Next, on White Entertainment Television
I wonder what White Entertainment Television would look like? Would it have sitcoms with white actors? Music videos with white people? Talk shows geared toward “white issues”?
Oh yeah…what was I thinking? That sounds a lot like every TV channel prior to 1980 (when Bob Johnson founded BET). These idiots that go around bashing BET as racist are doing so for the wrong reasons. They think that it’s some racial double standard that black people get their own station, while whites don’t. What the flying doo doo, man? Are you listening to yourself? White stations? Last time I checked, you can flip on any channel on your TV today (muchless 28 years ago when BET started) and find ‘white entertainment’…whatever white entertainment looks like anyway.
Now don’t get me wrong, BET and Bob Johnson are probably more responsible for the further destruction of black culture than any one person alive today, but in theory, BET was a good idea.
Forget black and white for a moment (hard as it may be for some of you), most of us are entertained by TV shows because we can identify with a character or situation. Well, people that identified themselves as black didn’t have this opportunity outside of a one day a week appearance from Fred Sanford or Florida Evans. It helps refresh the self esteem to see other people like you doing well–and black folks didn’t have this on a regular basis like non-blacks.
There was a significant demand for a station devoted to black entertainment, and Bob Johnson tried his damndest to take advantage–and take advantage he did (I’ll leave talking about the ills of BET for another day).
In reality, having a station devoted to black entertainment could actually be considered racist (acting on our so-called racial differences is racist), but it’s a necessary racism. I don’t tend to call people racist if what they are doing is acting a way to prevent further racism, and a black entertainment television (done the right way) would have only helped our race issues in this country. Unfortunately, Johnson and his BET family did their little schuck and jive and couldn’t give two shits about what’s best for black folks–only what’s best for his bank account–so here we are with more College Hill and X-rated music videos instead of more Huckstables or Oprah. Ah well…sex sells and that guy made a mint.
No related posts.
I really liked this blog, you brought up a lot of issues that don’t come to mind when thinking of white/black television.
“They think that it’s some racial double standard that black people get their own station, while whites don’t. What the flying doo doo, man? Are you listening to yourself? White stations? Last time I checked, you can flip on any channel on your TV today (muchless 28 years ago when BET started) and find ‘white entertainment’…whatever white entertainment looks like anyway.”
In my opinion, this is where your point becomes muddy: “whatever white entertainment looks like anyway.”
“white television” was not created for the express purpose of excluding anyone. Nor, was it created for the express intent of catering to a single group of people who happen to share a skin color. Yes, mostly white people watch it… but, really, ‘white people’ MOSTLY do everything: there are simply and mathematically MORE of them. The very name “Black Entertainment Television” is exclusionary. National Broadcasting Company, American Broadcast Company, and Columbia Broadcasting System were not created to specifically pander to a particular ethnicity; BET WAS.
I don’t mind (and i actually SUPPORT) letting minorities, of ALL kinds, including atheists, have their own cliques and sub-cultures. Gay bars, churches, internet forums, Boy Scouts, television stations… whatever. As long as one is not causing harm, do what ye will. BUT… to say that BET ISN’T exclusionary, OR to say that it is OKAY for it to be exclusionary because “the white people have had ALL of the TV stations before this!” seems a tad myopic to me.
You know i like and respect you Zoc… but that doesn’t mean we can’t see different sides of the same coin!
I hear ya Mol, but I think you’re forgetting that normal network television up until fairly recently actually WAS VERY exclusionary. Blacks were not given fair chance to broadcast programming that would cater more toward black audiences. Well, here comes BET where you can finally take control of your own programming and you don’t have to worry about pitching your idea to another network.
I could see a network like BET existing, if for no other reason, than as a way to get programming catered to black culture on the television. Sure, other steps could be taken for this to happen, but if a man like Bob Johnson wants to put things together to launch an entire network to make this happen, then there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that….in theory of course.
ABC, NBC and CBS didn’t specifically market their networks to whites….but they didn’t have to. Like you said, most of America IS white. Bob Johnson didn’t have to label his network BET, but the fact that he chose to specifically target a black audience was no more wrong than HGTV targeting folks into homes and gardens. There comes a time when the demand for certain programming necessitates the creation of an entire network….especially if this programming is being rejected by other networks.
Now, I begin to see more of your point TODAY. While true equity doesn’t exist in the TV industry yet, we’re getting there, and we need networks like BET less and less. But I see no harm in starting your own network catering to an under served market. BET doesn’t really exclude anyone anyway. Non-blacks watch and appear on the network all the time. It only TARGETS folks that are into “blackness”. If you, Moloth, are into black culture, then that includes you too.
If i don’t know what “white entertainment” is, how on Earth would i even know what “black culture” is? lol…
..and i swear, if anyone says anything about fried chicken, watermelon or ’soul food’ (all of which *I* grew up on as a Southern boy), i’m gonna blow up the room!
“There comes a time when the demand for certain programming necessitates the creation of an entire network….especially if this programming is being rejected by other networks.”
i think you’re exactly right.
“While true equity doesn’t exist in the TV industry yet, we’re getting there, and we need networks like BET less and less.”
i’m very pleased that you see this, too.
i like to think that in 100 years, the civilized world will finally be over the bulk of its racial issues. we’re all just humans swarming over the surface of this planet… inter-breeding genes and cultures.
Moloth: “we’re all just humans swarming over the surface of this planet… inter-breeding genes and cultures.”
Bingo. And trying to keep these cultures and genes separate (as so many people fight everyday to do) goes against our nature…..and only because they’ve been conditioned by other humans to do unnatural things….to their own detriment (and to the fortune of people in power).
I don’t understand why you say it’s unnatural to keep cultures separate. You can’t tell me that people cherish their culture at the behest of people in power. Sure, cultures change over time but that just means that the attempt to maintain is futile, not unnatural.
Anyway, about this BET thing. I think Zaki you’re right about BET and HGTV being pretty similar, at least in this day and age. But I don’t think there’s anything racist about it. I’ve always considered racism to be using differences to judge. However, something like BET caters to cultures. Let’s be straight here – black people and white people like a lot of different things. Yeah, it’s not a universal truth but it holds for the majority. So unless BET – the last time I watched it was when Big Tigga was doing Rap City – is actively trying to be divisive instead of just giving a culture what they want, I have no problem with it.
A thought just occurred to me: is American Idol the Holy Grail of television programming? It seems to bring a wider demographic than any other show – black, white and whatever; old and young; rich and poor – because it sells what everyone likes: music. The contestants have been diverse. The judges are diverse. I think the winners have been diverse as well, indicating a lack of voter bias. While a lot of it seems to be based on looks and popularity, I think the most important aspect of it is that it rewards talent without even considering how the people are different. Which is what we all want, right?
Nice post Doruk,
I don’t think people are CHERISHING their culture as commanded by people in power, but rather that they are distancing themselves from other cultures as a result of it. People were conditioned to either fear or hate the opposing culture during slavery….not necessarily (especially in the case of blacks) to love your own culture. That’s what I’m saying is unnatural.
I think people would call BET racist because of its name. At one point (50 years ago), it would have been appropriate to call a network BET, but at some point (if we ever hope to move past race), I hope we’ll reach a point where blacks are just as free as anyone else to have programming on other stations….and BET would become just another niche network like HGTV. But at this point, there would be no need to call it BET since it’s more of a cultural niche, and not a racial one.
American Idol is one crazy animal, and the only thing I can say is…why didn’t I think of that?
NO U R THE IDIOT BET IS A RACIST NETWORK THAT HATES THE WHITE MAN FOR SOMETHING THT HAPPENED 400 YEARS AGO SUCK IT UP AND GET ON WIT UR DOPE DEALIN LIVE
Let’s see…you’re writing in all caps, you’re obviously angry at something or someone, you write like you’re either illiterate or five years old…and you’re calling ME the dope dealer?
Good luck with life, kid.
This came up in a conversation I was having with about 40 people in a class I took in college last semester. Bet does have a lot of racism in it. We as a group (whites being the minority) came to the decision bet should change or be taken off the air.
On another note I was having a conversation with a few close friends that if a wet was formed it should run things like ghost hunters, ncis, movies(old and new), and such…but that list would be better typed on a computer and not my phone.
Like I said in the piece, I think the initial idea behind BET when it started was great, but it’s certainly run its course and may actually be hurting it’s original purpose of giving blacks a deserving voice on television to level the playing field. It’s creating more division than erasing lines at this point.
But, the programming you described for WET is exactly what you see on every channel anyway, so I’m not sure how that would be any different than Spike TV or A&E or any other station that plays programming like that.
Mainly it would be a “geek” station but that’s cuz I like scifi. But the thing about mine yes they air on other stations but they are all on other networks. So I mean it would not be anything new but would be a stereotype of what “geeks” want. I would bring back a show that use to be on g4 called tech TV. I know it would have to have another name and cast but would be one thing that would run every night at about 9pm est. Granted name for the network would more then likely not be wet but you can see where I am going with this.