In this new article featuring our very own Lamar Tyler as a source, Nadra Kadeem Nittle takes an insightful look on what drives the media’s perception of African-American marriages. She states that, “This message that African-American women are unwanted, not only by black men but also by others, is frequently repeated in media coverage of black marriages.”
Quite honestly, it’s the best look at the ongoing story of black marriage that we’ve seen in a long time. The story states:
Clearly, this is a very complex and emotional issue. While it’s encouraging to see the mainstream media address the topic, a consistent flaw in the coverage has been the media’s failure to quote and gain information from the kinds of knowledgeable sources who can add substance, rather than sensation, to the conversation.
By seeking comments from these experts, the media can offer far more comprehensive coverage, as demonstrated by some of the interviews conducted for this article.
In recent years, the black marriage issue has been addressed by ABC’s “Nightline,” CNN and the Washington Post. This fall alone, the Guardian, the Los Angeles Times, Salon.com and ABC’s “The View” have also broached the subject of the black marriage rate. According to the 2010 American Community Survey of the U.S. Census Bureau, 29.3 percent of blacks are married compared to 52.1 percent of whites, 44.2 percent of Hispanics, 57.9 percent of Asians and 36.8 percent of Native Americans.
Another driving force behind recent news coverage of black marriage is Ralph Richard Banks’ controversial new book “Is Marriage for White People?” On the Nov. 11 episode of “The View,” co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd, who are both black, discussed the book’s suggestion that successful black women pursue interracial romance or risk ending up alone because black male professionals are few and far between.
BMWK family, what do you think? Is the media narrative about black marriage damaging? Is any of it constructive?