A little over a week ago, I wrote about the pathetic excuse for journalism displayed by Jezebel.com, when they labeled a huge group of Hunger Games fans "racists"--essentially because they used the words "Rue" and "black" in the same sentence on Twitter.
One of the most disheartening parts of the story was the way hundreds of newspapers/blogs copied the story, agreeing with the conclusion (RACISTS!) without even contacting the authors of those Tweets for comment. (Because, you know, teens always say exactly what they mean in 140 characters or less, and there could be no mistaking their ugly, intolerant, racist intents...)
I complained that our race-obsessed culture is soooo determined to find racism around every corner, that not one person offered another possible explanation for the "shocking" tweets made by a few unsuspecting kids.
Then, today, my friend Bethany shared this article with me: Talking to Teens Who Tweeted Racist Things About the Hunger Games. Finally: someone tried to let the "racists" defend themselves...
Unfortunately, this author still maintains the Tweeters said "racist things." One may question when an actor seems too-tall/short for a beloved book character--or she can complain when the actress seems too old/young to suit a mental image. But, if you pictured a different skin color, you better shut up!
Yet, I thought it was only fair to reveal the discovery of at least one other person in the blogosphere who agrees: you can't locate or cure "racism" using a gossip mag's smear-piece.
No comments:
Post a Comment