"Recodings: Possibilities and Limitations in Commercial Television Representations of African American Culture” - by Herman Gray

Gray's paper is identifies dominant assumptions in commercial television’s representation of African American culture. He believes that programs of American commercial television views African American culture from the perspective of the white middle class experience. Thus, this gives people the outlook that African Americans are just copies of white culture. “Frank’s Place” is a short lived commercial television series about black life in America, depicting Frank Parrish in a black community of New Orleans. The series was developed as an attempt to rewrite and reposition African American culture and its black subjectivities in the industry.

“Frank’s Place” was a very unique show, as it required viewers to place themselves in the perspective of the black people in the series, in order to fully understand the story and the characters themselves. Due to its distinctive setting, it received great reviews from critics and industry members. But it was not as popular with the majority of the audience, thus was canceled by CBS in 1988. Though it was a short lived television series, it affected the representation of black Americans in the industry in a positive light. “Frank’s Place” challenged the generic boundaries of commercial television, and offered a new direction in representing aspects of black life in America. The understanding of the African American culture to truly grasp the feeling of the show assisted many into recognizing the black’s culture and sensibilities.