Do the Emmys Have a Race Problem?
Until Archie Panjabi's surprise win this year for The Good Wife, only eight people of color had ever won an Emmy in the top four acting categories for drama and comedy. It's a sobering statistic about the racial inequality that still persists on television, and after watching the Emmys this weekend (and being mistaken for another black actress), it has Southland's Regina King ready to speak her mind.
The actress (who really should have merited Emmy consideration for the first season of Southland) vocalized her concerns in a Huffington Post essay:
Since the Emmy ceremony, I have been going back and forth about whether or not I should compose this letter. I try hard in my daily life not to engage in uncomfortable situations regarding race. But sometimes it's very difficult to find other reasons that better explain why certain events play out the way they do. It is impossible for me to ignore the published statistics regarding the number of people of color mentioned, celebrated or honored in the history of the televised Emmys. Up to and including this year, there have been only 53 non-white actors nominated for emmys out of nearly 1,000 possible nominations in the top four acting categories for drama and comedy.
I've worked in television nearly all of my professional life, and that statistic is quite sobering to me. And to add injury to my already sensitive nerve endings a picture of Rutina Wesley from True Blood, who attended this year's Emmys, had a caption that read: "Regina King enters the 62nd Emmys." No, I wasn't there. Mistakes happen, right? Well after a few "mistakes" of how people of color are portrayed in the Hollywood media, I decided it was important to say something about how things go down in Hollywood.
The initial pull on my heart strings was not seeing the veteran Sesame Street actress Alaina Reed Hall included in this year's memoriam [...] I am assuming other actors have lost someone close to them who weren't recognized during that segment of previous Emmy telecasts. So I will take the stats about people of color out of my complaint and pose an essential question on behalf of any television artist of note working in our business. What is the process in determining who will and will not be recognized during the Emmy memoriam?
We wish we knew. But what do you think: Does King have a point?
The Emmys: As White As Ever [HuffPo]
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The problem is way bigger then award show its in american television itself. There is barely any diversity. Watch canadian drama like Davinci Inquest, Intelligence, The Bridge, The border, etc. How is it that canandian programing is way ahead of american television when it come to these issues.
The problem is that American refuse to face that inequalities do exist. We are so busy competing for resources that we have to have social group inequalities so that some people have an unearned advantage. The media is the biggest way to perpetuate the competition in a capitalist society and will likely be the last to make dramatic changes.
It's a multi-pronged problem:
-Aside from legit snubs in good projects (King in Southland, Wanda Sykes in Old Christine, Nelsan Ellis & Rutina Wesley in True Blood, Khandi Alexander and the entire cast of Treme, Tracy Morgan in 30 Rock, Danny Pudi in Community, Aziz Ansari in Parks & Rec, Daniel Dae Kim & Yunjin Kim in Lost, etc.),
-the shows with the most integrated casts tend to be procedurals that don't merit Emmy love (CSIs, etc.) or the dreck that fills up TNT, USA & TBS's original programming slate (aside from Psych and the Closer most of those programs are unwatchable.)
Has anyone checked into the comparisons between the Emmys, SAGs, and Globes to see how diverse their nominees are?
Ms. King certainly has the right to speak her mind. so is she saying
the eight acting categories for series should have a fair amount of
black and latino actors to be diverse eventhough the actors might
not warrant a nomination on merit alone? doesn't that go against
the whole point of the Emmys which are for acting excellence not
political correctness?
@Joseph Pauls
I don't believe King is saying that there should be an even dispersion of nominations amongst blacks, whites, asians, latinos, etc., but is instead calling attention to the fact that there are only 9 non-white winners (including Panjabi) of lead/supporting/drama/comedy Emmys. Pretty disturbing factoid and proof that Hollywood is still very much a work in progress.
Where are all the WHITE actors that get nominated at the Black actors Awards. I don't remember ever seeing a WHITE actors Awards show. Now who is the racist!!!!! Let me answer that YOU!
It comes as no surprise that people of color are still shorted when it comes to the Emmys and similar mainstream awards. As with many other forms of entertainment (I am a sci-fi/fantasy writer who was turned down by mainstream publishing houses from 1999-2001, even though my storyline ended up being almost a clone to the Heroes storyline which ended up being a hit on NBC network several years later!) those who win are 'cherry-picked' and so many others who deserve the spotlight and acclaim are rejected or not nominated. I applaud Regina King and have always loved her work. More disenchanted and disenfranchised members of/contributors to the entertainment industry should speak up and note their displeasure and disagreement with 'those who make the decisions.'
So, what? The Emmy's should be strictly for white actors only? Does the word "Supremacist" follow your last name, by chance?
I've been a HUGE Regina King fan since POETIC JUSTICE. Her work in SOUTHLAND has been amazing. And would someone PLEASE do a remake of GET CHRISTIE LOVE! with her?
RE: Rob White's comment
There would be no need for Black Award Shows if black actors and other actors/performers of color were acknowledged for their work in mainstream award shows.
I have NEVER understood the term 'person of color'...what is this? When in say, Africa, where there are many black people are white people, 'of color'? Why is it so important to make this differential? If a white person does something no one says that he/she is white. I have many friends of different nationalities and do not see color...just my friend. We all came from Africa in the beginning, this has been proven so...I just don't get it...
Can people please put some heat under the Emmys ass like they did for the Oscars? I was hoping either Jada or Regina would be nominated but nada. After people went after the Oscars there was possible a 5-10% increase in better quality movie roles for black actors. Maybe if people finally call out the Emmys there will be an increase in better quality roles for black actors.
I know you guys were being serious and all, but when I read this I couldn't help but think of 'White Power Bill', leading to me spending 22 minutes of precious office time watching an episode of Arrested Development. Which was hilarious.
I do think that some actors "of color" were snubbed this year-- I thought Chandra Wilson did AMAZING work this past season, and where's the love for Chi McBride? He's one of the best actors on TV, ever.
I don't think that actors are snubbed because of their race, though. It's not the fault of the Emmys that actors "of color" aren't given the juiciest parts -- that's the studios' doing. If more good roles were given to people of different ethnic backgrounds, we'd see them represented better in the Emmys.
Gob: "But, I"m white..." as he slumps to the prison yard...Great ep. You didn't spend 22 mins of precious office time. You enhanced them.
Errr...ahh...Archie Panjabi did win however. So it wasn't just some white woman from "CBS Procedural No. 18" who got the award. Maybe the Emmys (which have many, many more actors working than the Oscars) should up the number of noms in each acting category to seven or 10 and then just have a ballot where voters can mark two in every category (or rank them) and the one with the most votes or highest ranking wins. Hollywood is an "industry town" and most of the nominators are (still) white. Opening up the nomination process to more choices would be a step in the right direction (and stop the tedious repeat winners).
Dude,
You're a dumbass. The NAACP Image awards nominates people of all races. Sandra Bullock was just nominated.
@Don Gormas: I agree with you wholeheartedly. @Bob White: You DO see color, unless you're blind. Saying you don't doesn't change the fact that there are people of different colors, or races. The best part is that it's okay to see it. It's what makes us interesting. The problem is that people have defined 'different' as, 'less than', when it really means, 'not the same as'. So they say they're 'color blind'. Please!! Let's celebrate our differences instead of pretending they don't exist!!!
Uhh, how is the NAACP awards anything close to the Black Actors Awards?
It's not - shut your mouth.
The ONLY reason "black award shows" were created, was because people of color weren't getting any recognition. The problem has not changed, it's just been ignored. So if no one else is going to recognize the achievements of people of color, then we have to have shows like the NAACP awards, Soul Train Awards etc...
No, you have a race problem and you are whining. I heard the other day of a candy store being tabbed as discriminatory because they stocked more red and white candy canes that black licorice sticks.
Grow up and get real!
The Black Actors Awards? Did you just make that up, because it doesn't exist. And if there were, there wouldn't be a need for it, if American TV wasn't so culturally one sided. The Film industry is no better. I still support the shows and films that I like though, even if there aren't anyone in them that are like me.
I have a problem with what Regina said. I think the Emmy Awards are not perfect, but when compared to the Oscars and the Grammys, they are far more likely to recognize true talent vs. giving awards to sentimental favorites and one-time flukes. It's not the fault of the Emmys that TV shows are still so ridiculously white. Grey's Anatomy may be one of the most melodramatic pieces of shit ever created, with storylines that soar and others that crash and burn for what seems like months, but I still buy every single season on DVD because it features a cast of people that reflect my world. I don't work with only white people, my friends aren't only white people, and I want to see that fact reflected in the television shows and movies I watch. Remember the non-white character on "Cheers"? Or the one on "Friends"? Or the one on "Seinfeld"? Bad examples, I know, since only white people live in Boston and New York. But people of color (a term used to emphasize that we're talking about people that aren't white, which is not condescending in any way whatsoever) are often given supporting roles (if even that), because Hollywood loves young pretty white people. If you're black or Indian or Mexican or Asian or anything other than white, you better be resigned to playing Thug 3 and ER Orderly. I think the Emmys would recognize more leading actors and actresses that aren't white if there were, in fact, more leading actors and actresses that weren't white. But you can't nominate someone that doesn't exist.
And yes, I'm white and proud of it. So if you want to accuse me of being yet another whining colored woman or being a bleeding heart liberal, go for it, if that makes you think the lack of diversity on TV is acceptable and fine. But just because you don't care if the racial makeup of television bears no resemblance to the real world doesn't mean that everyone shouldn't care either. Some of us actually have a brain (check out Wikipedia if you're confused about what that is) and would like to see more shows where the actors are the best ones for the roles, not just the prettiest white ones available.
And i guess BET don't exist either!
You just have to be a good enough actor to win it.
Stop linking everything back to the old fashioned race debate.
There is no such thing as different races anyway.
DNA shows there is 1 Race. Human.
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