The full context
| 16:27 UK time, Friday, 8 June 2007
I've known Megan (who produces the Sara Cox show on Radio 1) for a long time. She popped her head round my door on Thursday night... "Can I just ask the thinking behind your decision to use the N-word on air?"
Given its ability to shock it's a fair question and I should let you in on the answer I gave Megan.
Firstly when the Big Brother row broke we gave it careful thought. We ruled out mentioning "nigger" itself on our two-minute news summaries, online and in entertainment news... choosing instead to refer to "the N-word". But in our longer programmes - the 15 minute Newsbeat editions on Radio 1, and TXU on 1Xtra - we wanted to open up a debate, and we felt that the full context of what Emily said and the reaction to it was worth running on air.
We preceded the word's use with what we call "a health warning" - telling listeners that we were about to use it and giving them an opportunity to switch off. Overall, we believe that putting in facts of audiences in full - then allowing them to judge the rights and wrongs - is what our job is all about.
The N-word is frequently heard on both Radio 1 programmes such as Tim Westwood's and across the specialist music strands of 1Xtra - because the word is commonly - though not universally - used in hip hop and street slang. For example Jay-Z and 50 Cent use it, though Eminem and the UK rapper Ty don't.
I'm glad we did, because it triggered a fascinating debate among our audience with no clear consensus, beyond a feeling that Emily's use of the word was ill-judged. Some felt Channel 4 over-reacted because of the previous furore over Shilpa Shetty and Jade; others said it was all good publicity for the show. Some thought that Emily was being scapegoated, while others said that she was a racist.
But there was much debate over the word itself: has it now been re-invented in a non-racist setting because of its common lyrical usage? Is it OK for black people to use - but always a no-no for white people? Some of our listeners felt there is a strong double standard operating: if it's fine for the stars of black music to use and for young black people on the streets then why shouldn't it be acceptable for others, given its "new" context and meaning? 1Xtra produced a documentary on this subject - it's worth a listen (click here). Incidentally, 1Xtra news presenter G-Money shed light on the row and appeared on PM on Radio 4, the Six O'Clock News and News 24.
Kaiko from Weymouth texted us to say that if black people don't want it used then they shouldn't say it to each other. After seeing the show on TV, we rang him back to see if he'd changed his view - he felt that it had been used in a joking way and that Charley made "a big deal" of it, perhaps more than she should have done.
The arguments continue... and in case you were wondering, on day two of the story we have dropped using the word itself. We feel it's now in the public domain and audiences are well aware which word is at the centre of the controversy. To use it again, to me, now feels gratuitous.
PS: My colleague Simon Waldman from News 24 also blogged about this - you can read his piece here.
PPS: UPDATE 11 June My original version of this entry used the spelling "nigga", though a colleague changed it to "nigger" for consistency reasons before publication. Actually I meant what I wrote. No-one (even those who use the term) would dispute that the word when spelt with "er" at the end is a racist term, offensive to most black (and other) people. The people who use it in hip hop lyrics spell it a different way, with an "a" and with a "z" as the plural, because they argue this gives it a different meaning. It's in this context that Big Brother's Emily used the word.
Comments
There's a double standard applied, as in so many areas of life.
Such as Brown's racist speech on British job for Brits, but we are unlikely to hear that on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ.
While I might support that idea, and I have read a lot in support of what he said.
The fact is that his speech was racist, you cannot discriminate under the law and you cannot advocate discrimination under race hate laws.
So why is Brown not being fired and why have you got nothing better to talk about other than this trivia?
It's just a word. I've grown up in South Africa and will by default refer to 'mixed race' people as 'coloureds'; a phrase I understand some people find distasteful. So whilst I don't often use 'nigger', I think it's a tad over-zealous to ban the use of it outright - especially when, as in this case, it adds context.
I for one don't watch the show, so a little snippet explaining things was helpful. Mind you, I happen to like the kind of music where 'nigger' is used quite often. To label its use as racist is in my view narrow-minded.
My only complaint is that I was forced to watch a part of the show - I was hoping to miss it entirely.
I would never say the N word and I am a black person. Only people who have limited ability say the N word.
It is quite clear that words might even convey the wrong meaning, let alone little meaning, if the full context in which they were said is removed. By allowing the viewers to listen to the whole statement you are giving them a chance to form their own opinion instead of forcing one upon them.
As of double standards, a good point raised. That being a common observation it would be advisable to allow the word (and many others) into common speech given their new context. I don't think even people of African origin would mind that.
"I've known Megan (who produces the Sara Cox show on Radio 1) for a long time. She popped her head round my door on Thursday night... "Can I just ask the thinking behind your decision to use the N-word on air?"
If you know her so well (not that it matters to the point in issue), why not give her full name?
The trouble is - to me, as a parent of teenage children - that our kids mimic so much of 'black' culture these days (particularly from the States).
My youngest daughter is constantly watching R&B channels on digital TV, and it seems that the 'N word' is used in practically every song ( - but by BLACK artists).
In this sense the genie is out the bottle - and the word is part of the gangsta culture slang. That it slips out in the vocabulary of white followers of this predominantly black culture should not be surprising.
If a white friend calls his black friend (or vice versa) a 'n' - what connotations has that?
We are told - absolutely - that there can be no good connotation, but if that is so, why do those of Afro-Caribbean decent use this term at all?
My view is that whoever uses this term is reinforcing a very bad stereotype and perpetuating a highly disparaging term - white, black, or whatever.
The answer is only in part stopping whites using this term - the real challenge is to stop blacks inadvertently self-maligning themselves by trying to be 'ironic'.
The 'N word' isn't irony, but simply shows that our children of Afro-Caribbean heritage are simply not educated enough about their own heritage. If they could understand the horrendous implecations and history of the term, they surely would not want to use it themselves, and then the temptation for 'naive' white kids to follow suit would also be correspondingly less.
Maybe the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ should help out by refusing to play any R&B tunes that have the 'N word' in them? To re-enforce the idea that there is NO good reason to use the word - whatever the race of the user.
Just say'N'o.
Lot of people make lots of fuss over the use of the word for various reasons. Some do it for publicity, some out of outrageousness, some just because they have to raise an objection and some because they have not heard the context right. The first and last are the major reasons for most of the fuss that's taking place now.
But I feel that once it has been decided to air the word, it might have been nicer to continue using it just like you might use any other word. Offensive is not the word in question but its origin and the contexts footnoted to it by our memories.
When the context is being affected now, the word itself is no longer offensive, not especially when one is clearly communicating the present context and the intentions of the show and the broadcasters.
I feel all the fuss especially by other radios is stupid and gratuitous . I commend ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ for bringing up the subject and hope the radio deals with it as sensibly in future.
Dear Mr Mckenzie I do not wish to get embroiled in an argument with you BUT as you have posted your update, which basically reaffirms your (I believe) prejudiced opinion of the N word, I feel duty bound to answer you.
You supported your use of the word nigger because you believe it is common parlance amongst young blacks. Again , I must reinterate that the term is used by a relatively small number of black youth and is indeed frowned upon by the majority. You do not seem able to either understand or accept that fact, possibly as it undermines your argument on the ussage of the word in journalism.
Also, you state that you are using the word Nigga and not the word Nigger. Isn't this rather like " You say Tomatoe, I say Tomato" . NWA-Niggas with attitude; NWA-Niggers with attitude...what really is the difference.
Mr Mckenzie, again, if you are not able to have an open frank discusion on this matter other than your snidey update, PLEASE do not patronise llicence fee and Tax paying people by attempting to have a discusion...on ANYTHING ever again
Isn't it a shame when people mix up being a nationalist and a racist.Going by what C L Gilbert wrote Gordon Brown said british jobs for brits i think he actually meant british jobs for brits, he didn't mention colour of any skin!!!
british people are of many colours and religions.
Isn't it a shame when people, such as Brown and others don't understand that within the European Union it is illegal to discrimante against people from other member states, whatever colour they are.
Stirring up negative feelings against non-Brits, especially when so many have recently arrived in the UK, such as those from the new east European members, is not something a rational person would want to see from the prime minister (non) elect.
Isn't it a shame when people, such as Brown and others don't understand that within the European Union it is illegal to discriminate against people from other member states, whatever colour they are.
Stirring up negative feelings against non-Brits, especially when so many have recently arrived in the UK, such as those from the new east European members, is not something a rational person would want to see from the prime minister (non) elect.
Isn't it a shame when people, such as Brown and others don't understand that within the European Union it is illegal to discriminate against people from other member states, whatever colour they are.
Stirring up negative feelings against non-Brits, especially when so many have recently arrived in the UK, such as those from the new east European members, is not something a rational person would want to see from the prime minister (non) elect.