Some Say TJ Holmes Don’t Sleep is Back on the Chopping Block at BET.

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(ThyBlackMan.com) recently received a message from one of my most respected colleagues, NBA free agent Etan Thomas. Etan is one of the most important black men in America, largely because he has worked tirelessly to encourage black male athletes to embrace their intelligence and collective socioeconomic power. In that regard, he is not only one of the most important black men in America, he is also one of the most dangerous.

With that being said, Etan Thomas sent this message to me about the new BET show, “Don’t Sleep!” With TJ Holmes:

This wknd I heard from two reliable sources from BET that they are strongly considering not bringing back Don’t Sleep with TJ Holmes. They said that the network has to hear from people if they want it to remain on the air, otherwise it will be cancelled because the ratings were not that good. Smh so please spread the word and if you want this show to remain on as it is the ONLY positive show on BET, please flood this e mail address requesting this show stay on the air Sf.moore@BET.net.

I am glad to see that Etan is taking a stand for TJ. I spoke with TJ Holmes for a while and found him to be intelligent, respectable and conscientious. He was not (in the words of former ESPN contributor Rob Parker) a “cornball brother.” Yes, I do agree that cornball brothers exist, and most of us know what they might look and sound like. Parker’s mistake was that it’s difficult to make these subtle references in the presence of a group of white folks who are paying your bills, which reminds us of why black people need to control more of our own media.

At any rate, I agreed with Thomas’ push to get BET to continue the show. I mentioned a few weeks ago that TJ’s show is good for the BET audience, which has grown accustomed to being fed content that looks like it was created by Shawty Lo and his 10 babies’ mamas. But the truth is that BET has created an audience that isn’t interested in education and has instead become addicted to psychological degradation. Even the new BET slogan “We got you” speaks to the demographic to which it has chosen to appeal, and this is an audience that would rather see Kevin Hart than TJ Holmes any day of the week.

So, here’s my thought: Maybe it’s time to stop expecting BET to be all things to all black people. Not every white man watches Comedy Central or Spike TV, and not every black person is going to watch BET. TV One, Inspire, Bounce and even the Internet provide options that are a far better fit for black folks who appreciate two-syllable thinking, and BET might be the place that is best fit for those who enjoy being intellectual zombies.

So, again, I hope that BET keeps TJ Holmes on the air. The way they treat him is a telling reflection of the network’s world-view. But as a Finance Professor, I can tell you that I don’t see many purely capitalist incentives for making the investments necessary to build the audience that TJ Holmes needs in order for his show to be successful. The deep financial commitment needed to develop TJ’s show would require BET to actually care about the black community more than it cares about money, which would lead to a lashing from their overseers at Viacom.

TJ Holmes hosting a show on BET is like Barack Obama marrying Kim Kardashian. This might have been an ill-conceived relationship from the beginning.

Staff Writer; Dr. Boyce Watkins

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition. For more information, please visit http://BoyceWatkins.com.

LaShonda says:

January 24, 2013 at 1:37 am

I absolutely love and terribly miss, Don’t Sleep with TJ Holmes!!! I would be very disappointed in BET if they don’t bring it back! I watched him on CNN and was sad when he left , until I heard about his new show. But if for some insane reason BET decides to cancel his very informative and socially correct show, I think he should take it to a network where he’ll be appreciated and of course, I’d take my ratings with him!

Shawn hudson says:

January 23, 2013 at 4:32 pm

@Terrance & MR Terrance made a good point this show would fit better on TVONE this would definetly propel them ahead of bet for good!

Terrance Amen says:

January 23, 2013 at 2:20 am

I said this on your last article about the show being on BET. It’s totally the wrong fit. I haven’t watched BET in a long time, but from what you’re saying, it’s not for people who are conscious about themselves and their community. Brother TJ should take his show to another Black network, where it would be more appreciated. BET is all about the money and unfortunately it was always that way, but it did have more balanced programs when it first started, then went down hill from there. If we came together as a people, we would have the money to have our own networks and anything else we need. When are we going to realize, nothings stopping us, but us now.

Black Unity means financial independence and happiness

M R says:

January 22, 2013 at 10:57 pm

BET needs to keep this show much love to Tj

Shawn hudson says:

January 22, 2013 at 6:29 pm

Like I said before you vote with your time in frotn of the t.v. if the same amount of people that watch basketball wives and love & hip-hop would watch don’t sleep we wouldn’t have this discussion.