Last Updated on February 6, 2022
“The art of conversation lies not only in saying the right thing at the right time, but in leaving unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.”
— John Charles Daly
There is a lot of wisdom in the words of the late Daly, a news moderator and host of the original “What’s My Line?” on CBS. Last night’s NBC telecast of a concert raising money for relief efforts for victims of Hurricane Katrina was one of those tempting moments. Unfortunately, hip-hop artist Kanye West failed to follow the advice.
The program was executed much like the concert for victims of the Indonesian Tsunami. Celebrities appeared two at a time in between musical performances. West was paired with comedian Michael Myers, whose apparent level of discomfort grew exponentially as West went into a political rant about the media coverage of and the government’s response to victims in New Orleans.
As reported in The Washington Post, here is West’s sometimes rambling rant as broadcast live:
“I hate the way they portray us in the media. You see a black family, it says, ‘They’re looting.’ You see a white family, it says, ‘They’re looking for food.’ And, you know, it’s been five days [waiting for federal help] because most of the people are black. And even for me to complain about it, I would be a hypocrite because I’ve tried to turn away from the TV because it’s too hard to watch. I’ve even been shopping before even giving a donation, so now I’m calling my business manager right now to see what is the biggest amount I can give, and just to imagine if I was down there, and those are my people down there. So anybody out there that wants to do anything that we can help — with the way America is set up to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off, as slow as possible. I mean, the Red Cross is doing everything they can. We already realize a lot of people that could help are at war right now, fighting another way — and they’ve given them permission to go down and shoot us!”
When it was again Myers’s turn to speak, he nervously fumbled through his next line and turned to West (who undoubtedly hoped West would follow the script the rest of the way through).
West didn’t. East coast viewers heard this additional statement from West, which was cut from the West coast tape-delayed broadcast:
“George Bush doesn’t care about black people!”
I can understand the frustration to a degree, but since I’m not black, many would argue that I can’t possibly comprehend what West and many other blacks are feeling in this country at this point. I wouldn’t presume to debate that.
West has the right to speak his mind, and his celebrity status certainly gave him a tremendous platform last night to voice his opinion.
That isn’t the point.
There is a proper time and a proper place to make such a statement. A concert designed to raise money is supposed to unite everyone for a common goal, not further divide by playing the race card.
By not resisting that tempting moment, West turned off some viewers who were looking for ways to help. A friend tells me that the telephones in his NBC affiliate’s newsroom lit up immediately after the remarks aired. One viewer, he told me, said she’d just donated $500 to the Red Cross and would never send them another penny. Such comments were also heard, apparently, at Red Cross call centers.
Of course, my friend took time to explain to the angry viewer that the Red Cross had nothing to do with selecting talent for the concert, that NBC likely had West there because he offered to perform as most of the other celebrities on hand did, and that even NBC didn’t realize he was going to go off-script in the live event. He told her not to hold West’s comments against the Red Cross.
NBC issued a similar statement later in the evening:
“Kanye West departed from the scripted comments that were prepared for him, and his opinions in no way represent the views of the networks. It would be most unfortunate if the efforts of the artists who participated tonight and the generosity of millions of Americans who are helping those in need are overshadowed by one person’s opinion.”
And in NBC’s defense, CBS News reports that though the broadcast was on a slight delay and censors were listening for profanity that would need to be “bleeped,” those censors weren’t following along word for word on scripts and therefore didn’t realize that West’s entire monologue was an ad-lib.
There’s an old saying in television newsrooms: for every viewer that calls to complain about something, there are at least another 10 who feel the same way but don’t call. At times, that ratio is an extremely conservative estimate.
How many people who hadn’t yet donated money to the effort were turned off by West’s rant? I can’t understand how people who seem to believe that there are no wealthy Democrats…that Republicans have all of the money. But for people who genuinely do believe that, I can’t imagine how a statement like West’s could be expected to encourage those with the means to actually give…which is what they were supposed to be there for.
I wonder how much money West cost relief efforts by not resisting that “tempting moment.” I wonder if he’s proud of himself.
In the final analysis, there are plenty of white people stranded there as well. Some of them had the means to evacuate but didn’t. At this point, even if their bank account is 100 times that of the average poor person in New Orleans, they’re no better off at all: rich and poor, black white, homeowner andand homeless, all are sitting in a mess with no power, no food, no water, waiting for help to arrive while their city is dying — literally — around them.
Last night shouldn’t have been about race, income, Republican, Democrat, or any other labels you’d care to throw around.
It should have been about all of them, every last one, have shelter, that’s all it should be about.
Please keep in mind one major fact – the poor and disenfranchised do not have a voice in the media. They are represented by a few select people allowed/selected by the media to speak.
Who do you think was “allowed” or “selected” to speak in the hurricane coverage? The media interviewed everyone they could who was willing to talk about how bad conditions were. When most everyone else was oblivious to how bad things had gotten in New Orleans, it was the media, by interviewing those victims, who GAVE them the very voice you claim they never get.
I thought NBCs response was very devisive and meant to discredit the artist as a oppossed to responding directly to what was stated. Interesting, notice how they attempt to pit everyone against him instead of leaving it “it’s not the opinion of….”
When the network’s effort to help raise money for relief victims is potentially damaged because angry viewers who are pissed off about hearing such a comment are suddenly no longer wanting to give, then OF COURSE the network is going to distance itself.
There is a time and a place for such comments. This wasn’t the time or the place.
Please keep in mind one major fact – the poor and disenfranchised do not have a voice in the media. They are represented by a few select people allowed/selected by the media to speak.
Three cheers for Kanye. No, it wasn’t eloquent and could have been stated much better but he said it. He stepped away from the corporate/government program and said what so many of us are feeling these days. Very interesting that it has all been covered over. No one should here such opinion is NBCs response by sensoring. But the world see what we are seeing and they are not fooled (well, not nearly as much as Americans are).
I thought NBCs response was very devisive and meant to discredit the artist as a oppossed to responding directly to what was stated. Interesting, notice how they attempt to pit everyone against him instead of leaving it “it’s not the opinion of….”
The networks can’t be trusted to deliver 100% of the truth and we have known this a while. No one should be surprised by Kanye’s feelings or the networks response.