bowl have experienced declining viewership over the last two years, yet the cost of a 30-second ad has gone up over 10% in that time period.

You see similar patterns where programs are getting fewer viewers, yet the cost is increasing, Schulz says. This will not last, as more advertisers are focused on ROI from their advertising spend and thus are starting to shift to mobile and other platforms where the users are spending their time.

Read more from the original source:
Study Explores 'Anatomy Of An Auto Shopper' - MediaPost Communications

Love him or hate him, Conor McGregor sure is entertaining.

The Notorious has become one of the biggest names in mixed martial arts thanks to his hisswagger and incredible fighting skills. And his knockout ability has claimed some of the biggest names in the sport, including Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 to claim the lightweight title.

So how exactly does McGregor do it? If youre good at reading dashes, youll get a kick out of his answer during a recent interview with GQ.

Its all in the n. Its all in the b s. I just have confidence that comes from my big b s, and I know when I smack you, youre going down, he told GQ. And thats it.

Well, thats quite the description.

That answer came after he described his knockout ability when it comes to his rivalry with Nate Diaz.

No ones work is clean like my work, McGregor said. My shots are clean. My shots are precise. Look at Nate. Nate was 200 pounds. When I hit him down, it was exactly like if a sniper took aim at someone in between their eyeballs and let the thing rip. The way he dropped, it was like a sack of s. So thats a power I have.

Of course, thats not exactly how it went the first time when Diaz shockingly beat McGregor, but point taken.

Just something else for Floyd Mayweather Jr. to ponder if their super fight ever happens.

Thumbnail photo viaAdam Hunger/USA TODAY Sports Images

Originally posted here:
Conor McGregor Credits Certain Part Of Anatomy For His Confidence, Skill - NESN.com

Eliza Minnick hasnt made the best first impression at Grey Sloan.

Not only did Minnick (Marika Dominczyk) basically oust Richard (James Pickens Jr) as the head of the surgical residency program, but she also essentially got Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) suspended. So when Minnick implements Phase 2 of her teaching methods during Thursdays episode of Greys Anatomy, the doctors of Grey Sloan wont take it very well. EW turned to Dominczyk to get the scoop:

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Eliza is implementing her next phase of teaching. What does that entail? MARIKA DOMINCZYK: That entails 100 percent using Elizas method, which means the residents get to go to work and the attendings are way more hands-off. Its going to be like a real trial of this method that Eliza believes is tried and true, and the only way to move the hospital forward.

How will the attendings take to the next phase? Theyre not going to like it. Its going to take a little bit of arm twisting to get there. Not many of them like Eliza.

What is it like for you to play a character who is so universally hated right now? Its so funnybecause,honestly, I dont look at it that way. As an actor, its so much fun to play this character for me, because Im not like Eliza, Im not Type-A. Im not Eliza, so as an actor, its been the best and so fun to walk in and do this. Greys has such an enormous fanbase that I wasnt aware of. I take it all with a grain of salt. I look at Twitter. I feel like it would be so boring if you just loved everybody all the time. Thats my personal opinion. I think its fun and I think she shakes it up a bit.

Do I think that her social graces are on point? Not necessarily. [Laughs] Would I behave the way she does? I wouldnt. But, at the end of the day, shes doing it because she super believes that her way is the best way. She got hired to do this job and shes going to do it. Eliza said, Im not here to make friends, and she believes that. Would she like to make friends? Im sure. She cant right nowbecause her No. 1 goal is to do the job she was hired for. Unfortunately, thats not a job people like her having.

Is she finding any other allies at the hospital? She kind of finds an ally slowly. It goes a little bit back and forth. Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) has been in her corner sort of, kind of. Edwards (Jerrika Hinton) really likes her there. The people that want to learn and progress have been a little more open than some others, but its still like treadingwater. Its been slow trying to get people on her side.

Do you think she can ever win the doctors over? I dont know if she can. Just like with the fans, theres so much history, I think theres so much history on the show within the hospital. I dont know if they would all be like a kumbaya, love Eliza [situation]. Shes the type of character thats not for everybody. Her bedside manner is not the best, so I dont know. I hope so.

Eliza clearly has feelings for Arizona, so whats that challenge like for her because shes hated by the doctors who side with Richard (James Pickens Jr.)? Does she feel like theres any hope for a relationship with Arizona? I think she does, and thats part of her appeal and part of why people dont like her, because she doesnt get it. For her, work is just work and this is what happens at work; people may or may not like it. When shes not at work, shes just who she is and likes who she likes, but not everybody operates that way; not everybody can separate the two. Eliza is the kind of character that believes that she can separate the two, so its no big deal. She doesnt think about maybe how others dont operate the same way.

Stay tuned after Thursdays episode for more from Dominczyk on whats next for Eliza and Arizona.Greys Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Grey's Anatomy: Minnick faces uphill battle at Grey Sloan - EW.com (blog)

FAISALABAD:The best way to teach modern anatomy is by combing multiple pedagogical resources to complement one another. Students appear to learn more effectively when multi-modal and system-based approaches are integrated.

This was said by experts while speaking at a national workshop on teaching and research techniques in anatomy organised by Department of Anatomy, University of Agriculture on Wednesday. The inaugural session was chaired by UAF Vice-Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan.

The experts said not a single teaching tool had been found to meet curriculum requirements of anatomy.

The limitation on time, trained faculty and resources for gross anatomy courses in integrated and system based curricula, have led many medical and veterinary schools to abandon costly and time consuming decision based instructions in favour of alternative methods of instructions, including prosection, medical imaging, living anatomy and multimedia resources, the experts opined.

UAF Vice-Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan said UAF was taking all possible measures to produce trained manpower by ensuring quality education in the country.

He said the UAF used to organise such events to raise awareness among the masses about different issues. Dean Veterinary Sciences Dr Ahrar Khan said poverty alleviation was directly linked to the agriculture and livestock sector. He said the UAF had produced 3,000 doctors and 120 PhDs in veterinary sciences so far.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 16th, 2017.

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Promoting quality education: 'Use of innovative methods key in teaching anatomy' - The Express Tribune

When Greys Anatomy" executive producers Joan Rater and Tony Phelanleft the ABC medical soap to launch their own legal drama, they knew there was at least one aspect of the former series that they wanted to carry over to the new one: the sense of never knowing who is going to come through the door.

Doubt, the new CBS procedural from the wife-and-husband team, is set in a New York boutique law firm that takes on risky social justice cases.

Like in 'Grey's, you never know who will come in needing help, Phelan said. We wanted a show about people who were from various socioeconomic backgrounds. That was really important to us.

The series, which premieres Wednesday, stars Katherine Heigl as Sadie Ellis, a defense attorneywho becomespersonally involved with her latest case and client,played by Steven Pasquale (Rescue Me). The cast is rounded out by Elliott Gould, the chief of the law firm, and Laverne Cox, Dule Hill, Dreama Walker and Kobi Libii, all of whom play lawyers. Cox, it merits noting, is the first-ever transgender actor to play a transgender character in a series regular role on broadcast TV.

Doubt is somewhat inspired by ABCs late 90s-early 00s legal drama, The Practice, which Rater and Phelan devotedly watched early in their relationship.

We really enjoyed watching that show, Rater said, sitting next to her husband at a hotel bar in Pasadena on a recent weekday.We wanted to see more criminal defense lawyers; we wanted to get to know the defendants more...

Doubt attempts to explore the best and worst of the criminal justice system, looking at those who are criminalized and those who are committed to defending them. The imperfections of Americas penal system is an area of focus in which Hollywood has shown growing interest. In addition to HBOs 2016 limited seriesThe Night Of, a number of projects out of Sundance this year also investigate the imperfections of law and order.

The more we can see that people who are in prison are people with families and with dreams and aspirations, I think, is enlightening, Phelan said. Are we, as a country, really about reform and rehabilitation? Or are we about putting people away and throwing away the key and just getting them out of society? And if we are about that, let's just be honest about that. But if we are really about reform and rehabilitation, how do we do that?

The main case to which viewers are introduced involves Billy Brennan (Pasquale), a plastic surgeon who is facing conviction for the first-degree murder of his former girlfriend, who was killed two decades prior. Things grow complicated as the relationship between Billy and Ellisbecomes more intimate.

A similar attorney-client progression in The Night Of came under fire, with critics chiding it as a misguided development.Phelan and Rater say there's something to be said about that kind of intimacy.

The lawyers almost become a lifeline, so inmates develop this, sort of, dependence, Rater said. Sadie knows everything about Billy. They've spent all of this time together and they're both flawed in similar ways. They both have strange upbringings and we and the writers just thought that was interesting. It's a line you are not supposed to cross but the 'what if' of it all How would you negotiate it? How would you deal with the fact that it's so wrong and so taboo and what are the consequences? --is really interesting to us.

Doubt was originally developed for the 2015-16 season, but the pilot was never ordered to series. After undergoing re-development and re-casting (KaDee Strickland and Teddy Sears were replaced with Heigl and Pasquale), its now making it to air with a 13-episode order. It marks a reunion of sorts Phelan and Rater last worked with Heigl when she starred on Greys Anatomy. (Heigl left the series in 2010.)

It was nice just to continue our collaboration because we've known Katherine for 10 years now, Phelan said.

It was just the sort of the magic ingredient that the show needed, Rater said.

The most-read Entertainment stories this hour

yvonne.villarreal@latimes.com

Twitter: @villarrealy

The rest is here:
Katherine Heigl is only one of the elements of 'Grey's Anatomy' the creators of 'Doubt' brought to CBS legal drama - Los Angeles Times