So, did you hear about the time FOX News blamed hip hop culture – more specifically, rap music – as the sole reason for the fall of civilization and something that’s more damaging to the nation and its urban community that bigotry and racism in America?
No, not that time. The other time.
No, not that time. The other time.
Needless, to say, this isn’t the first time we’ve entered this rodeo.
Longtime news pundit – and failed talk show host-slash-punching bag – Geraldo Rivera took to FOX News’ The Five to criticize Kendrick Lamar and his performance of “Alright at the 2015 BET Awards as well as, funnily enough, label the whole thing as – and I quote – something that has “done more damage to young African-Americans than racism in recent years.” Not the constant beatings, shootings and murders of Blacks by the very police Kendrick speaks on. Not the racist and murderous intentions of individuals who are then “congratulated” with Burger King after killing innocent people. And definitely not FOX News, whose intentionally skewed and dangerously misguided opinions have undoubtedly inspired the next set of racially-motivated killers (let’s be real here).
Not to be done, he then condemned the performance – in which K. Dot stood atop a tagged police car – as something that “delivered the wrong message.” Because, you know, putting skinheads in the same room with Black people and expecting them to have a pleasant discussion over race relations, not to mention calling a Catholic school’s canceling of his speaking engagement “pretentious censorship” after he – a 71-year-old pile of overly sun-baked donkey leather – took an eye gougingly semi-nude selfie for the ‘Gram, makes him a bastion of upstanding moral aptitude.
But I’m digressing.
Since it’s a given FOX won’t invite smart rappers to their shows to properly voice their opinions anymore after Cam’ron stole Bill O’Reilly’s cookies, Kendrick gave a calm and collected response via TMZ.
“How can you take a song that’s about hope and turn it into hatred? The message, the overall message, is ‘we’re gonna be alright.’ It’s not the message, ‘we’re gonna kill people,'” he responds. Doesn’t sound like an anthem of hate to me. But what do I know, I just peddle music quasi-legally like a digital Blackbeard for a living.
Listen, I’m not one to tell people what or how to think whenever it comes to the needlessly sensitive topic of race. I mean, I spazzed on a relatively anonymous c-boy in the comments section of our Rachel Dolezal piece. However, can we all agree that FOX News is at the very least partially responsible for the ignorant ideals towards the minority communities in this country? I mean, the simple fact that they’re still on the air is proof that they have just enough people whose brain patterns, scarily enough, match their own watching and thus are keeping them alive. And to be honest, what’s more frightening: a guy performing an uplifting song on top of a defaced prop cop car at an awards show, or the family who actually believes someone telling them almost daily that rap music is more damaging than racism?
