Fox TV's Bizarre New Cartoon Comedy Is a Minstrel Show, Pure and Simple

via AlterNet:



Fox TV's Bizarre New Cartoon Comedy Is a Minstrel Show, Pure and Simple

By Jasmyne Cannick, New America Media. Posted September 30, 2009.

Fox’s debut of the “The Cleveland Show” is a desperate attempt to work against the improved international image of black people after the election of a black president.



It could be because for the first time America has a black president and the First Lady is a sista, and together with their two beautiful black daughters overnight improved the international image of black people, let alone Americans. But leave it to the diabolical minds at Fox Networks to pick up where BET left off with the debut of their newest show “The Cleveland Show,” where in just 22 minutes they managed to portray black mothers as unmarried promiscuous sexual objects, black teenage girls as headed down the same path as their mothers, young black boys as sexual deviants, and black people period as being unable to speak anything other than Ebonics — all in the name of comedy.

Just like with the character Shirley Q. Liquor, a black unmarried welfare mother who guzzles malt liquor, drives a Caddy, and has 19 “chirrun” some of whom are named Cheeto, Orangello, Chlamydia, and Kmartina, who is routinely performed by a white man in blackface, there’s nothing funny about an animated television series that seeks to legitimize and reinforce every negative stereotype about black people during primetime to the delight of white audiences from coast to coast.

When President Barack Obama was sworn into office, it signaled a new beginning for American politics and the end of mainstream media news reporting as we knew it because every day for the next four years, at least, a black man was going to be the lead story on the evening newscast, and not for committing a crime, dunking a ball, or singing a song. In return, the news media sought to find balance by quietly, yet intentionally, removing black anchors and reporters from newscasts around the country. I guess they figured one Negro making news on a daily basis was enough without having to hear about from one as well.

All black or majority-black casts on television are a rare commodity. Blacks almost all but disappeared from broadcast television years ago, putting black actors and actresses on the endangered species list with their news media counterparts. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/media/142972/fox_tv%27s_bizarre_new_cartoon_comedy_is_a_minstrel_show%2C_pure_and_simple

Forget the agenda. The damn thing wasn't even one bit funny. Not one bit. I was actually shocked how bad it was.

I found the commercials for the show so offensive I didn't bother to actually check out the program.

Before or after this line?

MacFarlane is a supporter of the Democratic Party.<20> He donated $33,500 to Democratic causes such as the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.<81> In addition, he also donated $10,000 to U.S. President Barack Obama, and spoke at an Obama rally.

is looking to sell a product. He is going to sell the product that his customer "Fox" want to purchase. MacFarlane has rose to fame by pushing the boundaries of good taste so is it so hard to understand overstepping those bounds in the service of his customer.

No one is saying MacFarlane is a racist, they are saying that he is a Capitalist who has made a bad program. Happens all the time in Hollywood the sponcer rewrites the show. Cash the check and shut up or pack you bags and go elsewhere.

Rod Serling told a story about an episode of the Twilight Zone where the Captain of a Navy ship asks for a cup of coffee. The sponcer was "Lipton" and wanted it changed to a cup of tea. Can you see a WW2 navy commander asking for a cup of tea? In the end they cut the scene entirely because Serling wouldn't sell out.

Here's the pilot that Google spewed forth: http://www.hulu.com/watch/97541/the-cleveland-show-pilot

No thanks, I'm off it for good!

pnorman

Cheers Paul! Can you guess who I am? Hint: MEBA

My first guess would be LEW!

U & F
Paul

...and that my nom de plume is "Harry Monroe". Ring any bells?

Hope that helps narrow it down some more!

I am a fan of Family Guy and an even bigger fan of American Dad, but this show was not funny. Worse than Mike Judge's flop "The Goode Family." Terrible.

It would be nice for those of us without cable.

'Boondocks' should be required reading and viewing.

You think the reaction here to Seth MacFarlane's The Cleveland Show is bad, wait until they see THAT cartoon... I suppose they lose their shit with every episode of Family Guy or (horrors) South Park too. Wit is lost on the witless. :eyes:

I hope Cleveland moves back to Quahog when his show is cancelled.

I don't know if he can carry his own show. We will see if Cleveland Brown can win more viewers than his namesake NFL team wins games.

MacFarlane is not a racist, he treats all subspecies of humans with the same disrespect. It's sometimes known as satire, and is often lost on those with an axe to grind.

On last night's episode Cleveland's friends were making fun of him because he's too nice (a recurring theme in FG). The plot line was very race-neutral - Cleveland finds that his HS sweetheart who married the Macho Bad Boy learned over time that MBB is a self-absorbed oaf. Like that's never been done with white characters? As for Rallo's debauchery, one of Family Guy's main characters is a toddler who fancies gay porn. Another is a dog who likes to have sex with human women. And Peter Griffin is probably the dumbest character on TV. On American Dad, AD's Joe McCarthy-esque views are ridiculed constantly. Where's the racism?

What MacFarlane does do is extremely crude comedy - Animal House without all of the college degrees. Don't like it? Don't watch. But don't blast Seth for doing what he does. As for last night's Cleveland Show, it was kind of weak, but I will give it a few weeks before I give up.

I'm speechless...

to disguise the fact it's based on the Palin family?

that this was in development long before Obama was elected?