Politico.com reports that a veteran “right-wing provocateur” named David N. Bossie (pictured) has a movie coming out attacking Barack Obama. It’s called “HYPE – The Obama Effect.”It’ll be shown in a few movie theaters in September. The DVD will be sold online, and is already being advertised on Fox News.
A 4½-minute trailer is up on YouTube. It’s embedded below.
What strikes me about the trailer – apart from its low-budget, cut-and- paste feel – is the high visibility accorded to black conservatives.
Evidently Joe Watkins, Armstrong Williams, Ken Blackwell and Shelby Steele are in there to give non-Negroes “permission” to vote against Obama without the taint of racism.
Believe it or not, I’m cool with this.
It had struck me already, whilst consuming tons of cable-news analysis this election cycle, that black Americans are pretty well integrated into the political and media mainstreams.
We’ve got all the ideological bases covered. From Roland Martin, Jamal Simmons and Donna Brazile on the left... to Harold Ford, Juan Williams and Michelle Bernard in the center... to Amy Holmes, Tara Wall and Ron Christie on the right.
Plus respected newspapermen such as Clarence Page, Eugene Robinson and Bob Herbert getting lots of face time.
Was there anything close to this many black commentators on TV during the 2004 presidential campaign?
Believe it or not, I’m cool with this.
ReplyDeleteIt had struck me already, whilst consuming tons of cable-news analysis this election cycle, that black Americans are pretty well integrated into the political and media mainstreams.
Nah mang, look closer.
I'll believe the integrative hype when kneegrow talking heads from across the spectrum are broadly and deeply tapped to hold forth on issues other than race in black and white.
Until then, there happen to be more race talkers at the present moment because race talk is au current...,
Evidently Joe Watkins, Armstrong Williams, Ken Blackwell and Shelby Steele are in there to give non-Negroes “permission” to vote against Obama without the taint of racism.
ReplyDeletereally? because i think it's the opposite--to give African-Americans the freedom to vote against Obama. White conservatives, by definition, don't give a fuck about guilt over racism and are insensitive to hints of racism behind their actions. white conservations don't care whether they get lumped together with black conservatives.
there's a much bigger deal that i am not cool with--and read wiki on the maker of this film--which is this film is pure propaganda, and should be dismissed as such.
maybe you are a silver-lining guy, david, but i see this as a dangerous distortion of obama.
i don't care WHO takes part in it.
there's a much bigger deal that i am not cool with--and read wiki on the maker of this film--which is this film is pure propaganda, and should be dismissed as such.
ReplyDeleteHi, Maria. Well, you're certain right that this thing is "pure propaganda." Let us even say "hatchet job" (I like the retro sound of that).
But don't forget that it was a hard leftist (Michael Moore) who put us on the road of using movie theaters as a medium of partisan propaganda.
I defend Bossie's right to make his hatchet-job movie... and the right of anyone who wants to counter with more persuasive speech. (Hey... let's put on a show! We are the 'we' we've been waiting for!)
... there happen to be more race talkers at the present moment because race talk is au current...
ReplyDeleteTrue indeed, Craig. If Obama had fell off back when John Edwards did, we'd be seeing very few of these political experts "of color" right now.
But my original point was incompletely stated. It's not just the visibility of black pundits that signals the integration I'm happy about. It's where these pundits come from.
The cable nets aren't pulling niccas in off the street. They're finding folks who've been toiling in the political vineyards for years, unseen by the rest of us.
Amy Holmes, for instance, had been a speechwriter for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. Jamal Simmons had been press secretary of Wesley Clark's presidential campaign.
Tara Wall had been in the press operation of the Republican National Committee. Michelle Bernard was a partner in the D.C. law firm Patton Boggs.
It's the pool that the cable nets are drawing from that proves black folks' integration into all levels of the game.
(This phenomenon also reflects a coming-of-age of a generation of elite-educated African Americans such as yourself... most of whom are so used to out-competing white people toe-to-toe that they're not hung up on speaking as "representative black people" but as independent intellects.)
It's all good, Craig. And getting better all the time!
"They're finding folks who've been toiling in the political vineyards for years, unseen by the rest of us."
ReplyDeleteIf they'd only 'find' bona fide, experienced Black journalists, we'd really have something.
wouldn't you rather have expert black commentators speaking in forums that are worthy of them?
ReplyDeletethis movie trash talking obama isn't such a forum. they are being used simply because they are black.
as far as mib's comment--you ever met gene robinson? `nuff said.
this movie trash talking obama isn't such a forum. they are being used simply because they are black.
ReplyDeleteYeah, true enough.
Oddly, Armstrong Williams has recently declared publicly that he may vote for Obama. So I wonder what he's gonna be saying in this movie.
The cable nets aren't pulling niccas in off the street. They're finding folks who've been toiling in the political vineyards for years, unseen by the rest of us.
ReplyDeleterotflmbao, whew.....,
takes me back to those moments of toof-less, no talking, man on the skreet comedy gold that used to be the very grist of punditry on the 6-o-clock news back in the day - and which remains a staple of local talk radio.
Anyway, we gotta do better..., and like fam say - real subject matter experts and real hard hitting journalists have not made it into the spotlight quite yet.
^ You waitin' on the black Izzy Stone? Might happen one day.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, brothers and sisters got to get over. The Pat Buchanans and John Harwoods shouldn't be the only ones clocking major face time.
If I could get my act together, I should do a critique of these new black talking heads, one by one. Because many aren't impressive, I'll give you that.
I'm getting comfortable with Michelle Bernard's presence on "Hardball"... but I can't think of one compelling point she has ever made.
no, david, you should BE a head, not analyzing them. you got the cred and the smarts and the wit.
ReplyDelete"david mills, who writes the amazingly successful blog, undercover blackman, joins us now from our studio in LA..."
@maria
ReplyDeletei think it's the opposite--to give African-Americans the freedom to vote against Obama. White conservatives, by definition, don't give a fuck about guilt over racism and are insensitive to hints of racism behind their actions.
That may be true, but it's the white voters in the middle, so-called Reagan Democrats, who need reassurances that they're not being racist if they vote against Obama.
Speaking of Amy Holmes, I can't get enough of her. I turn off the sound -- I can't stand to hear what she has to say -- but I could watch her all day long. Mmmm.
ReplyDelete