BET has reality shows. Bad reality shows. Why? Because everyone else does it. BET takes shows that are already on the air and just adds chocolate. Don't believe me? Here are a few examples.
MTV had Laguna Beach, then a few years later BET came out with Baldwin Hills. It's bad enough that we have to listen to the scripted whines of spoiled rich kids, but Baldwin Hills is a bad scripted version of that show, with their over the top dramatics and the forgetting of their lines (yeah we can tell) it's a little much.
American Idol becomes the biggest T.V show in history and BET launches Sunday Best, a search for the next gospel singer. Puh-lease.
BET also produced College Hill, a Real World meets A Different World college reality show. Now, please don't get me wrong, I love Black shows, it's just that the shows BET comes out with manages to make my people look so bad. College Hill, manages to cast a negative light on young people in college. All they do is party, hook up, and fight with one another, all the while missing classes and midterms.
Let's test the theory again: 106 & Park. Take MTV's TRL add black people. This show was actually not bad, but because it's BET, of course they messed it up. I can say that I honestly used to be a fan of the show, when it was hosted by Free and AJ. Now Terrence J. and Rocsi (what is a Rocsi anyway?) only make me sick to my stomach. Apparently Free and AJ felt they deserved a contract (because God forbid they wanted a secure career future) BET refused, so they left the show. Now we're left with Terrence J. hopping around the stage, calling everyone "his boy" and Rocsi proclaiming that "this joint right here, is where it's at", while she gets into drunken altercations with rappers. Yeah, it bothers me more than a little.
Then there are the 12,000 awards shows they have. The BET Awards, The BET Honors, The Hip Hop Awards, The Celebration of Gospel, The BETJ Virtual Awards. (Huh?) It seems like everytime I turn around there are more people getting awards for nothing. Yeah I said it.
Last but not least, the Blackbuster Movies, which always seem to be Friday, Next Friday, The Friday After Next, or Soul Plane. And we wonder why the literacy rate is down. Thanks BET.
I totally agree with you on the Laguna Beach and the Baldwin Hills. I do not understand why people watch these shows. You offered a lot of important and funy info. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree with you more! BET started off awful and has gotten worse. They had an opportunity to bring over Girlsfriends and Half and Half (shows canceled by the mainstream networks), but instead we get reruns and terrible programming. While MTV takes our content (Making The Band, the American Best Dance show, among others that could easily be on BET) and they produce watchable shows. What does BET have of ANY substance, Keyshia Cole's show, which is a tad bit embarrassing, too. Holla! Man Down!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you too! BET has recycled a lot of already bad reality TV shows (you have plenty of great examples) and made them worse. BET could definitely benefit from airing some more original content that portrayed black people in a less stereotypical fashion.
ReplyDeleteI noticed a while back that BET was taking every MTV concept and just adding black people. Ridiculous! Sadly, as you said, they haven't done as well. 106th and Park definitely went down the drain after Free and AJ left, why Rocsi, why! Your posts are hilarious, keep it up!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great rant about BET! I don't watch too many cable shows anymore pretty much the reason that they're all crappy rip-offs of each other.
ReplyDeletetotally agree: and we wonder why our children and teens of this generation are the way they are: from watching shows that misrepresents us.
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