The St. Petersburg Times' Eric Deggans is taking Donald Trump to task for his dismissive attitude toward black women. He uses Sunday night's episode of Celebrity Apprentice as an example, with Trump quickly dumping Star Jones after Nene Leakes' much hyped departure. On the episode, the reality-TV star and possible presidential candidate fired all three black women still on the show in three hours.
We agree with the comments about stereotyping and dismissing black women, but what about the stars themselves? What role does Leakes, who is all too willing to capitalize on the negative stereotype, play in this phenomenon? Check out Deggans' take on Trump:
This is nothing new for Trump. The Apprentice franchise has always been criticized for its willingness to portray black women as crazy/angry/violent villains, beginning back in 2004 with reality TV's queen of mean, Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth, and stretching up to current contestants NeNe Leakes and Jones. It's a trope reality TV often mines for entertainment, but it is particularly striking on The Apprentice, where participants are supposed to be in a business-like environment.
Such stereotyping also shows up starkly because, unlike other competition shows where the audience or fellow competitors choose who must be ejected, Trump makes the decisions himself. Which means he — and the show's army of unseen, unacknowledged producers — make the decisions entirely for their own reasons, likely for who would make the best television.
That is how the show aired a boardroom ejection scene like viewers witnessed Sunday, in which Jones seemed to get kicked off the program for objecting to rock star Meat Loaf calling her "sweetie" during an argument …
Read more at TampaBay.com.
In other news: Jonathan Capehart: Bobby Jindal Plays With Birthers.
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