"My role on television is one of helping people to re-examine the assumptions that they hold..."
from this interview he did with Jim Wallis. Wallis is kind of awkward, but Smiley isn't.
"There is a difference between optimism and hope...hope is the evidence of things not seen.."
Monday, July 20, 2009
i heart tavis smiley
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I used to love him on BET (pre-Viacom) because he brought on a range of prominent black figures and always treated them like a) their story was valuable as one perspective of "blackness" in the U.S. and b) they were not beyond reproach. He had this ease about him, whether talking to Barack Obama or Jim Wallis, that I think prevents him from having overly fluffy conversations.
Sadly, the danger of helping people re-examine assumptions about some things -- like Pres. Obama -- will just draw people's ire.
http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2009/04/dear-washington-post/
So while I've always loved what he's done, BET got rid of him for a reason -- he got in the way of entertainment. As more television moves that way, I'm not sure if audiences will be ready to listen to what he's trying to say...
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