Paula Dean fired for being a racist

Discussion in 'TV & Media' started by bigdaddy, Jun 22, 2013.

  1. marksound

    marksound Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Not funny, and unneccessary. Not at all helpful. Both comments.

    IMO, YMMV, blahblahblah.
     
  2. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    I think both Bobby's and Jamie's shows will continue. Ultimately, it was a decision just not to renew Paula's.

    Food Network will probably continue to run reruns of Paula's show for awhile before it winds up with other former Food Networks shows on the Cooking Channel, perhaps.
     
  3. Kirby

    Kirby Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    ^^ I turned on Food Network this morning and according to my channel menu 'Paula's Best Dishes' was supposed to be on, but it was a Giada DeLaurentis show instead.
    On their other channel, the Cooking Channel, Not My Mama's Meals was on, and of course Paula was on it.
     
  4. Peach Wookiee

    Peach Wookiee Cuddly Mod of Doom Moderator

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    They won't take the sins of the mother out on the sons. In fact... if Paula's fans have their way (I am one, but I'm not nearly as angry as some of those guys!), Food Network will have to do a reversal.
    And I do really like Giada. :)
     
  5. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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    It won't be about "taking the sins out", it'll be about how the contracts work and whether the sons are willing to continue the shows without her appearing. Though "Not my mama's recipes" has an obvious post-Paula hook built into the title.;)
     
  6. Savage Dragon

    Savage Dragon Not really all that savage Moderator

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    I was never a fan, in fact I'd never even heard of her until about a year ago, but it would definitely affect my view of her if I was a fan.
     
  7. ToddKent

    ToddKent Captain Captain

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    I was never a fan of hers. She had a one dimensional, cliched persona and a very limited culinary skill set.

    I agree with the poster above that this was probably good timing with her contract coming up for renewal. I'm guessing her popularity has been waning. Make no mistake, if she was making the Food Network a huge sum of money then she would still be on the Food Network.
     
  8. bigdaddy

    bigdaddy Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I'm guessing the same because her contract is up this month and if she was still a huge hit they would have her people talking about her ideas for new shows and episodes. Then the lawsuit happened and I feel the ratings were fine, but not amazing anymore and Food Network feels that the bad press would hurt her more where it wasn't worth it.

    Jubba the Hut, I mean Rush Limfatass is still on the radio because he still makes money for the few old people that listen to his crap.
     
  9. Keith1701

    Keith1701 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I don't think she said it to be racist. She is a wonderful person. I hope to see her on TV again soon. I really don't think she is a racist.
     
  10. TheMurph

    TheMurph Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Just from glancing over the link I would say the biggest problem is Bubba, bot Paula Dean. He created a hostile work environment for his employees. Of course if Paula used the "N" word while referring to or around her employees she should be punished (as it appears she is) as well. I'm not sure Paula is a racist as much as an idiot.
     
  11. Squiggy

    Squiggy FrozenToad Admiral

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    Then she probably shouldn't admit that she does racist things.
     
  12. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    We don't just think it's wrong, it IS wrong. Everybody knows it is. Racism is an objective evil. There can be no defense of it.

    As for Paula Deen: I don't care how nice she is, or how good (or not) her food is. You don't say things like this without meaning them. If she said these things, she deserves to be fired, and her employer can do it for that reason.
     
  13. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    In the lap of squalor I assure you.
    Yesterday she changed the frontpage of her website.

    It used to be a picture of herself with a clot of about 12 completely white staff in aprons all smiling and happy about their jobs under Paula.

    Now it's Paula, a black dude and still more white people.

    This is not evidence that she is racist, this is evidence that she thinks that the public is a pack of morons.
     
  14. shivkala

    shivkala Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I found this to be a very interesting article, comparing what's happening to Food Network Star, their competition show that produces some of their talent.

    The "TL;DR" version is this: The Food Network is about cultivating a personality that make people care about the recipes your showing. No one will care if you make the best dish in the world. It's boring if the person making it while explaining how to make it is boring. Paula's persona was crafted around the good things associated with the South. Her comments bring to mind the bad things. Therefore, her brand is tarnished, which makes it hard (for some people) to relate to her.

    I do suggest reading the article as it's an interesting take on this whole ordeal.
     
  15. Sci

    Sci Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Fuck tolerance. Tolerance is bullshit. Every damn asshole is tolerant of something.

    It doesn't matter that you be tolerant. What matters is what it is you are tolerant of. What it is you are accepting of.

    Paula Deen is tolerant and accepting of racism and white supremacy. I am not, and I'm glad the Food Network is not, either.

    Bullshit.

    Stop and frisk. The War on Drugs. The invalidation of Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act. Police brutality. Driving while black. The murder of Trayvon Martin. Voter ID laws. The mass incarceration of blacks in America. The huge economic disparities between blacks and whites. The continued existence of ghettos.

    On and on and on. The white supremacist power structure is alive and well, and the racial oppression of blacks in America continues. Just google the term "the new Jim Crow."
     
  16. publiusr

    publiusr Admiral Admiral

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    She wasn't the bankrobber with a gun, after all. My own parents weren't the most evolved people, but they were hardworking and honest. They had faults as we all do. A more evolved person we automatically assume is better, but if they conniving and vapid, we seem to forgive that.

    Policies are what we need to care about. In the same way companies greenwash, dumping on her is just an easy way for them to act like they care. Corporate types don't.

    I see this as a way to explain to Paula and others that it is Corporate America--not the gov't that provided the roads she and her staff drove on--that is the real enemy.

    She is only now feeling its heel--

    Seaton Smith was on ALL IN on MSNBC, and cut her a lot of slack. It is stop and frisk that we should rail against. Again, policies.

    Not long ago, I watched a documentary about Richard Pryor (Omit the logic) where he spoke at a Gay Rights event, wondering where reciprocal support was. The Supreme Court offered a hand up against DOMA, after showing a back hand to supporters of the Voting Rights Act. It is now time support should be returned.

    Jesse Jackson said that Paula Deen can be redeemed:
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/26/jesse-jackson-paula-deen_n_3506218.html

    I agree with him. It is wrong to try to reduce the worth of a persons whole life in having their whole being defined by a blurb, or even some real crimes--otherwise we never get a Justice Hugo Black.

    Here is a book that should be required reading in the internet age
    http://www.amazon.com/Delete-The-Virtue-Forgetting-Digital/dp/0691138613

    Now that Paula Deen has a mark against her that many folks who leave prison also have in preventing them from finding jobs, she will be more sympathetic to the plight of those less fortunate than her. That makes for a great platform, like what Billy Ray Cyrus did with Hillbilly: The Real Story--that actually portrayed unions in a more fair light than Fox.

    Now she can be transformed into a Mother Jones. After all, Jack Hanna being a Southerner, may for that reason be a better way to introduce ecology to folks who may balk if done in a more preachy way

    This is a moment for the Left to reach out to her, as I see it. It is easier to rage than love--hatred being a more honest emotion. Yet we have to be like Gene Roddenberry in trying to make humanity better, not casting anyone away as worthless.

    It will take some doing due to her background, but she could be of real value through a Morgan Spurlock, Joseph Campbell type journey.
     
    Last edited: Jun 28, 2013