BET’s “Read a Book” PSA
“Read a Book” is a public service announcement (PSA) cartoon video that aired on Black Entertainment Television apparently aimed at the black male youth of today in America. The storyline and execution is one of the most most bizarre PSA’s that I have seen in quite some time. While I imagine that there was a certain amount of satire involved in the creation of this PSA, and I certainly applaud the effort in attempting to reach out to a certain group of the community that is in need of assistance, one has to wonder if the intended targets will see this for what the artists intended or if will they be utterly offended.
Personally I enjoyed the cartoony atmosphere and the hip-hop inspired beat and lyrics. Though, I would venture out on a limb and say that while this was a noble assistance effort it will certainly not prevail in the manner desired. Nonetheless, it was damn hilarious!
That…that was just wrong.
Mmmmmkay…
That’s the best thing I’ve ever seen.
This video was very intresting . Although I found it offensive. I got the message.
I viewed this completely volgur and offencive cartoon. It’s No Reading Rainbow. This is suposidlly a PSA. This is not doing anyone a public service other that to make people realize how BET has succeded in playing a major part in the distruction of the black culture.
The BET network is supposed to be a outlet to showcase our artistic talents in a positive light and to bring awareness to the happenings in our communities. It looks as if they are trying to dume down our youth and glamourize ignorence and violence. The BET network has dropped the ball and thats no satire.
It’s funny, no one gets offended when black folks make this type of music EVERYDAY about the exact same dumbshit the priginal creator of this song was satiring. Since people dont want to respond until theyre offended or hurt, i think this was a great idea.
On the other hand, for B.E.T. to call this a “P.S.A.” I’d have to agree… that’s stupid. A wake-up call is more like it, to not only the REAL black community, but to BET aswell. HELLO? If you want black folkd to start reading books, stop playing into the dumbshit ALL DAY! I’m 90% sure whenever you turn to B.E.T. you will see spinning rims, women dressed like ho’s, money being wasted, or thrown around as if “it aint a thang” and t-shirts that look like dresses! Why is it all of a sudden offensive because someone takes that same platform and reminds us.. “hello, we’re more than this!!!”
You guys got to be shittin me, when the hell was the last time B.E.T. was a TALENT showcase for anyone? You call the soulja boi talent? T-Pain? Jibbs? Mimms? This is what you call talent?
Gotta be shittin me.
scream at me
rob “TexIz”
it’s funny how people like “julianna” above complains about this video when it is obvious that she needs to read a book…
this is hillarious… why don’t you worry about something useful in this world: PEOPLE ARE DYING ALL THE TIME!
This is the most ridiculous thing that I have ever seen. This is a slap in the face to all people especially African Americans and you wonder why you get no support. I can’t support this not at all. This is a 400 year old pimp slap in the face we have come so far and have been pushed so far back. It’s upsetting and degrading.
Read A Book is not a PSA. It’s satire, making mockery of the commercial rap industry and every other “rap” video that is shown on BET. It’s no Reading Rainbow, but it’s now a ringtone!
http://jivjiv.com/classichiphop
…and they conplained about Don Imus.
Sure.
You say its a slap in the face as if it doesn’t happen. You speak as though they are talking down to you or throwing you into that life style. But its aimed at those individuals who live their lives in that image (big booty hoes and spinners). If anything its telling those who watch it to stop waisting your money on spinners and buy something worth while…land prehaps? Get out of the club and raise your kids? Drink water. These don’t seem like horrible ideas to be showing childeren who watch BET. Its just geared in an eye catching way, and i think the creater did a good job in getting people talking about this issue. People argue that its rasict, but having almost every video on BET showing the same images but being real about buying rims and bounces bootys is okay?
Ama, THANK YOU!
It’s ironic that those who are offended can’t construct a grammatically correct sentence or even spell (Juliana had 8 mispelled words in two paragraphs, for God’s sake). People say they’re offended by this? No, what’s offensive is the slap in the face our culture is giving to those of the Civil Rights movement and before. They suffered and died to get us an education, to build strong families, to be considered equal and competitive…and none of those things are evident in today’s role models. It’s embarassing. You want to be equal, to not be talked down to as less than anyone else? Learn to spell. Read a book, as it says.
Even though this psa is aimed at the people that listen to rap or who watches BET does it serve them any purpose to communicate to them in such a way that that will most likely offend the majority.Does it make any sense for us to say read a book in such a vulgar way, when any book that you would hope that they read is going to be written in a manner to stimulate their brain, to highten their awareness .Please let us not drift back to the days of ebonics you can communicate with your brothers and sisters without encouraging displaced beliefs that foul language is acceptable behavior.PLease forgive me if there is missplelling charge it to my disappointment in our communication skills not to my lack of education
Julianna, you have got to be kidding me! You could have at least hit spell check. Anywayz, I mean anyway, other than the cursing what was so offensive? It is so evident that change needs to occur in the world of rap/some hip hop and even BET. Hooked on Phonics can be an illiterate person’s best friend. It’s like Bill Cosby’s comments in the past caused such an uproar in the black community, but the truth is the truth. As the bible says the “truth shall make you free”. I personally prefer a man to approach me with great not good but great hygiene and own a home or two. What’s the problem? H2O is awesome, like milk it does a body good. Why isn’t it an uproar that BET or Rap City has to sensor the rap videos because of vulgar language. On top of that you are buying the explicit cd’s with vulgar language. Please explain to me the rationale behind that!
Just for the record….Juliana I don’t want you to be the spokes person our black community, because you can’t even spell. Thats the problem, people talking and they don’t even have it together. Now Jen, you articulated your comment well. Good Job. Thank YOU for representing the black community, I could clearly tell that YOU read books.
Well Well well…these days im not surprised by anything anywhere! Its only a matter of time for everything being influenced to go around the entire world then hit back home. Im way over here in Lagos (a Portugues word for Lagoons, named after a slave port Lagos, Portugal) Nigeria (a latin word for “Black Area”) and find most of the youth here tring to be like us back home. The Nigerian and African youth for that matter who can afford to dress hip hop like our hommes do in the USA are portraying “us” in every way even in their own music videos and movies or daily wears including the pants hanging below the waste under wear pronounced style. But im not surprised when im the only guy in a club or joint over here wearing an African style hat or shirt at times. Most Nigerians say 98 percent dont even know what Lagos, Nigeria means in englishand that the former name before that was “Slave Coast”. But i still think some good will eventually unfold and come out with a burst of awareness sooner than later. I say this because once all the extremes have been reached as they have then some sensibily will be reached in all of this and the messages will need to become meaningful after the current “fads” soon fade away. This reminds me of an article titled “How MTV Underdeveloped Africa” mimicking the famous book by our own brother from Guyana Dr. Walter Rodney “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa”! Now thats the book we all should read along with any book by Ivan Van Sertima, John Henrik Clark, Yosef Ben Jochahannan, John G. Jackson, Asa Hilliard, Chancellor Williams, J. A. Rogers etc. See my website links http://www.metrolan.org or go strait to http://www.africawithin.com
I can’t believe that someone would think creating and running a video like this would make someone actually pick up a book and read!!! Unbelievable, how we try to justify the perpetration of outright ignorance and it still advances and promotes a stereotype. Damn!! We keep doin the white man’s job of denigrating us, he can just sit back and watch the results. Tell you what……after it runs for a while, perhaps BET can do a study to see how many actually picked up a book who didn’t read already. Lawd, have mercy!!
Another thing, those of you who are castigating Juliana for mispelling some “words” you are unbelievable too. YOU know what she is trying to say. You sit in your judgment seat like the bullies you are. I bet you are Christians too. Sister Juliana, I hope you don’t let what these so-called arm chair “intellectuals” and “scholars” have said bother you. They are as ignorant as that damn video, in my opinion. One thing I know about Black folks, they are into appearances and “articulation”. Someone can LOOK GOOD, SPEAK WELL and take em to the bank. We are a piece of work!! Check your own selves. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?? What young Brother or Sister do you step to? What work do you do in YOUR community? What are YOUR values? Where are YOUR morals? Can you be a model for GOOD morals and values? For that matter, do you even LIVE in the “hood” where a lot of the ones this video is, supposedly, targeting live? Damn, he/she without SIN caste the first stone, I KNOW you have misspelled a word or two in your day. This internet allows one to “throw a rock and hide their hand”. Most of you, don’t even use your real name. I am Queen Ifama and I approve this damn message!!
I commend the Brotha Bomani for reaching out to our children in a way that is not as offensive as Bill Cosby, Jr was to his peers. We are comfortable with satire to put us in our place. This was the work of a great person and he must truly love his people. Because when man loves he puts it to pen and black people need to read a book about when, why, where and how our children begin to behave the way the cartoons so honestly depicts. Bill said it in words….wearing $200 shoes and speaking Ebonics well Bomani showed us, the thoughts of our children. Please READ A BOOK great job!
Well, what is the objective of this video? Public Service Announcement? I do not believe this could be aired because of the profanity. As satire? This is an outstanding artistic display of satire, although to be more accurate, the cartoon characters should have represented a more racially diverse population because the depicted ignorance crosses all racial and socio-economic lines. As pure mindless entertainment? Well, it seems to win in this category. There is no educational value, because I doubt that this will actually inspire anyone that is not already brushing their teeth, not drinking water, not taking care of their children, to suddenly become responsible persons to themselves or others. It did, however, make me laugh, and that is something that I rarely get to do. For that, I thank you. And for everyone else, stop taking yourselves so serioulsy. Global warming, the drought in Georgia, our children dying in Iraq, and the anti-Black (African American) beatings, threats and acts of violence are enough to keep us all on the edge. Once again, thanks for the laugh!