“Former BBC presenter and champion of liberal causes Sir Ludovic Kennedy has denounced the increasing number of black faces appearing on television programmes as “political correctness [that] has got completely out of hand”.
Sir Ludovic said he was “all in favour of black advancement”, but claimed ethnic minorities were over-represented on TV and this was an “imbalance” that should be “readjusted”.
The comments by the former presenter of Did You See?, which are bound to provoke controversy, were made in a review of former BBC executive Will Wyatt’s autobiography, The Fun Factory: a Life in the BBC, for the latest
edition of The Oldie magazine.“I’d like to take issue with Will when he says it was his aim to bring more blacks to the screen, in which it seems he has more than succeeded. I am all in favour of black advancement, but there’s now hardly a TV pub, police
station, soap, vox pop or ad without rather more than its fair share of black participation,” Sir Ludovic wrote.”
It is obvious that ethnic minorities are massively over represented, but is this a bad thing? I think it encourages positive stereotypes and fosters a sense of belonging in minority communities. It may seem a bit unfair but is it a bad thing?
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JohnUSA 08.15.05 at 9:38 pm
Too many blacks on TV is also a problem for The USA. Blacks appear inappropriately in commercials and in prime time shows just to have a token black. As a white, I find it offensive that I have to see a black face in my face 65% of the time. Blacks are only 12.9% of the U.S. population so 65% of in my face is a bit much.
Most black facial features are not that appealing to caucasions. What say you U.K.?