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If you're not Tweeting on Twitter, you're missing out on a valuable, information-packed social media environment. The people I follow @AllAboutRace Tweet solid information and sometimes moment-by-moment impressions of a particular political or social event, the Presidential debates or, most recently, the BET Awards.
Frankly, the Tweets I saw regarding the BET Awards weighed heavily in my decision to skip the show, and I have no regrets.
However, Black Web 2.0 observes that the presence of so many black folks talking on Twitter at one time made some people extremely uncomfortable and triggered a chorus of racist Tweets.
The BET Awards and the celebrities who attended were among the most popular topics on the micro-blogging site on Sunday. ...
It seems like whenever African American topics dominate media, there are always some unhappy campers. Social media is no different. Within hours it spawned a site on Tumblr, OMGBlackPeople.Tumblr.com. Tumblr has taken down the site since last night (but here's a cached version of it), and the Twitter account @omgblackpeople is still alive and kicking.
Apparently a lot of people on Twitter wanted trending topics to go back to what they were used to seeing. Here's a smidgen of what was on the site.
Source: BET Awards Dominate Twitter, Causes Racist Backlash, Black Web 2.0
Tumblr later pulled the OMGBlackPeople.Tumblr.com. account because it's content was deemed "hate speech."
This exchange raises an important question, one that we deal with here at Black Voices all the time. Should comments, even hateful ones, be edited or should expression be left alone, even if it becomes a hate-filled free-for-all?
2009 BET Awards
Jay-Z, left, and Beyonce Knowles are seen at the 9th Annual BET Awards on Sunday, June 28, 2009, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
AP
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Singer Ne-Yo and actor Jamie Foxx hug after singing "I'll Be There", a song by Michael Jackson, during the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Singer Ne-Yo and actor Jamie Foxx hug after singing "I'll Be There", a song by Michael Jackson, during the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Singer Ne-Yo (L) and actor Jamie Foxx sing "Ill Be There", a song by Michael Jackson, during the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION.....Actor Jamie Foxx sings "I'll Be There", a song by Michael Jackson, during the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT IMAGES OF THE DAY)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Ne-Yo performs "The Lady in My Life", a song by Michael Jackson, at the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Singer Ne-Yo and actor Jamie Foxx sing "I'll Be There", a song by Michael Jackson, during the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Ne-Yo performs "The Lady in My Life", a song by Michael Jackson, at the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Singer Ciara performs "Heal the World", a song by Michael Jackson, .at the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009 REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
REFILE - ADDING CAPTION INFORMATION....Singer Ciara performs "Heal the World", a song by Michael Jackson, .at the BET Awards '09 in Los Angeles June 28, 2009. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni (UNITED STATES ENTERTAINMENT)
Reuters
Comments: (907)
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By: AGDM on 6/30/2009 12:37PM
I think the reaction to the trending topics for the BET awards is sad. The fact that you are going to have folks react to this in a negative way is to be expected since racism still exists and will continue existing. People who think they are't racist just don't understand racism and how certain things they say are interpreted, either that or they don't really care as it doesn't affect them and they don't have to deal with it on a daily basis.
That said I didn't enjoy the show too much. I enjoyed Keyshia Cole/Monica's & Hovs performance and I appreciated Janet J coming out to thank everyone. I think the show has been going downhill for a while.
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By: John W. Bosley on 6/30/2009 12:43PM
Interesting study. I personally didn't see it on twitter, but saw alot of tweets on BET. It did hit the trending topics, but shouldn't anything of popularity hit the trending topics? When American Idol is on you see names of contestants on the trending topics. So people should just assume that someone on twitter thought the BET awards and those on stage were important to people.
Whether or not someone makes racial comments is something on the internet that we can never trully change. But the bigger person is the one who deals with it rationally. Think that the African American community on twitter didn't react in hate was a good thing and they should be proud of themselves.
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By: charles on 6/30/2009 4:32PM
I dont tweet but I'm not surprised at all I've read stuff in other forums I mean things that do not have to be said except to show pure hate.
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By: Janet on 6/30/2009 1:35PM
I don't care how little time that the BET producers had to change the program. Common sense and intelligence should have told them that vulgarity has no place in a show that would be watched
by children, especially in a show that honored a man whose appeal was to people young and old. It is past time for BET to get a total makeover and for them to get rid of the ignorant, repressive, and vulgar minstrel mentality that is too pervasive in the quality of programming there. How do you screw up a show honoring Michael Jackson? Let BET do handle it! From Jamie Foxx's cursing and his
crass, inappropriate, and tasteless sexual innuendos to rappers Wayne and Drake's talentless and nasty insinuations concerning women and their plans for young girls. And Ving Rhimes acted like an idiot. The tackiness of some of the performers
including the host almost obliterated some really good performances by Ne Yo, the O Jays, and Beyonce. Yep, Beyonce's costume was a huge distraction from her performance of trying to blend opera with comtemporary music which ended a lot better than it started. I appaud her effort though it did need more practice. Maybe Beyonce has yet to fully grasp that unlike lesser talents, she does not need to show skin or outlandish costuming to be appreciated. That Jamie Foxx has talent is undeniable. That he has a HUGE lack of judgement, lack of common decency and maybe other issues is extremely obvious. Too many times BET scours the gutters and tries to pass off trash as treasures. It doesn't matter if trash drives a Maserati or carries a Louis Vuitton
bag. Trash will never be class and BET doesn't seem to care about the difference. It's not about one's income. It's about one's respect for each other and common decency. As usual, BET wasted another
opportunity to provide consistent QUALITY programming with truly decent and talented Black entertainers. I felt sorry that Janet Jackson had to appear after the trash rappers to speak on behalf of
her family. Other than Ne Yo's initial performance, Janet's appearance and the final song with Ne Yo and Foxx were the best part of the show. Shame on BET.
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By: Andrea on 6/30/2009 5:01PM
You are so absolutely correct! Well said. Hopefully, someone with some sense from BET's top heads take heed to these comments and make a change that is well needed.
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By: driverthemills on 7/01/2009 10:06AM
Here, Here!
FINALLY! Someone who "gets it" and is not afraid to speak about "it". All but the most "insulated" of the world know that racism is alive and well and thriving in the U.S. However, The racism and oppression are no longer only tools of the KKK and other caucasian hate-mongers; they are also used by US against US!!! I am an Afro-Centric man of 51 years, and I have seen racism come at me from both whites AND BLACKS! I am so frustrated by the crude and profane language our men AND women, boys AND girls use LOUDLY in public. I am totally appalled by the level of self-hate there is in the south. The KKK did a good job down here; if you are of African descent, you are so much more likely to be robbed, injured or killed by another person of African descent. The numbers prove it. I was called the "N-Word" by a woman of African descent just three days ago. And she meant it not unlike any other racist of caucasian heritage.
I cannot believe that we want to be treated with respect, yet we treat each other with contempt, disdain, and utter disrespect to the degree that some of us have come to accept this behavior as what we should expect from one-another. NOT ME!!!
Maybe I'm writing to those who won't read, and speaking to those who won't listen. Maybe. But they are MY PEOPLE and I have no choice but to try to make a difference, much as we ALL should. Personally, I wouldn't respect someone who says the F-Word, B-Word, N-Word, etc., more than they use the word "THE" either!!! RASIE THE KIDS YOU BRING INTO THIS WORLD! TREAT YOUR WIVES, NEIGHBORS, AND CHILDREN WITH RESPECT. COMMAND RESPECT BY ACTING RESPECTABLY AT ALL TIMES. WORK FOR A LIVING! This my friends is only the tip of the iceberg...we have a lot of work to do to regain what the likes of Malcolm, Martin, Medgar, and company gave to us in the height of the civil rights struggle and before: A Reason To Hold Our Heads High and Be Recognized as PEOPLE!!!
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By: yellowtulips12 on 7/01/2009 11:47AM
I completely agree with you. I was disgusted at the un-necessary vulgarity, Ving, Jamie, Little wayne. This display of trash does not represent what most africans want to see or hear on an award show. So bet threw in a lot of respectable honorable mentions, the fact that so much of the show was insulting and disrepectful to woman and families voided the intelligent parts. If you mix water with dirt you get mud, unacceptable to drink, the same can be said with the unacceptable and vulgar perfomances mixed with the few good one, the show itself was gargabe because it was not family friendly.
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By: b on 7/01/2009 4:03PM
You better beleive BET already knew what to expect and rehearse the show. Now maybe they didn't forsee the outcome. The question is do they respect? Respect family values. How do these people act behid closed doors? What is thier norm? Wake up America!
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By: itsstillskillz on 7/01/2009 5:44PM
Understand it was an award show that was taking place with or without the passing of Michael Jackson. How many other live telvised tributes have you seen thus far. MTV??? NOT!!!!!! that network had to be threatened to play Michael Jackson's music to begin with. When the content was new MTV profited more than any other network on that man and they still have not announced anything.
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By: Minister Tyrone USA Jones on 6/30/2009 4:31PM
It%u2019s not just a Black thing!
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