Baltimore Mayor Sheila A. Dixon says she wasn’t flipping a bird at photographers, despite a photograph of her in Tuesday’s edition of The Daily Record with her middle finger up as she seemingly glares into a camera. “I have a habit of using my fingers to put my glasses up,” Dixon said at a news conference that was broadcast on WJZ-TV. “I really think that, that was a low blow, and I really did not appreciate it, but, you know, such is life in this business. Now I’m going to be very careful how I put my glasses on and how I adjust them. But, you know, I really think that was a low blow.” The photo was taken by Daily Record staff photographer Rich Dennison at a City Council luncheon Monday. Adding to the notion that Dixon was giving photojournalists the finger was the timing. A camera crew, which had been ejected from the chamber, was allowed back in just moments after Dixon consulted with her staff. Plus, the mayor can’t be too fond of reporters these days. She’s been a favorite target of the media after being indicted Friday on 12 criminal counts, including theft, perjury and misconduct in office. The indictment alleges that Dixon accepted thousands of dollars in gifts from real estate developer Ronald H. Lipscomb, whom she dated in 2003 and 2004. She’s also accused of accepting gift cards from Lipscomb that were intended for needy children.

Under pressure, Baltimore’s mayor is donating her salary. Facing outrage from recession-weary Baltimore residents, and criticism from union leaders, Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon said on Thursday that she will donate her $3,700 raise to a “city government charity.” “I woke up this morning and said, ‘You know what? It is not worth it,’” Dixon said to Baltimore reporters during an impromptu news conference. She said she hopes the decision will help “get things moving forward and stay focused on the bigger plan.” The mayor plans to announce which charity will get the money on Friday, according to The Baltimore Sun.

Designers make a Web browser for African Americans. A group of entrepreneurs recently launched Blackbird, a Web browser based on Mozilla’s Firefox that is designed specifically for African Americans. The browser was developed by a team of African Americans to allow viewers to connect to the African American community. While still in beta testing mode, the Browser includes pre-installed links to various Black-focused news sites, forums and even something called “Black Search.” It has links to social networks, email and popular Web content. To see it for yourself, go here.