Friday, September 21, 2007

Crash & Learn on NPR

UPDATE: The audio clip of the show is up.

So yesterday I made my debut on NPR, on the show Tell Me More with Michel Martin. The specific segment was called The Barbershop, and it's hosted by Jimi Izrael.

Now Michel Martin is sort of an Oprah-esque major media player; her resume includes stints at The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and ABC News. She's won an Emmy, and recently held a panel spot on Bill Maher's show Politically Incorrect (which, incidentally, is probably the best show on television). And she's now running a major show/operation on NPR that's relevant, entertaining, and spicier than some of the blander programming you get on public talk radio.

Jimi Izrael is a guy I've connected with in the last few months, he's a fantastic, no-holds-barred writer who has done Fox News, and has bylines from pubs like the Los Angeles Times and Salon. And he's been holding down this Barbershop feature which he describes as "history in the making."

So needless to say these are two people I'm trying to be down with. Besides just being good network resources, they're two original assimilated negroes who have come through the system and done their thing. Independent of the contacts, they have wisdom and experience to relay to a young bruh coming up in the game....

All of this is to say, I wanted to make an impression with my NPR debut. The segment itself ends up being cut down to 13-15 minutes, so even more than impressing the audience, I wanted Michel and Jimi to feel they had a new weapon in the arsenal.

Of course this begs the question: what kind of weapon is TAN? Which, as this blog recently completed its second year in existence (more on the 2nd TANniversary later), is a question I'm thinking about constantly. I don't want to belabor the question right now, but suffice to say I think currently, as a weapon, in most cases, and certainly in recent cases, my role is to provide a unique perspective, one that encompasses race, either explicitly or implicitly, and hopefully a modicum of intelligence and entertainment value. The entertainment most likely being of the humorous variety. (Of course this is all speculative, and accomplished to varying degrees of failure)

So in the morning we get an email briefing on the subjects we'll be discussing: OJ, Isiah, Jena 6, and some ridiculous story about a councilman wanting to legislate against baggy pants.

For the show I made up a couple of index cards with notes and touchpoints on the topics for discussion, here's what I came in with (and since this is just about the NPR experience, I may flesh out some of the thoughts in later posts):

OJ The Hero: Just like NPR needs flavor from The Barbershop I think The Barbershop needs to show some compassion for their people. OJ doesn't need jail, he needs love. He needs his momma, and a year's supply of warm milk and honey to be served with accompanying strokes to the head.

-- Why can't we separate the man from the book/tv movie/media story. He was not born with an NFL contract. Anyone coming up in the 40s 50s, who was black, contracted rickets, and given the name Orenthal ... you're already thinking life is over. No one loves you. And its true! To have that all turned around because you run with a football, and fall down the steps in a wheelchair in hilarious fashion, thats sort of deep.

-- Add on the interracial relationship, which always brings issues, and being the subject of the Trial of the Century, and the fact that OJ Simpson is clearly insane comes as no surprise to me.

-- Why do we hold the bar so high on OJ, this is a guy who was caught pirating cable.

-- I think of OJ as a black-american hero. This is part of progress. You have to take your OJ with your Obama. When Martin and the boys started fighting for our rights, they didn't get to speculate on how we might get a lil crazy once we get in the mix, but here it is: OJ, Michael Jackson, R Kelly; these guys are trailblazers. Maybe the faces for our own F'd Up-&-Black Mount Rushmore. More than a black story, OJ feels like an American story, and its nice for us to be a part of that.

Isiah Case: Isiah's got 99 Problems, and that B is the first one.

-- I don't even know how it got this far. The most recent testimony -- and first from the defense witnesses -- indicates she was clearly fired for incompetence. Something she apparently even declared herself, citing she had "lost the confidence of her staff."

-- In which case, I ain't saying she a golddigger, but she ain't suing no broke brothers (like me or Jimi).

-- On the race issue, if we can get the ladies to lighten up on "the b-word" aspect, I commend Isiah for keeping it real, and telling the truth in a situation where he didn't need such candor, and could be deemed stupid to provide such candor; but the truth is what was being requested of him, and he provided it. This is no different than the n-word, and guess what? There is a double standard. I didn't institute it, nor did Isiah, but it exists. There is a distinction between a black person using the b-word (or the n-word), and a white person using it. No need to draw a bunch of other conclusions out of that, it is what it is. America is nothing, if not a country run on unleaded double standards.

Jena 6: Maybe I'm pathetic, but honestly I'm not in a tizzy over the Jena 6 situation. This feeling comes primarily because I feel The South is still on some other ish (dogfighting anyone?), and is therefore not representative of any sort of mainstream sensibility. I liken this to an outbreak of some old weird strain of racist virus, and perhaps the town needs to be quarantined. And I certainly take heart in black people taking action and coming together for a positive cause they believe in ... but I don't consider this a new "Civil Rights Movement." We have our civil rights, fyi.

Saggy Pants: This is ridiculous. Straight legislated racism. And whoever has the time to come up with a bill or government action of any sort related to sagging, baggy pants needs to get some time off from the job to get their priorities in order. What are they gonna do next, say we can't get Magnum XL's anymore?
--

So that's what I came in with in terms of my angles, and potential sound bytes. Which was how I was thinking about the show; less conversation, more just getting off an interesting take on the news story we're discussing. And you'll notice I brought more on OJ and Isiah, this is because they had been talking about Jena 6 the last couple weeks, so I figured that would be a quick-hitter, and of course the saggy pants story has no legs (oh!).

To my surprise we lead off with Jena 6, and Jimi, the host, passes me the rock first. I set it off with my "I'm not in a tizzy" take and we're underway. There's some disagreement with my seeming apathy -- of course -- and I don't think I did a good job of conveying what I do like about the Jena 6 rallying, but it's not that long a show. And I also wanted to convey my distrust in Al Sharpton, specifically in terms of leading a movement that also incorporates the opinions of young black people. In the end, Jimi -- who sort of puts a final stamp on each of the subjects as we discuss -- agreed with me, and expressed the ambivalence of not wanting to make too big a deal out of it, but yet and still wanting to support and show love for the spirit of it all, much better than I did.

Next subject is OJ. And the other guys on the panel (Terrance Harris, Arsalan Iftikhar) hold court before me, and as far as I'm concerned, they set me up pretty nicely. They're sort of bashing OJ, as everyone is, and declaring his stupidity, and ignorance, and misguided arrogance etc, and all of that plays well with my contrarian "Can't we show OJ some love..." take. The "warm milk and honey" line got a reaction, but as I was trying to get into OJ: The Man vs. OJ: The Target/Story, someone, I think Arsalan, starts talking over me and jumping the gun about OJ's career etc. These are all quick, tight takes, and since we're all in different locations patched in, Jimi generally orchestrates by calling someone out and cuing them to speak. As a first-timer I was specifically reminded to not talk over folks, and the show is clearly not set-up ideally for real point/counter-point type of debate. So for me, this was annoying, and was probably the first sign of turbulence with the flight.

But I should say, I'm not really shaking-my-fist upset with Arsalan (or whomever) about being talked over, i.e. I can see if you don't like OJ, and someone says he should get warm milk and honey, you might get riled up and need to interject. Especially if you're smart and think you can anticipate where i'm going (incidentally, I never got to premise my OJ-as-black-american Hero/sign of progress idea, and I don't think anyone would have anticipated that). But first time on the show, and unsure of how to handle the back-and-forth aspect, it took me off my game a little bit.

And to this point, my game was not air-tight, but I'd say I was playing like a talented rookie in his first game, showing a little something, holding his own, but lacking the poise and confidence that comes from experience.

AnyOJ, then we get to the Isiah Thomas story ... or really, for what its become recently, the "who you callin' a b*tch?" story. And this is where we really lose altitude.

Funny enough, I was actually looking forward to the Isiah subject. While I thought my OJ take was most representative of what I'd like to put out as "TAN" -- a slightly amusing contrarian position that cuts to what we're about as people as opposed to media stories and sound bytes -- the Isiah case was where I felt the most conviction in terms of going against the major tide of opinion. This woman, in my estimation, was clearly a gold digger, and the media had clearly been irresponsible with the "who you callin' a B?" angle. Isiah never suggested that anyone should call a woman a B, he just acknowledged that he sees a distinction when a black person says it and a white person says it.

This is easily, but irresponsibly, spun into "Isiah condones calling girls B's." Plus Isiah makes an easy target; he has a history of asshole and bullying behavior, and has generally been a tremendous failure in his role managing and coaching the New York Knicks.

So this was the subject where I came in with a really canned line (see above: 99 Problems ...). And its kind of ironic, because I thought it was hilarious, and in its way accurate (he does have many other problems! but this B is the main one right now!), but its actually the one line I sort of stole borrowed from another blog, and here it would prove to be the biggest problem with my set. (just goes to show kiddies, don't BORROW).

So when the rock comes my way again I lead with my 99 problems line, and then clumsily segue into the race/double-standard element. And the combination of the line being TOTALLY not appropriate for this setting, plus me defending the sticky issue of who can use slurs and epithets and such, definitely caused an immediate hubbub as we recorded. And the fact that we were recording for a later broadcast (or posting) was made very clear when Michel asked me to re-do my take on Isiah. And then obstinate ignoramus that I am, in my head I'm like, "yeah, she probably just wants a cleaner take on that 99 Problems line... its soooo on the money for this story." So I do the same take again, with minor tweakings that serve only to clarify my total obliviousness to the real matter at hand.

Michel, in her interjection, complained about my use of "jargon" and explained that it seemed I was condoning calling this women a B. Which I guess, I was (though I didn't use the word). And thought I had the right to do. The jargon part, she directly tied-in with my use of the word "MSG" when referencing Madison Square Garden executives. Which in hindsight I think is being a little nit-picky, I mean we were talking about Isiah Thomas coach of the Knicks who play at MSG, if someone somehow thinks I'm talking about monosodium glutamate, I think they must have chinese food on the brain and I can't do anything about that. So I sort of wrap that all up in the same, "who you callin' a B?" headwrap. What's funny to me now is I feel the same way Isiah got caught up, I was caught up. In fact, in my defense of him I sort of feel like Isiah set me up for a fall. And I'm considering suing him for a few million dollars.

So following that, the other guys got to jump on my needing-a-retake carcass, and I don't even remember what they said. Surely something about how black women are wonderful and beautiful and how no one white, black, or female dog, deserves to be called a B. Which, you know, I agree with. Really! Especially the dogs.

From there we moved on to the Saggy Jeans story. I gave a quick take on that. I did get in the Magnum XL line, which I don't even know if anyone heard, which is probably for the best. I could literally feel the heat and anger rising through the headphones at this point.

After we closed it out, there was a long extended silence where I can only imagine Michel and the producers were wondering where Jimi dug up the women-hating, oj-loving, racist jargon-user. To add just a little icing on top, at this point I thought I could only be heard by the engineer (who was sweet and wonderful) so I say to her via a mix of exhaling and exclaiming, "wow, someone really didn't like me!" And right after that Michel and Jimi pop in my ear again, clearly still patched in, and Michel, whose voice never changed or wavered -- calm pro that she is -- just explained the jargon part to me again. While Jimi -- boisterous pro that he is -- was a little more animated and expressive in his apparent displeasure. "oh man, wait until I call you .." was the last thing I heard from him, until he called me later in the day to provide the fodder for the title you see at the top of this post.

When Jimi and I spoke prior to the show -- in the bold, alpha-male, nuts-on-the-table manner in which young confident black guys speak with each other on business and "power moves" -- he repeatedly joked with me about "Crashing and Burning" in my first NPR splash. Of course he was recruiting me to be down, and its no secret for most who know me, that I'm not lacking in confidence, especially with regards to articulating opinions and doing this sort of thing that I do. So it was a funny sort of rapport. And I enjoyed the challenge of it.

Somehow it also reinforced the synergy of what I thought The Barbershop is about. Bringing the bold, unabashedly brazen opinions that you might find voiced in your average negro barbershop, to National Public Radio. Barbershops don't mince words, or worry about PC presentation, they deal in truth (and haircuts!). The description of Tell Me More reads "Grounded in lively interviewing and compelling storytelling, the program seeks to present diverse new voices, cross borders, challenge conventional wisdom and discover how other people think."

That makes a lot of sense to me as a guide for programming, and is also the sort of thing that interests me personally. So when Jimi called me later and asked what I thought of how I did, I told him, more or less, that I felt I was a diverse new voice, that crossed borders, and challenged conventional wisdom, in order to show another way to think on these subjects ... but that I lacked polish, specifically in defending some of my unconventional points.

He thought that was "a nice way to put it." Which it was. And we proceeded to speak frankly on the matter.

As an assimilated professional, of course I know there's a difference between the barbershop in your hood, and The Barbershop on NPR. This whole TAN brand is invested in that difference, that line, and somehow, someway trying to tiptoe across it, with feet in both spots, all the while hopefully facilitating some cross-pollination, that not only helps my wallet, but also helps people, especially those on opposite ends of the culture spectrum, understand each other. Perhaps finding that line to be a communal meeting point, instead of a divisive line of demarcation.

When I fail in this realm, I suspect it's because at heart, I don't believe in the line. I don't believe in censorship. I believe that if you take two people, and sit them down, one-on-one, and somehow get them to feel comfortable, the particular manifestations of language affectation and such become very much beside the point. In the end -- and perhaps to the fulfillment of my own end -- I think everyone just needs some warm, milk and honey. OJ, Michael Richards, Michael Vick, the Jena 6, the gold digger, etc ... not to be all Oprah-esque, but the throughline and connective thread for all of us is this quest for love and appreciation. We just want ot be understood, and LOVED, differences and all.

So while I'm incredibly disappointed in myself for not putting my best foot forward; when I think about the other ways to do it, I don't know, I think I did the best I could for the situation. It feels like I could have come in there and hum-drummed my way through the conventional wisdom on these stories. Kept it very professional .. and clean. But I don't believe, at heart, in "professional" and "clean." I believe in truth, in all its multi-dimensional, unexpected, homicidal, insane and sickly glory. Professional and Clean are jobs. They have nothing to do with truth. They are a demand and an obligation, and if you choose to abide, you will make money. And if not, well, crash and learn.

So I've learned here. Certainly. If given another take, I'd know where to soften the language and make sure I have my supporting logic properly itemized and ready. I know how the game works. But in terms of that guiding mantra for "Tell Me More," lack of polish aside, I think I'm the person who most lived up to the billing.

Now I've heard these Barbershop participants talk in previous shows, so I know they're probably just saying what they feel, not necessarily kowtowing to the mainstream opinion. But with these particular stories, I was the only person offering some different takes. Offering "more," if you will. In my haste I may have served the plate without proper garnish and style -- and that does matter to diners! -- but if the restaurant specializes in keeping the buffet diverse, I would be incredibly disappointed if I was removed from the menu.

Or in other words: I have 99 problems, I hope a B ain't one.

(ugh! Maybe I can just hire someone to shoot my hands right before I invariably write (or say) the one line that ruins everything. Applications being accepted now. B's welcome.)

holla!

20 comments:

  1. Oh man. Don't write off the south like that. So uncool. 95% of us are just like the rest of the country - just filled with more sweet tea.

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  2. Anonymous9/21/2007

    that didn't sound bad at all, TAN. And your voice sounds bold, like you.

    I'll shoot your hand for you on occasion, but I think its cool to let it slide sometimes. that's what blogs are for.

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  3. Anonymous9/21/2007

    Well, hello there.This is the Oprah-esque Michel Martin here. You see I wasn't lying when I said I follow your work. I really like your blog and Jimi was high on you so, yes, we had a moment. the issue is NOT, as you seem to think, because we didn't like WHAT you had to say. (Can I Just Tell you? Just about every B-shop there's something I don't agree with--that's why there is a B-shop. I can listen to MYSELF at home.) The issue is you didn't make your points well. You didn't make it accessible to people who don't know everything you know and read everything you read and listne to everything you listen to. this is a national show, and in fact people all over the world listen to this on I-tunes (I know for a fact, because I get the mail). So, I can't have people speaking in their own code. A little jargon goes along way..because you know what? You're not on the radio to talk to yourself. End of story. that's not censorship. That's called communication. And as for nit-picking. HEL-lo! It's my show.so imagine my surprise when I try to tell you how to be more effective and you're pushing back on me..I'm thinking..isn't that a little like coming into my house and telling me how to rearrange my furniture and what to serve on my table.? I don't think so...so...yes..I'm sorry it wasn't as much fun as it could have been..I think there's let down on both sides..no permanent scarring though...we'll all live..cheers..and have a good weekend

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  4. wow. i can't believe i just read this WHOLE post (even though i never received a response to my dear tan email...yes i'm still bitter. lol).

    i'd have to say i think your takes on these subjects were funny, and definitely *different*, but michel is right, it kinda sounds like you didn't make your points clearly enough.

    congrats on even being invited though, sounds like you're moving up the totem pole pretty quickly.

    i'm sure you'll get another chance....and when you do. make sure jay-z lyric jokes are not a part of your commentary! lol.

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  5. Anonymous9/21/2007

    Well, hopefully you wouldn't be removed from the menu...the first time out is, after all, the first time out. And having followed your blog since near its inception, I peg you as a quick study. This sort of back-and-forth radio has its own special learning curve, which I suspect you'll scale pretty rapidly.

    Do your Monday morning quarterbacking as needed, but don't beat yourself about the head and shoulders. And don't view this as a first-and-last shot all-or-nothing thing. We'll be hearing more from you.

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  6. Anonymous9/21/2007

    best. post. ever.

    wait, i mean longest. post. ever.

    but still very good :)

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  7. new to your page. read the entire post. first times are usually not the best performances of our lives. it's just a learning experience. i don't agree with some of your viewpoints, but you are still engaging. there's only so much "keeping it real" and quirky off-colored humorous remarks that can be naturally interjected in a staged "barbershop" session.

    nice post, btw

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  8. Anonymous9/22/2007

    Great post, great rebuttal (if that really was Ms. M&M). Most entertaining Internet moment I've had today.

    Keep doing your thing, man. I'm pulling for you.

    PS. I wholeheartedly agree about the South.

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  9. TAN, you are definitely strong in your convictions. Have to respect that. I'm under the belief that something can, and is to be learned from everything. I feel like your thoughts are genuine. Gradually, I am sure you will become even more polished. All I can say is ... Babylon Beware!

    Keep doing your thang.

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  10. Oh, and great point made by the female voice concerning the impact the blogosphere had on Jena 6.

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  11. Anonymous9/22/2007

    Stop second guessing yourself.

    Just as O.J.'s continueing saga is indicative of the progress of blacks in America, your making an ass of yourself on NPR is also an inspiration to us all.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous9/22/2007

    I agree with the others...longest post ever. But oh so good and informative...

    I remember my first time on the radio (probably becasue it was only 2 weeks ago) but I pretty much bombed and I think I hurt my point instead of helped it. It takes practice to lay out your points on air and defend them in a clear eloquent manner. I'm still learning myself.

    I also realize that my voice sounds a lot cooler in my head than on air...

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  13. Anonymous9/22/2007

    Wow, I read some of the comments and thought the audio would be a disaster. But it sounded like a normal show to me. I wouldn't have noticed if I didn't read the missive. Be easy, TAN.

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  14. Anonymous9/23/2007

    Hi there,

    It's my first visit to your page and I am quite impressed overall, but there is one small thing I would like to point out -

    how can you define legislation on a dress code that is intended to uplift and edify your people as racist, and not have any viable opinion on a subject [Jena] that does have a great negative impact on your people across the board.

    You stated "but I don't consider this a new "Civil Rights Movement." We have our civil rights, fyi."

    What good is a car without gasoline?

    You see we do have civil rights because of the LAW, but when the law is openly being used to under mine those basic rights - we all need to be concerned.

    Assimilation is not acceptance and without the law acting on our behalf, assimilation is not possible.

    In this society the LAW is the only friend other than God and Jesus we have. It's fairly important that we preserve and improve the integrity of the justice system when it comes to protecting minorities.

    Accept my apology if I'm offensive but it is the way I see this.

    Best wishes with your career goals.

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  15. Damn OJ let us make some of the money. White folks are getting rich off of the Juice. Fuck up sometime in the hood, so we can cover the case and provide commentary. London Markets have estimated that between 50 and 100 million dollars will be generated in Las Vegas as a result of the next OJ trial. This is better than the Triller in Manila.

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  16. Anonymous9/23/2007

    Why is it every damn time black folks "keep it on the real" and talk about the issues of the day it's got to be at a damn barbershop? If there's a watermelon stand on one side and a chicken shack on the other, we'd never have to leave the block.

    And one more thing:
    "I never got to premise my OJ-as-black-american Hero/sign of progress idea."
    Good. They saved you from your own fool self.

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  17. Anonymous9/23/2007

    On OJ I can see where you're going, when he was let off the first time it was celebrated as a black person getting over on the system because he was rich-and-famous. So that's progress in a sense. Now apparently progress has gone to his head, but I can see the spin.

    I'm against you on Jena 6. We think this is only happening in the South until someone gets shot unnecessarily in NYC, or beat up in LA.

    As for the show, sounds like an experience. No more no less. From the page here you may have a point, that Miss Oprah Martin doesn't rebut, you do have the most interesting take on these stories. But that's on the page. And that's different from radio.

    You'll obviously be getting more shots, so just tighten it up and you'll blow them away.

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  18. A few things should try and do this quickly....

    Love this blog (not too strong a word)

    This white man in London is shocked by Jena. The sins of the fathers etc.

    The deal with the trousers also seems a little overbearing. I spoke to someone younger the other day and they were shocked to hear my memories of the beatings that Punk clothing used to attract. Nowadays they are tourist attractions like the Beefeaters and the Household Cavalry...

    Interested to hear about your Barbershops - here they are rather dull affairs "something for the weekend sir?" I think that goes for the West Indian ones too (although that might have been just when I was there)

    Your NPR sounds altogether more lively and diverses than our Radio $ which is basically the usual suspects. I wish you luck with shaking it up.

    love etc

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  19. I saw Michel Martin on Bill Maher, she sounded like an idiot and couldn't get her points across while dealing with the ramblings of incoherent Tim Robbins.

    Best thing to do in these situations is not plan anything. Just let the natural obnoxiousness and intellect shine through extemporaneously.

    That's The Assimilated Negro I know.

    Besides, it's radio, you can't just whip your -ish out on radio, doesn't have the same effect.

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  20. Anonymous9/25/2007

    "See, what had happened wuz..." Seriously, the stuff you were planning to say was dead on. Too bad it didn't flow like that. I hope they do have you back. As for OJ, I'm just thinking about that Chappelle bit on "Trading Races" or whatever it was called. Can we trade OJ?

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