“Hot Ghetto Mess:” Black Journalists Debate Stereotypes

By Dan Biederman

“Something is funny when we know about it. It’s a stereotype when white people see it,” screenwriter Sergio Mims said during a Sept. 19 panel discussion sponsored by the National Association of Black Journalists, Chicago Chapter.

The discussion: “Tired of Hot Ghetto Mess? Images of Blacks in the Media: The Good, the Bad, and the Inexcusable,” was held at a CBS 2 Chicago studio in Streeterville.

“Hot Ghetto Mess” is the former name of a TV show that airs on Black Entertainment Television. The show, which originally debuted in July under the name “We Got to Do Better” received the NABJ’s 2007 “Thumbs Down” award for its negative portrayal of blacks.

Other panelists included Emmy-winning film editor Barbara Allen, screen and stage actor Cedric Young, Kyra Kyles, RedEye columnist and correspondent, and Lance Williams, a professor at Northeastern Illinois University.

About 50 NABJ members and guests snacked on pizza as they listened to the discussion. Some in the audience nodded and murmured in agreement as the panel argued that the current portrayal of blacks in the media is largely unacceptable.

The moderator, Richard Steele, a host with Chicago Public Radio, asked whether depictions of blacks in the media have become stereotypical rather than funny. “I draw the line when you degrade my people, and my culture, and my history,” Allen responded.

Some panelists faulted networks such as BET for airing stereotypical content. Kyles noted that BET does not give viewers “the full spectrum of black life.” She called on the network to offer viewers more choices by uniting the best of old and new programming.

However, Mims said that African-Americans should not blame BET, but rather support networks that air more responsible programming. “If you’re really upset about BET, what you should do is support black stations that are more serious,” he said.

Panelists also encouraged the audience to support responsible depictions of blacks in films. Young encouraged black actors to only take roles in projects that depict blacks in a respectable manner. He urged them to be “fearless and selective.”

Young said that movie producers and executives should be held accountable for the depictions of blacks in films and on TV. Williams advocated holding the corporations that own movie studios and TV networks accountable for the portrayal of blacks in their programming.

Mims asked the audience: “Are you ready to support intelligent films?”

Other panelists emphasized the need for viewers to make their voices heard about the broadcasting choices networks make. Allen said viewers must support shows while they are airing, before--not after--they are cancelled. Allen also suggested that black viewers who are unhappy with a network’s programming choices can boycott. “We think we’re powerless, but we’re big consumers,” she said.

Young agreed. “We need to cultivate good taste. We must hold Hollywood to a higher standard.”

Mims’ and Young’s criticism of the “emasculation of the black man in the media” drew a cheer of agreement from the crowd. “I think we have enough clowns already,” Young said. “The culture of buffoonery is different from any other ethnic group,” Williams added.

Kyles warned about programming like “The Cosby Show” which, she said, gives a “sanitized” view of black life. She praised “Chappelle’s Show,” which aired on Comedy Central between 2003 and 2006, and other programs with “intelligent opinions.”

“Hot Ghetto Mess” was not the only show criticized. Panelists also cited others, including “Homeboys in Outer Space,” a sitcom that aired on UPN in the late 1990s, and “Flavor of Love,” a reality TV series featuring the dating misadventures of rapper Flavor Flav that recently aired on VH1.

Walking the Line

By Steven Cohen

Stereotypical depictions of African Americans are finding their way into the mainstream media, according to the Chicago Chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ). The group has something to say about it. A lot, in fact

On Sept. 19, NABJ analyzed "the good, the bad, and the inexcusable images" of blacks in the media at its monthly meeting held at a CBS 2 Chicago studio in Streeterville.

About 75 people--NABJ members, local residents, and a group of DePaul University student reporters participated in the two-hour forum. They heard a panel of black professionals discuss what black images mean to society and what must be done to change negative stereotypes.

Richard Steele, producer and talk show host for WBEZ-FM, mediated the panel that included: Sergio Mims, a film critic and the co-founder of the Black Harvest Film Festival; Barbara Allen, an Emmy award-winning editor, producer, engineer, and filmmaker; Kyra Kyles, columnist for the RedEye; Lance Williams, an assistant professor at Northeastern Illinois University; and Chicago-based screen and stage actor Cedric Young.

Steele asked them to explore the role of the consumer as the potential controller of the cultural market. Black Entertainment Television (BET), a well-known, all-black television channel, has been under heavy scrutiny for what critics call insensitive and racist portrayals of blacks. The NABJ panel noted that the scrutiny needs to be directed not only at BET for promoting the programming, but also consumers for tuning in, which perpetuates the problem.

“Some of the programming that is on BET, was, from the NABJ’s standpoint, unacceptable,” said Steele, alluding to the recent protests by the "Enough Is Enough: Campaign for Corporate Responsibility in Entertainment” at the home of Debra Lee, president and chief operating officer of BET.

In 2006 BET aired the highest rated and most-watched show in its 27-year history. “Countdown to Lockdown” chronicled the rapper Lil’ Kim’s last 14 days of freedom before she was jailed after convictions on perjury and conspiracy. This commercial success “speaks to the larger sociocultural plan…for dominant society to see blacks in a dehumanized way,” Williams told the audience.

The panel also discussed where the line should be drawn between genuinely funny humor and racial stereotyping.

“I draw the line when you degrade my culture, and my people, and my history,” Allen said. “Funny is subjective, but I don’t think you can find a group of any other people that would think degrading their history and their culture and things that happened to their people as funny. I just don’t see many Holocaust jokes being made.”

The panel asked the audience and media leaders alike to make conscious and responsible decisions by supporting networks that promote positive image of blacks and disregarding those that do not. “If something insults my intelligence, I have nothing to do with it,” explained Young.

Williams agreed: “There is a great opportunity to cultivate the critical consciousness of our young people…to talk about these images, about what’s on television, and its impact on society.”

As the five panelists gathered to discuss the responsibility of displaying images of blacks in today’s media, the announcement of the upcoming UNITY Conference – a mass gathering of 10,000-plus journalists of color planned for next July in Chicago – gave a glimpse of today’s issues and tomorrow’s hopes.

In her opening remarks, Brenda Butler, senior features editor for the Chicago Tribune and the president of the NABJ's Chicago Chapter, opened the forum by saying: “Next year is an election year, so you can imagine the excitement, in addition to the issues affecting the journalists of color in terms of diversity and jobs. It’s going to be an exciting time in Chicago.”

While the panelists expressed a need for more positive images of blacks in American pop culture, they offered realistic and practical advice on how to proactively create new images.

To enact change, Kyles said, “Do not just ignore [the problem, or] put your head in the sand. Do something about it, and go to the source to organize a movement.”

Black Journalists Blast BET at Chicago Panel Discussion

By Lisa Angelo

Chicago Public Radio Host Richard Steele moderated a heated discussion on the portrayal of blacks in the media at a Sept. 19 meeting of the Chicago Chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists.

"Images of Blacks in the Media: The Good, the Bad, the Inexcusable" featured five panelists, including an academic, local writers, a veteran actor and an outspoken media critic. The discussion highlighted the low points and triumphs of well-known black images in the media.

The panelists offered mixed opinions on Black Entertainment Television, which was given a “Thumbs Down Award” in August at the annual NABJ convention in Las Vegas. “BET’s ‘Hot Ghetto Mess’ is not social commentary, it just mocks those who have less than most,” said RedEye columnist Kyra Kyles. “How can they re-title that show ‘We Can Do Better,’ when BET clearly can’t?”

Earlier this year, BET introduced “Hot Ghetto Mess,” a show based on a website of the same name. It featured photos and video sent in by viewers to illustrate the show’s title. After public criticism, the network renamed the show--less than 48 before its debut.

While some panelists said BET missed an opportunity to raise standards, local media critic Sergio Mims defended its founder. “Bob Johnson was not a visionary – he wanted to make some money,” he said.

Lance Williams, a professor of inner city studies at Northeastern Illinois University, deflected blame from BET and placed it on its parent company. “Nobody talks about Viacom’s role in BET or protests at the chairman of Viacom’s house,” Williams pointed out, alluding to a protest earlier this month outside the home of Debra Lee, BET’s president and chief operating officer. Williams said that media giant Viacom’s silent ownership of BET is indicative of a fundamental social problem. “This is a socio-cultural phenomenon demonstrating the need of our dominant society to see black folks in a dehumanized way.”

He also cited BET’s highest rated premiere in history, “Countdown to Lockdown,” a reality program chronicling hip-hop star Lil’ Kim’s last days of freedom before going to prison for conspiracy and perjury. Williams found it offensive. “Why was this the highest rated program on BET? Because the dominant white society always needs to dehumanize to justify their behavior toward us, but unfortunately, we are starting to want to see ourselves like that,” he said.

Local actor Cedric Young said that in his experience with national television shows, “producers often ask writers to change reputable characters from black to white. Hollywood and the dominant media as a whole has a restricted image for black people.”

When Steele asked the panel when the line between humor and racial stereotyping is crossed, Mims had a quick response.

"Something is funny when we [black people] know about it, but that becomes a stereotype when white people see it," Mims asserted. “The real reason everyone is upset about ‘Hot Ghetto Mess’ is because white people will see this.”

During one of many exchanges with Mims, filmmaker Barbara Allen, encouraged a more positive portrayal of the black community.

“Humor might be subjective, but degradation is not funny,” Allen countered. “Media must take more responsibility, but we as black people must raise our own standards and demand quality.”

Panelists offered positive examples as well. Kyra Kyles cited Comedy Central’s defunct “Chappelle’s Show” and “The Boondocks,” currently running on the Cartoon Network, as steps in the right direction.

“Not everything has to be ‘The Cosby Show,’” Kyles proclaimed. She praised the two contributions for being more realistic. “We should have high quality choices, not just a caricature or Bill Cosby.”

The caricature portrayal, such as the show, “Amos ‘n’ Andy,” represented a “culture of buffoonery,” long established in black communities and stemming from the days of slavery, Williams said.

Panelists and audience members vocally agreed that while successful and different for its time, “The Cosby Show” was not a realistic portrayal of working black families.

Still, panelists collectively yearned for an everyday representation of black culture and identity that did not send them running for the remote. And more important, a way to foster a movement toward better black images in the media.

Ultimately, Steele asked how those in power could help young black people make a difference in media. “Think of media as a cultural producer,” Williams said, “and cultivate a critical consciousness among young people by using these negative images to teach them.”

Allen offered: “Look at what we allow our kids to consume. They think that’s what they’re supposed to be.”

Panelists encouraged the black journalists who attended the meeting to encourage the positive images they already see in the media by actively writing and calling the appropriate outlets.

“Back the good stuff,” Mims said.

Links:

NABJ

Hot Ghetto Mess

BET

Comedy Central

Boondocks

Reel Movie Critic - Sergio Mims