For years, the media has portrayed many African- Americans as criminals, gangbangers, welfare recipients, sex and drug addicts, and other unsavory characters.  This negative coverage is part of the reason why there is a negative image of African-Americans. More importantly, there’s another thing at work here: It is not so much what others think of us, but what many of us are thinking of ourselves. African Americans have limited control of what they watch, yet Statistics show African Americans watch a lot of television.

• Nine out of ten African American households subscribe to cable and/or satellite TV services.
• African Americans watch 74.4 hours of cable television programming per week.
• African Americans watch 50% more television than any other segment of the population.
• African Americans spend more than four billion dollars a year on cable television services.
• African Americans are broadband cable’s fastest growing market segment.
• African Americans represent 25% of all premium cable service (HBO, Showtime, Etc.) subscribers, subscribing at twice the rate of any other market segment.
• African Americans spend a majority of their family’s entertainment dollar on cable services.
• African Americans watch cable news network’s 28% more than any other group, seeking an alternative to the stereotypes perpetuated by broadcast news.

Which media do various ethnic groups rely on more heavily for news?

We have a whole generation of young African-Americans thinking that the only thing they can be is a professional athlete, actor, singer, rapper, comedian, or gangster. These roles constitute most of what we see of young African-Americans in the media. There have been improvements in the media over the years, but a lot of damage has already been done.  The negative images are unconscious stereotypical traits that are embedded deep in the mind.  Thus an African American President with and Ivy League education or any “successful Black” can’t erase the negative images, because their associated with “Whiteness” and not seen as typical of their race.

Many young African-Americans are unaware of how the media influences their day-to-day lives. The website seeks to point out the importance the media when it comes to the socialization of young African-American culture and image. Sociological theory says that there are agents of socialization that have various effects on our families, schools, peers at different stages in our lives. These theories also say that because of easy media access and cheap entertainment, the media has become a great contributor to socialization—even more than peer groups and school for young African-Americans.

That’s why this website is important. Until the mid-1980s, African-American youths were closing the education gap with their white counterparts. Then in the late 80s and early 90s, test scores for young African-Americans began dropping and crime in African-American communities began to rise.

What happened? It couldn’t have been a black thing, because black people have always been black, but somehow, things got worse for some black communities, during that time.

One of the biggest contributors was low self-esteem among young African-Americans. All of the difficulties—the drug abuse, the gang activity, and all the others—can be traced back to a larger problem of low self-esteem. The media isn’t totally to blame for society’s ills, although it’s a major contributor to low self-esteem.  All self-esteem begins at a personal individual level. However, we’re going to focus on the contributions that various forms of media have made to lower the image that African-Americans have of themselves.

Listen to the Show:

            I know over the years Fox News hasn’t hidden their true feelings about the Black community by airing their manipulated negative statistics or negative stories about the Black community.  I once heard Fox News’ political commentator Bill O’Reilly say the Black community needs to pick new leaders, in his reference to Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton.  I wanted to jump through the television set and say, “look you dumb ass, who said these men are Black leaders??? I didn’t vote for them.  You and your counterparts in the media were the ones who put them on camera all the time calling them Black leaders.  Their divisive talk was no different from Rush Limbaugh’s and David Duke’s but I didn’t see the media labeling those two dimwits as White leaders.

                 Bad cop will say or do anything to get his results, right or wrong.  The good cop treats you just as badly but does it more subtly with a smile without demeaning you.  However, it’s what MSNBC doesn’t do that is the equivalent of sliding you that pen and paper for your confession.  At almost any time you can turn to MSNBC and watch a prison show such as Locked Up.  Not an economist’s show.  Not a foreign correspondent.  Not even a part-time junior weather girl. Instead they show us prison shows.  And although only 40% of the prison population is Black, they occupy 90% of the featured prisoner slots. 

            On the other side of the coin, they don’t consistently do positive stories that feature everyday Black people.  They don’t do stories of missing Black kids, and they don’t do stories of Black women being kidnapped.  They have spent over a decade of not having any news primetime shows with a Black host.  And when they finally give a Black guy a chance to speak to issues that matter, whom do they chose?  Al Sharpton − a man who not only doesn’t have a degree in journalism, but who dropped out of college half way through.  In fact, Al’s most fantastic accomplishment occurred 53 years ago when he delivered his first sermon at age four.

            As for the quality of that sermon…who gives their salvation to a four year old?  But it musta been some pretty good bullshit cuz he has been talking trash ever since.  He calls himself a civil rights activist, but what he has actually done is divert attention from the real issues and turn civil rights into a road show.  Remember Kramer’s (Michael Richardson) n-word tirade?  Al stepped into the spotlight and demanded an apology from the actor, and got it.  What good did that do?  Kramer never apologized to the men his foul mouth attacked.  All Al’s involvement did was divert attention from the real issue and prevent the actual victims from being compensated. 

            In 2007, a Florida woman and her juvenile son were both viciously attacked and sexually assaulted.  Al couldn’t let such a golden opportunity pass him by.  He swooped in like a super idiot and got directly involved−not coming to the aid of the victims, but questioning the treatment of the SUSPECTS.  Let’s see, Mr. Civil Rights Leader…you have a Black victim, and Black criminals, and you choose to champion the cause of criminals and call it civil rights?  All he did was make FOX NEWS’ job easier because now you’ve changed civil rights from a shield of the average citizen to the sword of the criminal. 

            Are you that stupid?  Are you in on the destruction of the community?  Or are you so desperate for money and attention that you just don’t give a damn anymore?  You never hear of a nation campaign against crack dealers, a campaign against gang bangers or Hollywood.  Hell, you didn’t criticize negative hip hop until decades after the damage was done.

            What Al does is like someone who kidnaps and beats kids, then parades those kids at a fundraiser to help abused children.  You accept credit for bringing to light the bad conditions that you helped create.  And MSNBC eats it up.  It’s a win-win for everybody EXCEPT the Black community.  MSNBC appeals to their audience base as open, giving a voice to the Black community through their own prominent leader.  I definitely don’t follow the path of greed and stupidity. And Al keeps lining his pockets as he creates a charity case, and profits from its existence.    The way I see it, Al has taken blood money from the media.  MSNBC’s good cop routine doesn’t fool me.  But what does baffle me is how you and Jesse have gotten so much media attention over the years.  Can someone explain this to me?

The beast is Jay-Z.  Think of his track record.  He has always had one goal: making money.   It doesn’t matter how.  It doesn’t matter who he hurts.  He is a self-admitted former crack dealer. Then he is rewarded by the Power Structure for selling crack. How? Becoming a Puppet Rapper, who brags on records about selling crack.    I’m not even going into that because it’s obvious that is his contribution to the destruction of his community. That’s for another blog. 

There is nothing wrong with being a rapper. I’m all about artistic expression.  But he helps take an art form that is as uniquely African-American as the blues and uses it to talk about selling drugs and degrading women.  This did three things: 1) Impressed upon young minds that not only is drug dealing normal, but an acceptable means of making money, 2) Equate African-Americans with illicit drug use, and 3) Made money.  Now people admire him because he’s a millionaire, a husband, soon to be a father, a business man, a sports club owner, founder of a fashion empire. Let’s not forget a damn fool!  He has to be fool, if he thinks people are not looking at him the same way they’re looking at the 1%. What millionaire tries to co-opt a current hot issue to sell some merchandise and expects to get away with it?

Jay-Z is capitalizing on the Occupy Wall Street protests by selling shirts with the slogan “Occupy All Streets.” When asked if he would be donating any of the funds to support the protesters, a spokesperson stated, “The shirts raise awareness of the cause.”  Let’s see.  The movement that started on Wall Street has spread south to Atlanta and across to Los Angeles. They are on the news every night, but they need Jay-Z to get their message out.  This is like the bootleggers that sell purses with the “G” on them that almost look like the “C” on Coach bags saying that they sell them as advertisement for Coach.  That’s like the anti-piracy ad at the beginning of a bootleg video.  I can knock you’re the hustle.  Jay-Z are you going on the premise that at least the T-shirts aren’t crack? 

But the real kicker is that all of these celebrities are chiming in and showing support for the occupiers when they are a part of the entities being occupied.  Still, they represent the inequity and rub salt in the wound by adding insult to injury.  Jay-Z knows it gets cold in those tents.  Hell, he could offer the occupiers an extra shirt…help them dress in layers for the coming winter.  Then you have Russell Simmons.  Excuse me?  Isn’t the problems rich capitalists who get that way by the poor guy?  Isn’t that the purpose of Russell’s brand of fee-based prepaid debit cards for folks with bad credit?  It only has a $250 limit, $95 annual fee, $15 monthly service charge and 28.99% APR.  I actually don’t know the terms of Russell’s card, but I do know that it is designed for young people and those with “problem” credit.  Most likely it doesn’t offer bonus miles and rebates.  Enter Kanye West.  The smartest thing he did after arriving at the protest was to not say anything.  But we all know Kanye’s rep.  That took a lot of effort.  Then there is Jesse Jackson sticking his head into a photo showing members of rival gangs uniting for Occupy Atlanta.  Really? Maybe he will invest in one of Jay-Z’s shirts.  Then he will have it on hand if the situation turns riotous.  He can dip it in a protester’s blood and sell it on eBay for 1.3 million.   

None of this is anything new.  Hollywood has become what it is by tapping into young America, following the kids who are leaders and amplifying trends.  It gets attention. The money to be made far outweighs the good. 

I’m not surprised; you’re an ex-crack dealer. Not only that, an unrepentant ex-crack dealer that boastfully preyed on the youth with your crack rhymes like it’s something to be proud of.  Your excuse for exploiting use to be “I was young and poor; I had to hustle to eat.” Well you moved on up to the east side and now you got a piece of the pie. What’s your excuse now?

There is an old adage that with great power comes great responsibility. You have enjoyed the power of  being a big time college football coach. You have enjoyed the pride and reverence from adoring fans. Your actions have come to symbolize doing things “The Penn State Way” indicating a way of excellence. But come to find out, not only did your way lack excellence, it lacked character, it lacked morality, it lacked common sense.

I hear your peers stating that you should be given the benefit of the doubt. That you should be given a break or that the blame does not rest squarely in your lap. They say that you did so much for people and the sport. They speak of your legacy. But I and millions of others with clear minds and loud voices are here to tell you that your legacy ain’t shit. If a man will hide a child molester, then he will definitely hide bad grades for players and payments being made to players. When the steroid scandal rocked major league baseball, many records were corrected, many legacies were shattered. Players taking steroids endanger their own bodies. You sacrificed the bodies of little boys so that you could be the all time winningest Division I football coach. You wanted to be a college football god. But your legacy is nothing but a house of cards. It has no foundation and has come crashing down around you. 

Here is why your former defensive coordinator, your best friend, your right hand man for more than 30 years, Jerry Sandusky has done some things (allegedly) that I can’t forgive. According to reports, back in 1998 Penn State Police and the state Department of Public Welfare investigated an incident in which the mother of an 11-year-old boy reported Sandusky had showered with her son and may have had inappropriate contact with him. In a June 1, 1998, interview with investigators, Sandusky admitted showering naked with the boy, admitting it was wrong of him to do so and promising not to do it again, the grand jury report says. The district attorney decided no charges would be filed and the university police chief closed the case. JoePa, this is where I’m getting mad at you. JoePa, who at Penn State, who in the whole state of Pennsylvania had the power to make this investigation go away? Who Joe? We may never know if you used your power to make it go away. But, now only a damn fool would think at a minimum, after this, you didn’t know Sandusky was a pedophilia. Maybe we will never know if the campus police informed you Sandusky admitted to taking showers with little boys. But instead of using your power to get your best friend, the man who was supposed to be the next coach at Penn State, some mental help to make sure he never takes another kid in the shower, you gave him a farewell retirement in which he still has access to the school and the showers. Worst, you knew this pedophile was now working at his charity, The Second Mile, a charity for kids. One question I have for you JoePa is did you do it because he was a good friend or did you do it because you wanted to protect your legacy because you knew at your age in 1998, I believe you would been around 71, you would have been forced to retire and never gotten a chance to break Eddie Robinson’s all time coaching record. Is that the real reason you nodded your head like the godfather and made everything go away? Did you make all involved offers they couldn’t refuse?

 Now let’s get to the incident that started everything, that brought everything out of the dark. In 2002, one of your ex players, Mike Mcqueary, who at the time was a 28-year-old graduate assistant, came to you and told you he saw Sandusky in the locker room shower the night before, performing a sex act on a young boy he estimated to be 10-years-old. The next day you reported the incident to Athletic Director Tim Curley, saying the graduate assistant had seen Sandusky “fondling or doing something of a sexual nature to a young boy,” according to the grand jury. Later, the assistant was summoned to a meeting with Curley and the senior vice president for finance and business, Gary Schultz. The assistant later told the grand jury that he told Curley and Schultz he saw Sandusky and the boy engaged in a sex act, but Curley and Schultz told the grand jury they had not been told of such an allegation. Instead, Curley said he had the impression the conduct amounted to non-sexual “horsing around.” Schultz said he couldn’t remember details, but seemed to recall that “Sandusky might have inappropriately grabbed the young boy’s genitals while wrestling.” Regardless of what you guys heard, common sense should have told you something wasn’t right. Either way, all you guys did was confiscate Sandusky’s locker room keys and tell him not to bring his Second Mile kids to campus. In other words, it’s okay if you want to rape kids, just don’t do it on the Penn State campus! No law enforcement was called; just give me your keys. All of you are a bunch of sickos!

Here is the reason I’m writing you this letter. Because all your supporters and the media are making me sick about how they started their reference point with the 2002 incident. Many have stated that “by the strict rule of law, you did nothing wrong.” But anyone who has studied law knows that the strict rule of law falls far short of morality. And even the strict rule of law takes into account what a REASONABLY INTELLIGENT person would have done. I’m tired of hearing “JoePa did not witness the act; he was told about it. Going to the police would have done no good because it would be considered hearsay. He did report it to his boss, which is protocol, and was probably told something like ‘we will take care of this; it’s out of your hands now.’ As far as he knew there was an investigat­ion and everything was taken care of.” JoePa, if you had no prior knowledge of Sandusky’s misdeeds with kids prior to the 2002 incident, then I might say okay well it was hearsay. I could understand you having a hard time believing this terrible information about your long time friend.

 However JoePa, your knowledge of Sandusky’s sickness dates back at least to 1998. People will start talking. It’s going to lead back to the one person who had the power to make the 1998 investigation go away. JoePa, don’t you think it’s a shame that the 1998 prosecutor went missing and eventually had been declared murdered? They found his laptop with a missing hard drive in the lake. I think what happened in 1998 is that he didn’t think anything of the allegations, but by 2005 he started getting more information about Sandusky and he was getting ready to file charges. But he is not around now. But you know who is still around: an eye witness: Mike Mcqueary, the former player of yours who came to you with this information about Sandusky and kid in 2002.

At the time, why didn’t you ask about the kid? Did you even call Sandusky to see if he was still with the kid? Furthermore why didn’t you look at Mcqueary, a former player who just told you what he had seen in the shower, and say, “Son, why didn’t you go get the kid out of the shower?” Your former player didn’t do the heroic thing; he did the cowardly thing and ran and called his daddy. Is that the “Penn State Way” to be coward?

Somebody told you that a 60-year-old man is in the shower with a 10-year-old “horse playing” in a sexual nature, butt naked in the shower and all you do is the legal thing?  This is why your supporters continued to state, “JoePa, legally and by the rules of the school did everything right.” Blah Blah Blah…… Mcqueary did not come tell you that he just witnessed a man stealing a jock strap out of a locker. He came with his father to reported sexual abuse to a MAN and BOSS he trusted. You’re a damn father and a grandfather. As one time boss of Sandusky, morally you could have ended this tragedy right then and there with one call to the authorities. Shame on you! You and your supporters are spewing that legal garbage while more children have lost their innocence to that piece of dog crap.

JoePa your words to Mcqueary should have been “A kid was being raped! You should’ve gone in there and grabbed Sandusky. If you were scarred of the 60-year-old Sandusky, you should have pulled the alarm, yelled “Boo!” or interrupted and gotten the kid medical attention.” That’s what a real coach would say to his former player. Then a real man would make sure the kid was okay and Sandusky was in jail. You did neither.

Now, your legacy can’t be rebuilt, no matter how many ex-players tell us how much you have done for their lives. Why didn’t you reach out to help the children who were molested? Was it because they didn’t make any tackles for you? They didn’t score touchdowns for you? The sacrifice of their innocence doesn’t show on the scoreboards or in the record books, but that is your true legacy. Either way, you get no respect from me. One cannot separate Penn State from these events. They happened on Penn State property by Penn State employees. Is this what the Penn State way has become?

JoePa, your longevity is not deserving of my respect. Old age is not an excuse. My grandmother

always told me “You don’t respect your elders, you respect your elders who are respectable.” I don’t give a damn about the legacy you think you have. This is what happens when people blindly follow or openly admire a person: everything that person does is a reflection of you. 

But your shameful disregard for the safety and well being of children doesn’t reflect my ideals. In fact, the lesson here is to be careful whom you admire and set your priorities straight. My opinion of you JoePa has taken a 180 degree turn. You are a disgusting human being. You won’t go down as the winningest coach. You will go down as ruthless, egotistical, and an evil man. I know Sandusky is a ten times worse human than you. I’m not going to make excuses for him by saying he must have been molested as a kid etc. However, I do believe he is a sick individual who will never stop molesting kids. Many kids get molested and never have eye witnesses; they never have authority figures who know.

All of this could have been avoided with a simple 911 call. Instead, you allowed a child rapist to stand on the sidelines with young boys for years after being caught red-handed. The ironic part is that Penn State is a leader in the study of psychology. You could have taken a short walk across campus and found out everything you needed to know about child molesters to protect the children and do things the Penn State Way. Instead the book you were concerned with was the playbook. At this point, your players have to examine the question: “Do I want to represent a university that has brought so much shame on itself?”

  Sincerely,

Nerdy