Book Review of Watching Jim Crow

Book Review of Watching Jim Crow:
The struggles over Mississippi TV, 1955-1969
By: Steven D. Classen

In the early 1950’s, Jackson, Mississippi resembled the rest of the country in many regards. However, by 1955, with Mississippi vehemently opposing the Brown v. Board of Education ruling and with the brutal murder of Emmett Till resting on their conscious, the state was beginning to stand out. In Jackson, African-Americans were still denied access to pools, were forced to sit in segregated sections, and were denied consumer and production privileges. In fact, it is safe to say that Jackson and all of its amenities were catered to a segregationist white population.
In his book Watching Jim Crow: The struggles over Mississippi TV, 1955-1969, Steven D. Classen illustrates the media representations that characterized Jackson. Classen focuses his energy on the station WBLT which conveniently began broadcasting in 1953, just in time to address and suppress the upcoming civil rights squabbles. Although WBLT did not create the segregationist agenda that Jackson would became so famous for, it certainly maintained and fueled it. WBLT was known for such shows as Citizen’s Council Forum which hosted segregationist speakers, used Dixie as its theme song, and displayed graphics of the Confederate flag (37). When NBC, WBLT’s affiliate offered to add the Nat King Cole Show to regular programming, WLBT refused. In addition, episodes of Bonanza featuring leading Black actors were pulled from the air and entire sections of documentaries featuring controversial material would be blacked out by all too convenient “technical difficulties.”
As the civil rights movement raged on, it became clear that WBLT’s biased programming provided inadequate representation and denied African-Americans’ their basic rights as consumers as outlined by President Kennedy (57-8). In 1955, the NAACP and Medgar Evers appealed to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to force WLBT and another station, WJTV to include a larger Black representation. Although, this appeal was largely ignored, it did fuel a heated process which would continue on into the next few decades.
In 1971, WLBT’s license was finally revoked with the success of the students of Tougaloo at effectively portraying to the nation the racist ideology rampant in Jackson’s broadcast media. One of the most effective tactics involved a boycott of a live performance in Jackson of Bonanza where seating would be segregated. Under the FCC ruling, control of the station was placed in the hands of Communications Improvement Incorporated, a non-profit organization and William H. Dilday Jr. was appointed the general manager making him the first African-American to hold such a position.
Classen’s book is ripe with well-researched facts and information. However, his most effective tool in illustrating the events of 1955-1969 Jackson is his use of oral history. The chapters in Jim Crow which include interview transcripts are not only the most engaging, they are also the most telling. Without these accounts, Classen’s (who is a white PhD from Wisconsin) words would not feel half as authentic or credible.
Another of Classen’s strengths is his ability to effectively link his historical study to the modern day. Granted, without a follow up, Classen’s story may have ended a little bit neater however, it is important to recognize that these issues have not been completely eradicated. In fact, many African-Americans feel that their representation in the media is once again decreasing. What Classen does not offer however, is a solution or look into the future of black representation. It would have been beneficial for him to investigate further the prevailing types of representations of African-Americans such as the “token black” character as seen in shows such as Friends and Sex and the City.
Classen’s conclusion is weak in other ways as well. After reading an entire detailed account of the struggles over Mississippi TV, Classen undermines his entire subject by alluding to “broadcasting’s ‘secondary status’ within Mississippi’s movement activism…(177).”