After weeks of controversy, dropped sponsorship and a last minute name change, BET aired the series premiere of "We Got to Do Better," formerly known as "Hot Ghetto Mess."
For starters, the show was a hot ghetto mess. The title change made the day before the show, did nothing to save the show from its ignorance. HGM--as I will call it despite the title change and because it is the better abbreviation of the two—takes viewers on a 30-minute ride through the underbelly of society where Ms. Peaches sings about loving chicken neck bones and white bikers blow prophylactics up over their heads. In between these ridiculously ghetto clips, HGM attempts to edify people through a segment called "Hot Ghetto Mess Street Walking." The HGM street-walker asks random people simple black history questions, but then makes it look like white people have more knowledge--or at least more confidence in it--than most black people.
And so the show proceeds with this mix of ghetto-ocity and edutainment hosted by Charlie Murphy, the brother of Eddie, and another reason not to take the show too seriously." After wasting 27 minutes of my time, I was stopped dead in my tracks by an animation-skit called "Bid 'Em In" by Oscar Brown. Brown plays a slave auctioneer selling a black woman into servitude. He captured the slave trade from the Middle Passage to the stage where men and women where sold as chattel and considered nothing but workers and machines of procreation for their owners.
At no point during the show was I able to take a more introspective look at the state of our society until that moment. Watching Brown's cartoon made me cringe all the more at the fact that we could find no better source of entertainment than to watch each other fall. And that is what "We Got to Do Better" is all about. It's about watching a nation of people fall for our entertainment without providing a solution. Granted, I don't even know what the solution is, but I know that it won't be figured out by airing the dirty laundry without trying to clean it first.
I didn't laugh during the show, because I was sorely disappointed that BET would consider this a viable form of entertainment. A few weeks ago, I said that BET has risen to the occasion with their latest show, "Baldwin Hills," but I must say that they have fallen back down the ladder of shame with the advent of "We Got to Do Better." So before you endeavor to watch this show, I challenge you to ask yourself: Do you want to be part of the problem or part of the solution?
Add to Del.icio.us
Add to Technorati
Add to Digg
Add to Newsvine
Add to Facebook
Add to StumbleUpon
Subscribe
It's too bad that BET programming can't embrace a broader vision for our people. Perhaps it reflects this new president of programming Reggie Hudlin. It might be worth it to reevaluate the direction which is somewhat of a flagship into the cable community. Hopefully BET, and Mr. Hudlin will take this message from the greater percantage of viewers that we want better programming. Something that we'd sure like to see come from BET.
I guess HGM was being aired for the black ignorant people of our race who would backstab their brother or sister with their sometimes house slave mentality.
I havent watched this program HGM and based on the majority of comments, it would have been just another one of these network shows that is a waste of TV air time. (just like Bobby Brown and that other idiot show with Flavor Flav).
I guess I should ask? What age group was this show geared for? Here we have, supposedly, one black major network and everytime I turn it on late at night I see booties shaking as if they just walked off of Times Square.
Ever since they took Tavis Smiley off the time slot I use to watch, BET has nothing to offer me anymore. The only thing worth watching was Comic View or Gospel but then that might have been hypocritical too.
I grew up during the era when I had to wait for Saturday to watch any animation programs,when the FCC was more stringent on what was shown on the air. (Just to give you an idea of my age range). It just goes to show you as a people offline we still put the ignorance in the driving seat online. They might as well run Amos and Andy or StepinFetch shows if this is what their programming staff is all about. Yeah Right!!!! What they should show for comedy is re-runs of Richard Pryor, Flip Wilson, Redd Fox and more.
Not even on the regular networks can anyone come up with any positive creative brand spanking new ideas. Even these reality shows with people trying to survive was a shake my head gesture. I hope we get it right soon because we've had plenty of time since Martin Luther King passed.
THE THING THAT TRUELY PISSED ME OFF IS THE FACT THAT THEY HAVE A BLACK MAN HOSTING THIS VERY IGNORANT SHOW. I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE THAT THIS STUPID SHOW AIRED AT ALL. I WAS WATCHING THE SHOW WITH MY SON, HE'S ONLY 12YR OLD, AND HE SAID THAT HE FELT REALLY EMBARRASSED TO WATCH IT. BUT IT WILL NEVER BE SEEN IN MY HOUSEHOLD AGAIN. THAT WAS TOO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It wasn't funny! It was an embarrassment to everyone in the room. Although Charlie Murphy's getting paid to host the show, it appears as if he's uncomfortable hosting it. I'm sure BET can find something better to air. I agree with the comment posted by J. Hutchinson, show re-runs of Flip Wilson, anything else but that mess.
this post was funny as hell: http://averagebro.blogspot.com/2007/07/better-programming-dont-bet-on-it.html
Post a Comment
By submitting these comments, I agree to the beliefnet.com terms of service, rules of conduct and privacy policy (the "agreements"). I understand and agree that any content I post is licensed to beliefnet.com and may be used by beliefnet.com in accordance with the agreements.