In the latest issue of Essence, actress Gabrielle Union expressed her distaste at black female bloggers dragging her name through the mud, condemning them for stigmatising her character. Of course her anger is understandable if she's made to look like a whoring man-eating home wrecker. There is ONE particular blogger I feel she was targeting and I visit that blog from time to time and notice how those attacks on Gabby are very identical to the accusations that the actress is spewing. Here's what Gabby had to say:"There is this idea that there is integrity in journalism; if it's written it has to be true. But that's not the case. When blogs or any of the magazines get it wrong, there's no accountability. In the next breath, they'll complain on the blogs that we don't have enough Black stars. Well, you rip us to shreds every two seconds from our nose to the weave to the clothes to the shoes to the ashy ankles".
Read that last sentence. BIGGEST CLUE EVER. Having studied media and journalism myself, I know all about the principles involved with sensationalised journalism. A lot of the blogs do tend to sensationalise black women and their situations without providing accurate sources but there's nothing wrong with having a voice. As long as you don't abuse it to discriminate, I think it's acceptable. If you don't like somebody's shoes, hair or outfit, there's nothing wrong with expressing your distaste with a bit of wit and sarcasm. It's all part of the competitive field amongst bloggers alike. The thing about being a celebrity is that you put yourself out there to be criticised. Black celebs are not extinct. If you walk the red carpet at any prestigious Awards ceremony like the Oscars or the Grammy's, and you wear a raggedly looking gown without putting in the effort, be prepared to get criticised by your biggest mainstream fashion critics. Blogs are no different.
Secondly, many folks have even compared me to an underground 'Sandra Rose' which is pretty farfetched because I don't sensationalise stories regarding black women and their personal lives. If you look closely at my posts, I will make a small dig about Beyonce's messy lacefont, only to be met with: Why are you dogging her hair? What's wrong with her dress? What right do you have? You don't even touch her bank balance. You's a hater. And so forth. A bloody hating-ass cunt I will continue to be because making fun of Beyonce is fun, and plus, she makes it sooooo easy *LOL!* (although I DO have a secret admiration for Beyonce, I just don't show it, but I don't hate her. No way). I will sneak in a sly comment about her raggedly-ass lacefonts and the thick-up oats porridge glue on her forehead, her tacky HOD outfits and whatever else but when it comes to personal stuff like relationships, I try to leave it alone. Whenever I do go there, I provide sources. I will have to admit though, the story regarding the alleged Beyonce-Jay-Z-Rihanna love-triangle was pretty fun. Yeah, I had fun with that one and so did the rest of the blogging world including the mainstream media as well. But not once did I report that rumour as fact.
The keyword in decent journalism is 'alleged' which is what I always use. Professional media often tend to find themselves slapped with lawsuits because of minor things like that. Remember when Beyonce's Ring The Alarm leaked last year on the Net? BAM! Suddenly, Jay-Z is fucking Rihanna or at least TRYING to and Beyonce was sending out a warning that she'll ring the alarm if she sees another chick on his arm. Hehehe.... so then, there came this massive story about Beyonce feeling threatened by Rihanna. And so, you had Rihanna looking like the jump-off chick. And now Gabby is feeling that same heat:
"because everyone is clamoring for celebrity tidbits, the bigger gossip sites and even mainstream entities are picking up on it. No fact-checking, no nothing. And in one week's time, there were like five different dudes, a baby—I'm a homewrecker. In literally seven days. I can't point the finger at the White media. They don't care about us. Paparazzi are not staked out in front of any of our houses. They are not going through our garbage because they don't care about us in that way. So when you hear crap about us, it is coming from our own community, which hurts".
Or maybe the white media just think she has as much relevance as a packet of crisps. She's not considered A-List aaaand her movies (or acting abilities) don't have much impact in Hollywood either. Last time I checked, the paparazzi and mainstream media are fucking bloodhound for black celebrities like Halle Berry and Beyonce. I do agree with what she's saying - to an extent. If I were a celebrity and someone was scandalising my name, I'd express my outrage too and would probably take legal action against the bigger media outlets. And truth and behold, many black women DO have a habit of tearing each other down for whatever reasons. Being a young black woman myself I have experienced it first hand as well as witnessed it. I've been the attacker and the attacked, and it's still happening. But to imply and generalise a whole category of black women as being the only ones to do this is absolutely absurd. It only amplifies the segregation amongst the black community to a higher level than it already is today.
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