In the October 13 edition of Time, they asked radical-left black professor Cornel West if he voted for Obama in 2012, and he said he couldn’t vote for a “war criminal.” NPR promoted this radical leftist on Saturday morning’s Weekend Edition, but in six minutes and 22 seconds, never mentioned the president or the 2014 elections.
This syrupy interview promoting West’s book Black Prophetic Fire ended with anchor Scott Simon utterly failing to notice (again) that the leftist Ferguson narrative of Evil Cop Shoots Gentle Giant is facing a serious clash with facts.
And not long after we taped our interview with Professor West, he was arrested at a protest in support of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. We called him to ask if he had gone there to help provide black prophetic fire. He said yes and, quote, “to be a part of the younger fire and to stand alongside them, encourage them and to show solidarity.”
There they go again, NPR, bathed in the glow of utter servility.
West told Simon “A leader is somebody who has to jump in the middle of the fray and be prudential, we hope, rather than opportunistic, but a prophetic person tells the truth, exposes lies, bear witness and then usually is pushed to the margins or shot dead.”
Simon offered him nothing but puffball questions about America has “Santa-Clausified” black icons:
And a prophet's different from a leader?
And I don't want to delay this question - how do you think America has Santa Clause-ified Dr. King?
And you also say, I don't think you use the term Santa Clause-ified, but you also say Malcolm X has been transformed. He winds up on a stamp, a stamp you don't particularly like. He winds up in Spike Lee's major movie. What goes on to a prophetic figure?
I'm so glad you wrote about Ida B. Wells....Her name is not up there obviously with a lot of others, but this is a very impressive woman.
You say a fundamental reason for writing this book is you would like to put black prophetic fire back into the world.
Congratulations, NPR. You sound like the publisher’s publicity packet.
