America's ready for a black president , aren't we ready for a black news talk show host?

[Empowerer]

I don't have anything against white men - in fact, some of my best friends . . . - but it's a damned shame that in this day and age, white men still hold the monopoly in this arena. And it looks like NBC is going to continue their "No Blacks Need Apply" tradition with the selection of Tim Russert's replacement on Meet the Press.

It makes no sense that the only news talk show hosted by a black person on any network - cable or broadcast - is one hosted by a comedian. And while I don't have anything against comedians (even though none of my best friends is one), it's pretty insulting that the network honchos think it's appropriate that, despite the number of outstanding black journalists and former politicians (the pool from which the white hosts are drawn), the only black person given a hosting job on any of their programs is a foul-mouthed, albeit talented and funny, standup comic.

How ironic that while America has no problem electing a black man to conduct the nation's affairs and be leader of the free world, the networks can't seem to find one single black journalist to conduct an interview or lead a discussion.

Amazing.

[a kennedy]

1. got one, "Chocolate News"......

oh you mean a "real" newscaster....

[Orsino]

43. As far as realness...

...I'd put Dag up against almost any of the cable news idiots.

[mucifer]

2. I've complained to Air America that they refuse to hire Black or Hispanic hosts

for any of their major shows. It's pathetic. I listen to black talk radio in Chicago for diversity. www.wvon.com if you want to listen live.

[a kennedy]

3. I listen to The Power, XM 169 all Black all day....

it's great!!

[ellenfl]

5. doesn't air america

have al sharpton and jesse jackson hosting their own radio shows? and i listen to joe somebody-or-other on my morning drive. otherwise i would have to listen to imus. :puke:

ellen fl

[mucifer]

8. no those are syndicated go to airamerica.com all the weekday hosts are white.

Here in Chicago Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are both on black talk radio wvon. But, in some other cities stations that have AAR programming also have Jackson and Sharpton. AAR doesn't own any stations. They just produce radio shows.

[ellenfl]

18. so they're not on the radio and/or they're not black?

isn't the point that their voices get heard?

ellen fl

[mucifer]

47. I was complaining about AAR which calls itself "progressive" but isn't IMO

because they only hire white hosts for their major shows.

[tekisui]

4. Tavis Smiley's show on PBS is pretty good.

But, there should be more.

[-..__...]

6. Bryant Gumbel... Ed Bradley.

Are they dead and no one got the memo?

[BumRushDaShow]

7. Yeah - I'm afraid we got the memo about Ed.

He died in 2006.

Jesse Jackson ironically had a show on CNN back in the '90s ("Both Sides with Jesse Jackson").

[-..__...]

9. Too early in the AM...

or age is catching up with my memory.

I forgot Ed was dead.

[BumRushDaShow]

13. Yeah - I'm dying for the 2nd cup myself

:donut: :P

The trend has gone backwards once the Bernie Shaws and Carole Simpsons and Max Robinsons disappeared off the airwaves.

[Sebastian Doyle]

63. I doubt you'll ever see any of those three again.

Max Robinson was the first African American network news anchor, but unfortunately he passed away several years ago. Bernie Shaw most likely didn't agree with the right wing turn CNN took after the AOLTimeWarner takeover.

Carole Simpson is still around, but after that PUMA shit she pulled, I doubt she'll ever get a job on TV again, and she doesn't deserve one.

[EffieBlack]

28. What network news talk shows do they host?

Definitely let me know which one Ed Bradley is currently hosting

[Captain Hilts]

10. We aren't ready for a woman to host a game show, a sunday morning chat show, so...

there won't be a woman president for some time.

[Beacool]

12. Damn right about that, this election clearly proved that point.

Though I'm still hoping for 2016........

:eyes:

[glowing]

33. Meridith Viera does that Millionaire bit doesn't she?

[rvablue]

37. Viera was also the first woman on 60 minutes but left after only one year

because the job took her away from her kids too much.

[glowing]

46. It's always nice to hear when someone has the choice to spend more time with the

kids.. Unfortunately, most of us do not have such luxuries.. AND we should.. Maybe we can have a mommy march on Washington.. Perhaps then we would get some luxuries like a year off with pay for wiping butts and losing figures.

[tammywammy]

65. I believe Marlene Sanders and Diane Sawyers started before Viera n/t

[ErinBerin84]

52. well, I disagree with that sentiment.

Or that this year "proved it"...

[AspenRose]

11. I thought Gwen Ifill would have been a good replacement for MTP

since she used to work for NBC back in the day

[Doctor_J]

14. are you forgetting Larry Elder?

:eyes:

[BumRushDaShow]

15. Roland Martin

I forgot about him. It will be interesting to see if CNN would give him a permanent show since he was featured prominently (and simulcast from radio) during the election cycle.

[me b zola]

16. Michael Eric Dyson

I could listen to him for hours and want more. I'd love to see him get a show on msnbc or cnn--or host a round table Sunday morning show on one of the networks.

[Armstead]

17. Welll, it's partly a matter of definitions

Forget Meet the Press....That's gonna go to one of the bland insiders like David Gregory.

As for the rest, while there aren't any Black talk show hosts on cable news or the nets, there is a lot of people of color on the air.

That includes many of the news anchor positions on CNN and MSNBC and (sorta) Fox. While they are not technically talk show hosts, they do a lot of the on-air interviewing and hosting. Also there are many regular commentators of color, including ubiquitous talking heads like Michelle Bernard and Eugene Robinson.

[msongs]

19. no black hosts on BET???? nt

[Armstead]

20. I was referring to cable news networks

BET is Black Entertainment Television.

[Jennicut]

21. CNN actually has many AA news anchors all day long and MSNBC has Tamryn Hall

Faux? None.

[Tom Rinaldo]

22. Remember Bernard Shaw at CNN?

He was their top news man for years, going back into the 80's.

[Jennicut]

23. Yup. He was there for years.

I like Don Lemon, he is always funny and keeps the news interesting.

[trof]

55. I wasn't a fan but he was head and shoulders over Wolf.

[Empowerer]

29. Anchoring a show or appearing as a commentator are different than hosting a regular talk show

Night and day . . .

My original point stands - not one of the network news talk shows has a black host. And their black guest appearances are very sparse, as well. The National Urban League did a study about this a few years back and showed that more than 60% of the broadcasts of the Sunday morning talk shows had no black guests at all. www.nul.org/publications/policyinstitute/Apartheid_Report.pdf

They have improved a little since then but not much.

[Blu Dahlia]

32. CNN does a much better job with diversity

[rvablue]

36. Don Lemon is an AA weekend anchor at CNN..............

I wish they would put him on on the weekdays....he's one of my favorite newscasters.

And I know this thread is about anchors/hosts but there is that other AA reporter at CNN whose name totally escapes me but he did one of the finest jobs during Katrina and other stories in the south, but of course, got ignored for the prince of CNN Andy Cooper.

[JI7]

70. CNN has many minorities and women

[uponit7771]

24. It's the EXECUTIVE EDITORS of these networks who are all old white men. No diversity at THAT level

[dipsydoodle]

25. We don't have such issues in the UK

fortunately.

[NYDem Observer]

27. She's black?

[dipsydoodle]

30. I'm not sure why

you would differentiate between black and Asian. You'd also need to recognise that in the UK Asian refers to the Indian subcontintent only. I'd say that most blacks and Asians in the UK were born here anyway. The only prerequisites for newsreaders etc is that they be both presentable and able to speak clearly. Whether or not they are white has got sfa to do with anything and that is what I was trying to convey.

Sir Trevor McDonald is definately black and exceptionaly good at his job - hence the knighthood he receieved.

[AspenRose]

56. From BBC I like

[dipsydoodle]

57. I don't recognise her

Do have her name ? Is she a newsreader on BBC World which we don't need to get in the UK.......lol.

[AspenRose]

64. Mishal Hussein

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mishal_Husain

[dipsydoodle]

69. Thanks

Yes - UK born which in my world makes her as english as me. As I'd thunk she's on BBC World which we don't get but they do rotate presenters from time to time so maybe she'll be back on our normal Beeb News sometime. :hi:

[Clio the Leo]

26. You mean like Ed Gordon for MTP? I LOVE IT!

Ed Gordon did an interview of Barack some time back that I am having a hard time finding if anyone has any ideas.

[psychmommy]

44. yummy ok, i pick him. he's a bet alum.

[Clio the Leo]

54. And he's ALSO a good journalist. This was one of the rare times...

... I didn't choose based on looks. lol

[Blu Dahlia]

31. I think they should have tapped Colin Powell

I loved his appearance on MTP.

[Adsos Letter]

34. Back when CNN started...

they had Bernard Sanders and a black female (whose name I can't remember, but I think she is in the Sacramento area now).

Sanders was a prime-time guy for quite a long time, iirc.

[Poiuyt]

35. Not black, but my favorite news show is hosted by an Indian

CNN's Fareed Zakaria

[OnyxCollie]

38. Alison Stewart used to fill in for Keith Olbermann.

I have heard her recently on NPR's "Talk of the Nation."

[Lerkfish]

39. Arsenio Hall, Majic Johnson both had talk shows.

oh, you meant news talk shows, sorry.

[progressoid]

40. Bernard Shaw

Bernard Shaw (born May 22, 1940) is an American journalist and former news anchor for CNN from 1980 until his retirement in March 2001.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Shaw_(journalist)

[Adsos Letter]

61. Yes! That is the guy I was referring to up-thread....

but I mis-identified him as Bernard Sanders :blush:

Do you happen to recall the black female who held a prominent anchor slot in CNN's early days?

[mkultra]

41. no, brown people are ugly.

[Orsino]

42. Well, I was hoping that only we white people are that dumb, rich and elitist.

But I'm all for equal "opportunity," such as it is.

In the meantime, watch Comedy Central's Chocolate News.

[sohndrsmith]

45. like Tavis Smiley? Plus, I thought Ifill was on the short list...

...and of those on their short list, I would have chosen her hands down over Gregory, Todd, Mitchell or Brokaw.

I don't think she is the best pick of all, but she would be the best pick out of those choices and she's the one I respect as a journalist of this lot as well.

(Edit: I didn't know - or forgot - Ed Bradley had passed. Damn. He was awesome).

We all have favorite journalists/pundits/political personalities, and Eugene Robinson is one of my absolute favorites. As is Roland Martin for very different reasons - they're very different people and thinkers and I love both. But I'm not sure I would pick either of them for the MTP host - but that doesn't diminish what I do appreciate about them.

I think you're right that there is a majority of white men in many white collar positions, and we have a long way to go with that. But I don't think there is a "Black's Need Not Apply" mentality about it, and I really hope that's not just naivete on my part. CNN seems to have more black hosts/anchors than msnbc, but I could be wrong about that, too.

I wish there were more Native American, Hispanic, etc. high profile news personalities. And those with disabilities, too. Steven Hawking certainly has a far more functional mind than I do...

Hasn't there been far more progress for blacks in the news/media industry than many other minority/ethic groups? No, it's not even, not by a long shot. Nor is it for women. But there has been significant progress and I don't see that reversing anytime soon, thank goodness. Personally, I would like to see the same level of progress for other groups, too.

If we want equality and fairness in high level jobs, we need to start with equality and fairness in giving our children better care, health care and education in their earliest years and throughout they're school years - including college. Everything hinges on education and we have SO dropped the ball on this - especially with poor and minority groups. Adults can't compete or achieve if they have only half the tools (or less) available than others do when they reach adulthood. Education is the ultimate equalizer, seems to me - and we just seem to ignore that.

I could be wrong, I'm no expert and I've done no formal research, but I do think this is a massive (and primary) problem regarding minority opportunity, among other things.

There was someone on the news yesterday who lives in Pakistan (a US official or envoy of some kind, I don't recall) and he basically said that the greatest threat against the US was illiteracy. (I looked up - I usually don't watch television, I listen to it). Illiteracy is rampant and education horrific, so many young Pakistanis are far more easily lured by terrorist groups - if that's they're only prospect, is it hard to understand? If they had a choice between, "I can feed/protect my family because of my degree in X or I can feed/protect my family with training through a terrorist faction" don't you think there would be fewer recruits? It's a drastic and somewhat different analysis, but it hits the same core issue - we need to invest in our kids, because limiting their choices limits everything and always creates inequality. Plus it's detrimental to national issues - on all levels.

[Dammit Ann]

48. OPRAH. HELLO. Only the most powerful "talk show host" EVER.

:P

[political_Dem]

49. I agree.

Putting people of color into authoritative spots in the MSM (whether it is an anchor, pundit, or analyst) would change how the news was covered as well as break down the white privileged mindset in the MSM. Despite the faces of color you see on the news, there is still an overwhelming perception of reportage that is streamlined into what appeals to the dominant culture.

Consequently, we (as viewers) wouldn't have to put up with not only an omission of stories that are less centered on stereotypes; we'd also get to hear some different perspectives that refute a white-privileged discourse that daily announces what the American citizenry (if not the world) must think about people of color.

I still think that if the network heads of the MSM don't become more diverse, then the rest of the media won't reflect a true depiction of America as a multi-cultural place.

[freestyle]

50. It seems like all the Black hosts are on PBS and NPR.

Gwen Ifil and Tavis Smiley (PBS) and Michelle Martin, Adora Udoji and Farai Chedaya (NPR), and some folks I probably left out all host weekly (PBS), or daily (NPR) shows. There is poor representation at more commercial stations, but knowing where to look is more than half the battle. Support your local public broadcasting stations.

[No Elephants]

66. Amen to that. PBS is the only source of info I even halfway trust.

[jesus_of_suburbia]

51. I'd like a Lesbian Latino myself. OR

Lesbian African American or

Gay Latino or

Gay African American

[Catherine Vincent]

53. "I don't have anything against white men - in fact, some of my best friends . . . "

:rofl:

[ddeclue]

58. What about Make It Plain on Sirius Left?

It's been on the air for a year now in the afternoons...

:shrug:

[EffieBlack]

59. I don't think the OP was addressing talk radio

It seems directed to the television networks and cable outlets which don't have any talk shows with a black host except the one with D.L. Hughley.

[Cha]

60. BET's Ed Gordon is great! I'd like to

see him have a more mainstream news show now that you mention it.

[tomreedtoon]

62. Ted Turner once gave Jesse Jackson a talk show. It sucked.

The ol' blowhard (by which I mean Jackson) gathered no audience. He also didn't make any committed stands that I could determine.

I wish, though, that Tom Joyner's TV show had stayed on the air. He made points and he was entertaining.

[EffieBlack]

67. Ted Turner once gave Tucker Carlson a talk show. IT sucked. That didn't stop anyone else

from hiring other white men to host talk shows.

So what's your point?

[tomreedtoon]

68. My point is, blacks HAVE hosted current affair programs.

So what's all this desire for someone to be given a show? I seem to recall a show called "America's Black Forum" that's been on TV for decades, it seems.

[EffieBlack]

71. You can't possibly be serious . . .

The fact that you would even ask such a question is pretty striking.