Human Contact, Not Radio, Key to Better Race Relations

To the editors:

Geoffrey C. Upton's column "Seeing Kiss 108 in Black and White" (Dec. 2) is riddled with muddled contradictions and false comparisons. While Upton rightly asserts that "the fact that America has black icons...does not mean that racism has vanished from our lives," he disregards this affirmation by calling for a multi-racial democracy based on promoting "black" culture in "white" media, for example by featuring Brandy and Monica on Kiss 108--as if playing "The Boy is Mine" ad nauseum could serve as a catalyst for bridging America's racial divisions.

While Upton concedes that "the lack of an integrated radio station is more a reflection of Boston's segregation than a cause of it," he nonetheless insists that radio stations should be pressured into playing black music; after all, he notes that "someone has to take the lead if we are to combat our racial polarization." Yet calling upon the media to determine, rather than reflect, societal trends is a dangerous proposition. Cross-over media exposure can assist, but not replace, human contact as a means of destroying prejudice and fear.

Furthermore, I question Upton's bizarre assertion that "in New York...the promise of integration has been fulfilled a bit better," evidenced, apparently, by the prominence of black artists in the playlists of mainstream stations. A quick glance at census statistics--African-Americans make up 26 percent of metropolitan New York's population, compared to 7 percent of greater Boston's (see govinfo.library.orst.edu)--indicates that New York stations are after market share, not racial harmony. MAX HIRSH '00-'01   Dec. 3, 1998