Since this topic is featured, I just wanted to share my thoughts...
This is not yet another rant about how young Blacks are portrayed in the media. We all have a fairly decent understanding of what that problem is. The question that always remains after those discussions is "what do we do about it?"
A good start would be to demand that representations of us are balanced, fair, and not simply just gimmicks to attract attention.
I think that BET had the opportunity to turn many young peoples' attention to the benefits and opportunities of attending an HBCU. Just about every HBCU graduate that I know has stories about what their college life was like, and how they grew intellectually and socially.
Unfortunately, this particular show was patterned after MTV's "Real World" which focuses on the relationships between the cast members, so this opportunity was lost. Entertaining, yes, but hardly a credit to our institutions.
There are those who would speculate that "any exposure of HBCUs is preferable to none". This is completely untrue, because if that exposure reinforces negative stereotypes about HBCUs and their students, I would prefer nothing at all.
Also, the contingent who say that programs like this are meant to be entertaining, and nothing else. I agree, and acknowledge that entertainment has its place but how long will we be content with settling for whatever impression the powers that be want to broadcast to the world? College Hill definitely met its responsibilities to BET as a successful commercial venture, but did it meet its responsibilities to us?
There are always decision makers who could, at least, demand to see the finished product before it airs. To think seriously about the message that we are conveying. From what I understand, many colleges' administrations feel the same way, and would not permit the show to be filmed at their campuses for this exact reason. As do the UVI administrators who, in retrospect, see the damage that has been done and want to make things right.
We are faced with the same decisions our grandparents faced with the birth of TV and cinema - do we allow ourselves to be subjected to degrading, stereotypical roles in order to break into the industry, or will we rise to the occasion as did Sidney Poitier, Bill Cosby, and so many others who saw firsthand the power and responsibility that mass media carries?
Posted By: Jon C.
Sunday, May 6th 2007 at 4:46PM
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