CNN broadcasted a seies of shows called "Black in America"which obviosuly caused a stir. The network reported that they received more than 1000
disgruntled emails regarding airing this seires. The Huffingtop post had a very excellent article on this. The context may be confusing, because it is response to Huffington post story regarding the series
Wow! That was a good lengthy piece. You covered all bases and phrased what I thinking regarding CNN and this "Black in America" series. CNN has been on the forefront on these pertinent issues and this network alone deserves to be credited with forwarding our debate on race, economic inequality and social injustice. Ironically I am guilty of watching inconsistently left leaning MSNBC, but hats off to CNN for discussing race and not just having white people with brown faces.
You also brought up the issue that of all sponsor black folks have McDonald's, not a Health Insurance agency or healthy supermarket ad, but prime-time marketing for genetically engineered fast food. An industry that should take an counting for the obesity epidemic in lower income black communities. McDonald's needs to expand its menu options and not use uneducated black folks to dump the poor quality chemically manipulated food that has been rejected by the white middle class. Its ironic, but not surprising that you do not see McDonald's at circulating during Kieth's Countdown or Abram's Verdict. What MNBC plays is BMW advertisement and Men's Suit commercials. So I am hoping marketers recognize that blacks influence more than the Fast food market and invest some time in our airing.
In regards to the hate mail or whatever that CNN received regrading the airing of this series, it is kind of a surprise to me. On one end I find hard to believe that white people would have naked hostility to celebrating and learning about the struggles and journeys of the most oppressed assimilated group.
A journey from indentured servants, into an oppressive slave based system, unto a terrorist rampage and lynching crusade that lasted nearly 100 years. A group of people who were not allowed think for themselves 5% literacy rate into a nearly 80% literacy rate in conjunction with forming colleges and universities all their own. Their history our history is worthy of discussion.
Despite CNN staying away from the painful history, (especially the stories preceding Brown Versus Board of education) the network was still able to capture the essence of the problems that face blacks in America. While not mythologizing the past figures and demonizing the present people like so black documentaries many do, they found a way to portray African Americans humanely, not just the oversimplified caricatures that we are accustomed to seeing.
This informative series of documentaries, talk shows and discussions was a fierce blow to white complacency and black middle class apathy. It avoided over-simplified pull your self up traditional Cosby arguments, but avoided pathological excuses of Russel Simmons and the like.