A few of the 3.6 million viewers who watched the debut of “L&HH: Atlanta” were turned off by the foolywangery of the show’s content…and have taken the usual next step after complaining. They’ve started a petition to boycott it.
First it was “Basketball Wives,” and now VH1’s latest docu-soap “Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta” has provoked an online petition to boycott the show. The petition says,
After we made a ruckus about Basketball Wives, sponsors began to pull ads. Well, it’s that time again, folks!
While we should respect the perceptions and experiences of the men and women featured on “reality” television shows, networks are airing stories that could be very helpful for people to hear, but they’re telling these stories in EXTREMELY dangerous ways.
We all know premium digital crack rock is ‘slanged’ in digital hoods other than VH1. We also know the problem is not just TV–it’s a big, mean, social monster that we’ve gotta shoot down one non-violent bullet at a time. Nevertheless, somebody’s gotta be the face of this lovely movement. And since VH1 has chosen to give us yet another beautifully-blinged jewel of commercial exploitation (Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta), they might as well be the face of change. By the way, shout out to all African Americans who received Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta as their Juneteenth gift! You won and lost at the same time!
As we work toward national- and local-level change, let’s tell VH1 and their sponsors (again) why people from a broad range of backgrounds will NOT stand for the exploitation of the lived experiences of people who may not even know they’re being exploited. This isn’t a “Black or White” thing, this is a HUMAN thing…and we should all understand.
P.S. That “turn of the TV/your kids’ TV if you don’t want to watch” argument doesn’t work here, VH1. A good number of the kids who are most at risk don’t have the luxury of living with parents who can just “turn off the TV”. Why? Because their parents are out working multiple jobs (thanks to this lovely thing called poverty); one or both parents are on drugs, dead, or in jail; or they’re raised by ill grandparents, relatives who aren’t that interested in their future, or foster parents who abuse them and only foster to collect a check.
Meanwhile, Joseline Hernandez isn’t letting comments about being a homewrecker OR being a man get her down. She tweeted, “GM thanks 4 all the positive support as well as the negative the ratings were great!Starting my day off w/Marvin Sapp”Never would’ve made it” REALLY!!??
Since the “BBW” petition did result in the loss of a few sponsors, it will be interesting to see if this petition catches on. Y’all already know my view on this. There will ALWAYS be a FEW million people out of the umpteen million in America who will constantly watch trainwrecks. Does that mean we keep appealing to those few folks at the detriment of our teens and kids in our community who will be conditioned to think the actions they see are OK?
Sigh….here we go again.
