Sheila Johnson Ashamed of B.E.T.

“Don’t even get me started,” says the 60-year-old Johnson, who has since divorced and remarried. “I don’t watch it. I suggest to my kids [a twentysomething daughter and a college-age son] that they don’t watch it… I’m ashamed of it, if you want to know the truth.”


Wow! I've waited years to hear that.  B.E.T has been going down hill for a long time, and it's extremely sad to watch. Blacks are already perceived as violent, uneducated, and less than equal in the media, and the only network we have proves the media right.  The "old B.E.T" had news programs, forums and Teen Summit".  The new B.E.T. has Frankie and an anorexic host who freaks out when someone calls her "thick".  When Viacom purchased the network, our dignity went down the drain.  Now my question is "If you owned the only Black network on television, would you sell it?" We already know the Johnson's answer to that, but personally I wouldn't sell it for any amount of money, and especially to Viacom.  They received a great offer to sell, and they did.  The way Sheila feels about the outcome of her old network is the same way people felt when  they decided to sell it.

What do you think? Was selling B.E.T. a good or bad move?


Article from The St. Louis American
Image from Gainformer.com