Black. White.
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Black. White. was a reality television show on FX. It premiered on Wednesday March 8, 2006 at 10 p.m. Eastern. The series followed two families of three, one white, and the other black. Through make-up, the two families—the Wurgels (see criticism) and the Sparks—traded races and experienced what life is like in the other family's shoes. The show was produced and created by RJ Cutler, Matt Alvarez, and Ice Cube. The show's theme song is "Race Card" performed by Mr.Cube from his upcoming album Laugh Now, Cry Later. The 6th and final episode of the series aired on Wednesday, April 12 at 10 p.m. Eastern.
Contents
The episodes
Episode 01
Two families - one white and one black - come together under one roof in Los Angeles as they prepare to go out in the world as the other race. The Wurgels (Bruno, Carmen, and daughter Rose) are a white middle-class family from Santa Monica, California, and the Sparkses (Brian, Renee, and son Nick) are a black middle-class family from Atlanta, Georgia. Brian gains access to white culture when he lands a job as a bartender while in white make-up.Episode 02
A bitter argument erupts between Renee and Carmen over the use of racially charged language. Rose is torn over revealing her true "color" to her new friends in the poetry group or maintaining her cover for the sake of the project.Episode 03
The Wurgels and Sparkses lock horns over language and behavior. As the friction builds between Carmen and Renee, Carmen turns to an outsider for insight into the black experience. Bruno and Carmen encounter hostility in an all-black neighborhood, and Nick's fascination with the gangster lifestyle raises concerns for Brian and Renee.Episode 04
Emotions run high as the project reveals unexpected truths about the family members. After experiencing racism for the first time, Carmen becomes disheartened with Bruno's obstinate views and expresses serious concerns about their future together. Rose struggles to fit in with her black friends. When Nick encourages his etiquette classmates to use a racial epithet (the N word) in his presence, Brian and Renee take steps to educate Nick about his cultural roots.Episode 05
Tensions grow as the families struggle to find common ground. Rose develops a crush on a friend from poetry class. Renee develops a new friendship with a Catholic mother that transcends race, and Bruno and Brian reach an impasse over their different interpretations of racism.Episode 06
Both families share the profound impact the six week project has had on their lives and begin to reconcile their differences as the journey comes to an end. Rose prepares for her final performance before a live audience at the Slam Poetry event. Nick spends the day with an ex-gang member. Renee and Carmen make amends, and Brian and Bruno agree to disagree.Criticism
The show has received criticism from major media outlets. Robert Bianco of USA Today has stated:['Black. White.' Oh, whatever.]
- "The show is being sold on the race-switch trick, but tonight's premiere is built around a far more mundane stunt: putting people you know won't get along into close-quarter situations designed to exacerbate the inevitable conflicts. If you think there's any chance that the two men, Brian and Bruno, weren't cast specifically to clash, or that the producers aren't playing up every conflict, you've never seen a reality show."
- "Tonight, for example, Brian buys a pair of shoes while in his white makeup and insists he was treated better because of his TV-created 'race.' The different treatment accorded black and white shoppers is a serious issue, one that has been the subject of excellent undercover work by journalists. But you can't learn anything of import from one man's single experience, particularly when we have no idea how he behaved before or if he's even being honest about his history. Isn't it possible he was treated differently because he acted differently — something he himself acknowledges? And, to add, he was in a golf store, which is prominently attended by wealthy people - of course you'd be treated better there, no matter what race."
- "Black. White. is based on two false premises, one more pernicious than the other: that you can understand someone of a different race simply by putting on makeup, and that you need that kind of understanding in order to treat people as the law and morality require."
- "'Black. White.' is not a provocative study in secret prejudice, followed by growth and awakening. It's a reinforcement of the stereotypes the show claims it wants to examine and expose."
- "You'll learn, for instance, that whites are more curious than black people. Black people 'roll' back and forth when they walk. Slightly. Also, blacks don't have such great posture. They 'slouch' when they sit. Since nearly all these quaint, unflattering notions of racial habits come from the very member of the race that comes off unflatterringly--i.e., a black person--there is no subtle revelation of prejudice at these dinner-table conversations. Rather, you get tired, old racial stereotypes, which are given a new twist and made authoritative by being validated by that member of the stereotyped race itself."
- There has been some controversy regarding the fact that one member of the white family (then 17-year-old Rose Bloomfield) has since hosted a Disney Channel movie preview interstitial (Movie Surfers) as herself, and another member (her mother's boyfriend Bruno Marcotulli) has prior film and television acting experience. This, along with the three different last names sported by the members of the "Wurgel family," made critics wonder if they were a family at all, and not paid actors working on instructions from the show's creators. FX has yet to answer this question, but the different last names and acting credits do not necessarily indicate that the Wurgels are a fabricated family. "Bloomfield" may be the name of Carmen Wurgel's ex-husband. Marcotulli and Wurgel are not married, so it makes sense that they would have different last names.
References
See also
External links
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