Reed (Blues City, 2003, etc.) thinks the media's portrayal of black
people is racist - and he's probably right. The author is perhaps
better known by vociferous reputation than for his prolific and
diverse career as a writer, and his polemic spirit is alive and
well in this latest collection of essays. Selections ruminate on
subjects of varying closeness to the author (his mother figures
largely in several), but all dance - or perhaps box - around the
media's portrayal of African-Americans and its insidious effect on
race politics. Reed, with ample evidence, albeit some hearsay,
spares no one: Don Imus, Toni Morrison, Orlando Patterson and the
Manhattan Institute are all skewered as enablers of racism. The
validity of his arguments is at times somewhat undermined by his
irascibility (and consequent clouded judgment), but this collection
as a whole is provocative and relevant. "Assisted Homicide in
Oakland" asks important questions about the city's skyrocketing
crime rate and the power of the gun lobby. "The Patriot Act of the
Eighteenth Century," originally published in Time, should be
required reading for every lawmaker. Reed's dissection of
minorities in the media in "The Colored Mind Doubles" is on par
with any mainstream op-ed piece and, though surely controversial,
makes a salient point about the lengths to which some networks go
to advocate "scientific racism" and perpetuate the stereotype that
African-American problems are largely self-inflicted. Also included
is his landmark 1998 Baltimore Sun essay in which he calls
President Clinton a "black" president, a qualified accolade that
preceded similar, more widely publicized statements by Jack White
and Toni Morrison. A MacArthur Fellow and Pulitzer nominee, Reed's
shortcomings are hardly analytical, but rather editorial: His
talent is often preceded by the cacophony of sensational one-liners
he's amassed over the years. As a critic of the media pundits, he
should know better than to bait them.Worthwhile reading from an
important voice. (Kirkus Reviews)
A new collection of essays first published in The New York Times
and Playboy. Reed tackles subjects including Oakland, eugenics, and
domestic violence,
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