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No black dramas left on television

Thread ID: 13930 | Posts: 3 | Started: 2004-05-28

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kminta [OP]

2004-05-28 01:53 | User Profile

[I]You don't have to see the appeal of black television as you are not their audience. MTV has a television show called "Jackass" and continues to run a number of spin-offs of the show (i.e., "Viva La Bam" and "Wild Boys"). Should we assume that because these shows feature predominantly white characters that perform gross and ignorant antics that these are the type of things that appeals to whites? If this is the case, then the majority of Americans like garbage television as well. Or do we all have to watch the PAX network all night and trade bible stories.[/I]

[B][URL=http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5054030/]No black dramas left on television[/URL][/B] [B]‘Soul Food’ serves up last episode[/B]

The Associated Press Updated: 7:22 p.m. ET May 24, 2004

LOS ANGELES - The fifth and final season of television’s longest-running black drama, Showtime’s “Soul Food,” is serving up its last episode, leaving behind an uncertain future for the genre.

Based on the 1997 hit film of the same name, the multigenerational saga of one Chicago family has been one of Showtime’s most popular series, making stars out of Vanessa Williams (not the former Miss America), Nicole Ari Parker and others.

Fans held “Soul Food” viewing parties and the show’s official Web site amassed over 10,000 hits daily. But after the finale airs Wednesday at 10 p.m. EDT, there will be no significant black dramas left on the air.

So why is “Soul Food” ending now?

Showtime decided it was best “to go out on top with high ratings and high-quality storytelling,” said series executive producer Tracey Edmonds, although increasing production costs might have been a factor.

Yet Edmonds said the story line will be left “open-ended enough” so that another network could revive the series if it wanted to.

“This show speaks to its audience on a personal level, especially in the African-American culture. That’s because we have African-Americans writing for these characters, African-Americans directing episodes, reflecting their true lives and lifestyles.”

While it never came close to being as big a cable deal as something like “The Sopranos,” the NAACP Image award-winning series marked a turning point, said Ron Simon, curator for the Museum of Television and Radio in New York.

“’Soul Food’ represents the beginning steps of trying to answer the question: How do you deal with the new African-American reality on television?” he said. “It’s not dealing with stereotypes and the way (white people) think things are. It just shows the great potential of African-American drama on television.”

And for that, said Rochell Thomas, an associate editor at TV Guide, “Soul Food” deserves more credit from those who’ve dismissed it as a mere movie spin-off.

“The fact that it worked is what matters,” said Thomas, adding, “in general, dramas are having a hard time right now if they aren’t law or cop shows. It’s just that no one is willing to give a black drama a chance.”

She and others attribute this to an attitude among TV executives that black dramas don’t sell well in national syndication and overseas — markets where television shows typically make much of their profits.

Showtime President Robert Greenblatt, whose network is developing two new black dramas, said that argument is erroneous “until networks and studios have enough shows to really amass some real research on that.”

“To not access those characters and that culture in a dramatic form is just stupid,” he said.

[B]Shows need crossover appeal[/B] Todd Boyd, professor of USC’s School of Cinema and Television, questioned whether today’s benchmark of black success on television should be drama.

“Looking at the broad spectrum of television, there’s a different image you get, and in many cases black people have infiltrated spaces that are prominent and visible. It may not be dramas, but there is a certain visibility,” Boyd said.

But the reality of network television is that it is driven more by profits than social consciousness, so unless an “ethnic” show has crossover appeal to a wider audience, it will never achieve true hit status.

“Soul Food” did well enough for a pay-cable program, but it was never able to attract a significant white audience and therefore would not have been considered successful on a broadcast network.

“You have to appeal to blacks and whites in the audience,” said historian Tim Brooks, “and the black audience isn’t big enough if whites won’t watch, too. Whites certainly will watch black shows if they don’t feel excluded by it.”

“That may be part of it,” said director Paris Barclay, who was an executive producer on CBS’ defunct black serial, “City of Angles.” “But even if you have a show identified as a black show, just from the title, ’Soul Food,’ white people don’t want to sample it.”

Dee LaDuke, author of “Making Great Television,” agrees. She noted that white shows have become part of the “normal TV viewing experience” for black viewers, “but white people don’t themselves make (black shows) a first choice. Convincing the broadcast networks that these lives are as rich and sexy, tragic and funny as any that have succeeded on television ... is the next step for the reflection of race on television.”

[I]© 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.[/I]

darkstar

2004-05-28 02:14 | User Profile

The major economic question is: how many products you can sell at what price and with what 'trend' effect, vs. the costs of making a quality show. People who watch Jackass are considered to set trends for dumb males in America.

Economic growth might be helpful here, in this would tend to lead to a wealthier, better educated populace that could support more and better niche programming. But the major issue is motivating whites to challenge to foul Hollyvood social-network that thinks not merely in economic terms, but also in ones of cultural warfare. Ironically, this would probably lead to better black, Latino, and Asian programmes. Heck, it would even lead to higher quality programs aimed at Jews.

As it stands, it is multiracial people, Latinos, and Asians in the US, plus most of the 3rd world (inc. China) that seems mostly likely to derive long-term benefits from the current situation. Current Hollywood product furthers the destruction of whites, which creates what might be a useful power vacuum for these groups.

On the other hand, perhaps really very few groups benefit. Even these--notanly the Chinese--might have altruistic motives for wishing things to go better for whites.

Feric Jaggar

2004-05-28 02:27 | User Profile

[QUOTE=kminta]So why is “Soul Food” ending now?[/QUOTE]

Sure whites aren't all that interested but I'll bet the black audience was little more than the subgroup of black middle-class women.
[url]http://www.amren.com/963issue/963issue.html[/url] John Pike is senior vice president at CBS for late-night and non-network programming. In a discussion about programming he is reported to have said that blacks are an important, specialized audience for the following reasons: They do not have jobs and can therefore stay up to watch late-night TV. They enjoy comedy because they cannot follow an hour-long drama. They are a big network audience because, unlike cable, the networks are free. CBS is in the usual tizzy about "racism" and has promised a prompt investigation. (Lawrei Mifflin, CBS Studies Racism Charge, New York Times, Jan. 17, 1995)

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