Comments

1. Christopher wrote:

   The addictedtorace server is down and the podcast won’t play…

   Posted 23 Oct 2007 at 2:23 pm ¶

2. Carmen Van Kerckhove wrote:

   Argh! I’ll contact support about that.

   Posted 23 Oct 2007 at 2:55 pm ¶

3. hadji wrote:

   I’m familiar with the Dr. Watson story, I’ve even blogged about it once or twice already. It’s pretty not-common-thinking from so-called intellectual elites and academics.

   Asians are inherently smarter, whites inherently work harder, and blacks/african americans are inherently intellectually inferior.

   To one degree or another, you be amazed by how many people on college campuses, in positions of authority, within academic communities not only hold these biases but will use some study, set of data to back it up.

   In the case of Dr. Watson, the only truly sad part was not what he said, but the manner in which it was covered. His statement was simply dismissed by his colleagues as “silly” and and on par “other outrageous comments he’s made in the past”.

   It was if they said, “Oh well, he’s just old, and a little eccentric and we can separate this one absurd comment from his great work.”

   What was even worse was the lack of coverage this received from the press. Dr. Watson, while largely based i the UK, serves on the board of american instituions such as the highly prestigious Rochester Institute.

   Can you imagine if similar statements had been made about Isrealis or Jews or any other ethnic group?

   I think the blow-back has been so minimal because, in addition to people not being as familiar with Dr. Watson, i think there’s not only a sense of anti-Black racism fatigue, there’s still a deep-seeded belief that somehow, to some degree at least, the criticisms leveed against us are valid.

   I mean, Nas is naming his album that thing with the support of his label and “see-i-told-you-so” music critics. Imus is back. Hiphop is now being blamed for everything from school shootings to failed schools to out of control celebutantes… And it’s impossible to open a newspaper or turn on a TV or click on a blog without someone telling every black leader who criticizes anyone outside the black community to shut up “and get over it”; all while the likes of Bill Cosby and Jason Whitlock et al are being hailed (and propped up) as the new “truth speakers” by media elites, both liberal and conservatives…

   Posted 23 Oct 2007 at 4:15 pm ¶

4. imdeep wrote:

   Hadji: Maybe you and I are reading different media? First consider it’s science news, which generally gets the highest *yawn* factor compared to celebrity news and disaster stories.

   Second, the UK press, especially the Times, and Wired and NY Times jumped on this because a science figure and Nobel prize winner with a record of past remarks on this crap flapped his yap again in advance of his book. The timing comes the week *after* this year’s Nobels were announced so no one cares anymore. Point of fact played up in the NYT piece: he’s not the only past Nobel winner to sound off in favor of eugenics.

   Third, there was a repercussion within a self-contained environment: dude was stripped of his admin position. Like good PR, his lab/research facility minimizes the news aand damage control.

   Why no larger outcry? Less to do with the media and more with priorities among communities of color. With everyone complaining of nooses, war, poverty, etc., you think they want to debate a discredited “scientific theory” that makes peoples eyes glaze over in that same week?

   More to the point was the reaction of commenters on those blog posts *defending* Watson, not dismissing him crank or kook. That’s your story…

   Posted 24 Oct 2007 at 11:05 am ¶

5. Kirshan Murphy wrote:

   Nice coincidence, I wrote up an article earlier today explaining how the whole Black inferiority claims are not new:

   http://nubianwaves.com/black-inferiority-claims-and-their-effects/

   What is disturbing is the fact that many people, most disturbingly, school teachers, subconsciously agree with this line of thinking.

   Teachers have such a powerful influence on students and it is absolutely imperative that steps are taken to prevent negative treatment of racial ‘minorities’ that can lead to increased special education designations, among other things, especially among black male students.

   Posted 24 Oct 2007 at 3:11 pm ¶

6. hoo_boy wrote:

   Publicly stating my geek girl crush for Annalee Newitz @ Techsploitation on tech matters (sorry Carmen): Even when I disagree with you, your provocative, referential, passionate columns on technology and society hit many a button *sigh*

   Anyway, *read* AN’s column this week:

   http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/65936

   Watson gets his due, yes, but *the* most underreported tech outrage of the past week draws a parallel (nod to Hadji, I don’t want to spoil the outrageous “punchline”). I disagree a bit on her full take, but encourage a review through the always-lively comments section indeed for a broader take on what it all means…

   Carmen: get her on a future show!!!

   Posted 25 Oct 2007 at 1:36 am ¶

7. Anonymous wrote:

   Great podcast! I wish we could have transcripts of some of your podcasts, though, so that people can find the information through Google. The more media, the greater access, anyway.

   Posted 25 Oct 2007 at 9:58 pm ¶

8. donna darko wrote:

   I always knew Watson and Crick were racist and sexist.

   Watson and Crick took credit and won the Nobel Prize for a woman’s work.

   Posted 26 Oct 2007 at 2:15 pm ¶

9. Also an anti-Semite wrote:

   Watson also said that “some anti-Semitism is warranted.”

   http://www.esquire.com/features/what-ive-learned/ESQ0107jameswatson

   Posted 27 Oct 2007 at 10:23 pm ¶

10. Also an anti-Semite wrote:

    Watson also said that “some anti-Semitism is warranted.”

    As a Sephardic Jew I found his comment, and the pretend support of Jews by praising only Ashkenazim, offensive.

    http://www.esquire.com/features/what-ive-learned/ESQ0107jameswatson

    Posted 27 Oct 2007 at 10:24 pm ¶

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