Black. White. GA by JJ.
Posted in General, Politics by guest
Guest Article by JJ
Lately I’ve been hearing a lot about a new reality show called Black. White., which apparently set a record for the highest rated debut in cable programming history with 3.98 million viewers. For those unfamiliar with the show, it involves two families, one white and one black, who agree to live together for six weeks and “trade races” (by way of make-up and prosthetics) in order to experience everyday life as a member of the other race. The purpose of the show, allegedly, is to discover the truth about racism in America.
And what did we all discover as a result of this brilliant experiment? You’ll never guess. Nothing short of the truth of course… that racism exists in America. Shocking, I know. I can hardly believe it myself.
Also, in other breaking news: water is wet, the sky is blue, and Tom Cruise is a raving lunatic. So tell me something I don’t know, and forgive me if I don’t applaud you for “uncovering” something I’ve been aware of my entire life.
So what is the real point of the show? I’m not really sure. Other than pissing me off and generating high ratings for the network, I don’t really think it accomplishes anything. But at least Ice Cube (co-creator) and the nice folks at FX are having fun stirring the “racial tension” pot (as if we needed anymore of that after Katrina).
The thing that infuriates me is that, apparently, the producers went out and found the most retarded, naïve white people on the planet to participate in the show. They selected this white couple, who honestly believe that racism doesn’t exist, and in the first episode, the white guy actually drops the “N-bomb” right in front of the black guy, and then can’t understand why the black guy is so offended. WTF?
That pisses me off for two reasons: (1) I am white. I am not racist. I don’t use that word, and I could never be stupid enough to think it would ever be okay to do so in front of a black person. I could never have dreamed it would possible for an entire race to be so grossly misrepresented, but after seeing this douche bag put his foot in it, I’m starting to wonder; and (2) I can’t help but wonder if that wasn’t all part of the plan to begin with… to get ignorant white people on the show because, maybe just maybe, someone’s got an agenda. Honestly, after watching the show it just seems that the focus is really on whether white people are still prejudice against black people. And I’m not sure if that’s really fair.
On a side note, I would like to say that I have no idea how this little experiment actually worked. The participants of the show just looked way too weird in their make-up, like aliens or something. I don’t think the transformation from one race to another ever looks natural even if it is done by a highly-qualified team of theatrical make-up artists. The best one can hope for is to try and not look creepy and disturbing, which I think is impossible. The show’s credibility depends greatly, if not completely, on the effectiveness of the transformation process, and it’s hard to believe that these people actually “passed” as members of the other race in everyday life situations. It just didn’t come off as believable at all.
March 26th, 2006 at 9:42 am
I haven’t seen the show yet, unfortunately.
I will agree that racism definitely still exists in America, although it is mostly with old people. I hardly ever notice racism with anyone under the age of 50, but once you go over 50 there’s definitely some problems.
How old are the people in the families on the show? Do both families live in the same house together?
March 26th, 2006 at 6:50 pm
I will disagree with you, however, on the fact that the show is interesting. I think it is incredibly interesting, even if not done perfectly, to see this concept put into action. I’m certain ratings will remain high as long as the show remains somewhat watchable.
March 27th, 2006 at 2:24 pm
I haven’t seen the show so I shouldn’t comment but I will anyway.
“generating high ratings for the network”
That is the point of all shows on TV.
Ice Cube cracks me up. He went to a good high school but continues to cast himself as the misunderstood or angry black guy. The high school he graduated from just won the state academic decathlon competition this year and is a favorite to win nationals. One girl got a perfect score on the ACT and SAT this year. When he went there, it was just as competitive in the academic decathlon contest.
The same teacher has coached the academic decathlon team then as does now. The teacher was well known for riding his pants about half way up his chest. This was when kids first started to let their pants sag half way down their butt. Surprisingly, this half way down the butt trend has continued. I thought it would have gone out of style by now.
The school has produced many big time actors varying Pez (I think that is his name on The 70’s show) to Phoebie on Friends to Jenny in Forrest Gump. And the school keeps producing top athletes too. When Ice attended the school, a guy who later won a gold medal in track graduated the same year. The starting point guard on this year’s UCLA basketball team as well as the starting receiver on this year’s USC football team graduated from the school.
There is no doubt that racism still exists in the US. I was very surprised when one day I was walking back to my car from class at a UC school when some dumb bitch trying to park her car yelled the n word at a black girl who the dumb bitch claimed took her spot. It surprised me to see such stupidity on a college campus, but I should know better.
March 27th, 2006 at 3:25 pm
Ha. The simplist part of the article, generating high ratings, passed me by.
Yes, this is the point of all tv and I suppose a show that generates high ratings clearly is interesting to people, and thus is a good TV show. Right?
It may not be the most wholesome TV out there, and there definitely may be some problems with the show, but if it interests people, isn’t that all that matters when it comes to being a good TV show or not?
March 27th, 2006 at 3:52 pm
Well of course high ratings are the goal of any network. Having said that, per the creators of the show, the true purpose of Black. White. is to “uncover the hidden truth about racism in America”, which is total bullsh*t. What’s there to uncover? The true purpose of the show seems to be convincing America that all white people are racists and all black people are discriminated against, which just isn’t true.
There’s nothing wrong with trying to generate good ratings, but call it what it is. Don’t try to package the show as some sort of great educational learning tool that is somehow going to benefit society. It won’t. As I said before, if you watch the show, you can see that the focus is on whether or not white people are still prejudice against black people, and I think that’s a little unfair. There is racism on both sides and that’s a fact. So show both sides or none at all. Otherwise, you’re just stirring the pot (and generating really great ratings!!!)
March 28th, 2006 at 9:54 am
I don’t think this is any different from shows like “Joe Millionare” that were supposed to show people overcoming obstacles (such as falling in love with a ‘prince’ that actually turned out to be half construction worker, half underwear model) for love. The purpose of that show was really just to entertain us, by embarrassing gold diggers.
As for the racism, I would give the show time. Perhaps we’ll see it on both sides, eventually.
March 28th, 2006 at 10:12 am
And I disagree with your conclusion that high ratings equal a good TV show. I mean, if I created a show where we were dropping babies off of buildings, I’m sure that people would be interested and the show would no doubt get high ratings, at least the first show anyway. That doesn’t mean we have a good TV show. I think that’s what has happened with Black. White. The initial curiosity resulted in high ratings of the first show. However, I predict the ratings will decrease sharply going forward. I just think that this particular show, which deals with a topic that is extremely sensitive in America, has been done in a very irresponsible manner, and will ultimately worsen the situation in this country. And that’s a shame, high ratings or not.
March 28th, 2006 at 10:13 am
Hopefully, I am proven wrong.
March 28th, 2006 at 11:34 am
I have mixed feelings on this issue. On the one hand there are tons of people in this country that think that race is not a problem in this country at all. This group of people makes up a much larger portion than I think you realize, JJ. So in light of that I think the show is good. It is much like a science experiment to prove to people that racism exists. That being said, it is not true science because it is being set up by a tv show that is motivated by ratings and profits. If it were a true experiment the participants would need to be chosen at random, instead of going through an intense interview process. This, of course, is not possible because you can’t pick random people off the street and force them to do this show. Even if you picked people who volunteered for the show your sample group is still biased. The show has a definite agenda and they can cut and edit their footage to say things that they want to say, even if what actually happened doesn’t exactly support that. So, in my opinion, this show is valuable in that it is attempting to show people that racism is still a problem (since many people think it is not), but it is a mistake to point to this show as definitive scientific evidence, because there are factors that make it an invalid study.
March 28th, 2006 at 12:09 pm
It’s on at 10pm on wednesday… I think I’ll watch it to give a real opinion.
March 28th, 2006 at 2:43 pm
Steve writes, “On the one hand there are tons of people in this country that think that race is not a problem in this country at all. This group of people makes up a much larger portion than I think you realize, JJ.”
We’re going to have to agree to disagree here. I think the group you mention is actually much smaller than you realize. Even if race doesn’t effect certain people individually, I believe that most people are still aware of the fact that race is an issue in many parts of the country, even if its not right in their backyard. If they are honestly unaware of that fact, then they live in a fantasy world.
You also say, “it is a mistake to point to this show as definitive scientific evidence, because there are factors that make it an invalid study.”
I completely agree with you here, but I fear many will overlook that fact and will be left thinking, “See there, I knew white people were racists” instead of seeing the whole picture.
March 28th, 2006 at 11:12 pm
I don’t have statistics from a legitimate study to back up my claim that a large portion of the population no longer thinks race is an issue in this country. I’m just going off of the overall impression I’ve gotten throughout my life; so I admit, there is room for error there. However, it’s not like I live in a town way out in the country; my home town has developed at a crazy rate over the past decade and this development has brought some incredible diversity with it. I come from the uppermiddle class suburbs of my town, so my exposure to too many other view points was restricted somewhat. My high school did have more minority students than it did white students by the time I graduated. I only say that to make the point that I was not completely shut off from a diverse crowd.
March 29th, 2006 at 1:36 am
The more pressing conflict is going to be Blacks vs. Hispanics, not Black v. White. In CA this has already started in the jail system and high schools.
March 29th, 2006 at 1:44 am
TV isn’t out there to give viewers a moral education. When I went to Chicago a few years ago, one of the coolest things I did was go a taping of the Jerry Springer show. Look how popular pay per view professional wrestling shows are. Then look back a few years and see how popular shows like The A Team were during their run and you’ll soon see that TV produces a lot of crap. Issues of race might be a sensitive issue in America but this show sounds like more junk on TV. It will just get lost in the mix. No big deal.