Initial Response to "Black in America"

Saw what I assume is the first installment in the CNN series "Black in America" tonight, a roundtable hosted by Soledad O'Brien. I'm really excited for this series, probably against my better judgment, because I'm genuinely interested in learning about the black community. I say against my better judgment, because I know that most MM coverage of anything is superficial and patronizing, to the detriment of fact and education.

With that said, I found this first episode enormously disappointing. Firstly, the arrangement of the town hall was disappointing. As far as I could tell, the entire audience and every speaker were black. I think for any meaningful enlightenment on the racial issues in our country, you need multiple races present for discussion, simply because no race is in a vacuum. Whites interact with black, Asian, and Latino people, black people interact with white, Latino, Asian people, etc. Because of this arrangement, it seems utterly asinine to allow one group to explain and analyze itself without outside contributions. I would hope any discussion of any racial group would include opinions and comments from other ethnicities, if only to record outside groups' impressions and questions.

Secondly, Soledad O'Brien was insufferable. This is a bit roundabout in its reasoning, but follow me on this one:

On Deadspin, there was a great post by Rick Chandler about Rick Reilly playing at a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe. Chandler, who was liveblogging the tournament from the crowd, noticed that Reilly, a journalist, was playing in the celebrity tournament. Chandler also noted that Reilly now has a $10 million contract with ESPN, and that he had numerous close connections with the athletes he wrote about. Some key excerpts:

"This is the new journalism: Celebrities writing about celebrities. Reilly occasionally had to put away his notebook to sign autographs; something with which I imagine Grantland Rice or Red Smith never had to contend...

...So Rick; how do you feel about the fact that you, a journalist, had taken [former Dolphin great Dick Anderson's] spot? When did the lines between athletes and the people who cover them become so blurred? And what entree did they serve in the players' dining room, where the rest of us lowly reporters were not allowed to go?"

The post is great, but the point here is well taken: today's news world is full of reporters who belong to the clubs and attend the parties of those they are supposed to cover. Many reporters choose to defend this practice by explaining that they have gained "access" with newsmakers, and that the public is supposed to trust that the constant flesh-pressing won't color their journalistic judgment.

During the roundtable, Soledad O'Brien seemed utterly inseparable from the speakers she was interviewing. Several times O'Brien applauded to responses, seemingly following the audience's lead. At the end, as the camera pulled back and the credits rolled, I could see O'Brien shaking hands, kissing cheeks, and hugging the town hall participants.

Now, let me emphasize this: it doesn't bother me that Soledad O'Brien might agree with a certain speaker's positions, or that she might even be friends with a number of the night's participants. What is galling is the idea that O'Brien, who I'm now using to represent much of the MM, would be offended at the suggestion that she is biased. In the sports blogging world, nearly every blogger wears his allegiances on his sleeve. I know that Will Leitch is a Cardinals fan, David Hirshey loves Arsenal, Orson Swindle (Spencer Hall) bleeds gater-blood, and Brian Cook, PBUH, loves Michigan. That's okay. I know enough to read between the lines when I read the writing of someone with whom I may disagree.

What makes the blogosphere and internet media so compelling to me is the detached quality. I know that VodkaPundit is speaking for himself, or that TPM is the reflection of Josh Marshall. They write their reactions, they communicate their specific knowledge and opinions. CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News each in their own way refuse to do anything beyond regurgitate enough information for the audience to feel informed without killing the golden goose of cocktail party invitations, games of squash, or any other cognoscenti get-together.