Soledad O’Brien
Running on her integrity as a tell-it-like-it-is journalist, CNN special correspondent and anchor Soledad O’Brien did not waver on the assignment to lead what has become one of the network’s most groundbreaking films.

In this exclusive interview with Michigan Chronicle senior editor Bankole Thompson, O’Brien, whose mother is Black and father is White, talks about the process involved in producing a documentary that focuses on the lives of Blacks, her views on the question of a colorblind society and why her interviewees opened up to her in the documentary.

MICHIGAN CHRONICLE: How did this documentary came about?

SOLEDAD O’BRIEN: It really came about, frankly, through the leadership of CNN. They were interested in doing a story about African Americans in this country that was more flushed out than some of the stories that are normally done in the mediacross the board. And we started researching. They got so much material. At that point my boss said, ‘This is a documentary. This is not a story.’ And then at that point they agreed to come in and then I joined on board really to try to flush out stories about Black people in this country and get them right.
MC: Is this documentary tied to the presidential race?

SO: It wasn’t at all. It’s only coincidental that we started working on it (at this time). We had planned and had been working for over a year doing a six hour documentary that would examine Dr. King’s assassination on the actual anniversary day. And part two and part three would be two hours on Black families and Black women in this country, two hours on Black men. So we had planned that out far before anything going on in politics.

And then it so happened that Barack Obama entered the race and that became sort of parallel toward the point. The conversations about race haven’t been appealing to a lot of people about Barack Obama; they are also indicative that it’s the right time in this country to start talking about race. The reason why it’s the right time for us to be doing this documentary.

MC: The reason I ask is because sometimes the media does have the ability to predict what is to come. Correct?

SO: Yeah. You know I guess I’m not critiquing anything on his part. Early on I’m sure you recall that Barack Obama was a long shot and we were just looking at Black people in this country 40 years after the assassination of Martin Luther King. Yeah, it’s surely great timing for us because there’s been lots of conversations about race that we’ve been leading and then have been happening in this country outside of what CNN’s been doing. So people are very interested in talking about race. There is no question the timing has been fantastic.

MC: Can you briefly talk about what you decided to include and leave out in this documentary?

SO: Sure. You know it was a process of editorial discussion and arguments because there’s so much to do. When I first started I thought four hours was a long documentary. And now I think 24 hours would be short because I need so much more time. You know there is a lot to cover, there is a lot of ancient history and there is a lot of recent history. There are a lot of topics to cover between Blacks and Whites, Blacks and other races. So we sat down and tried to do what we do which is storytelling to focus on people. And early on we knew that our focus would not be what I think is stereotypical coverage of Black people, which is often Black people as athletes, Black people as extraordinary in terms of the Condoleeza Rices of the world, and Black people as clowns, which is kind of the thinking often African Americans are seen in through the media. We would focus on regular people, people who are ignored in the mainstream media and tell the stories of Black working class people, Black upper class people, Black folks in America who don’t get a lot of coverage, Black people who are struggling, Black people who are impoverished, single moms who don’t have a profile done on their lives.

MC: It’s interesting you say that. When you talk about Black leadership in this country, most of the time what comes to mind are the civil rights leaders. Does this documentary help to broaden that definition because there are Blacks in every facet of our national life?

SO: I think everyone is realizing that. There is no question about that. I think that there was a time when Black leadership was synonymous to civil rights leaders and all those battles that they fought…..to free blacks (who are now) reaping the benefits of progress. But then people would argue that outside of business leaders, Black leadership could be community leaders too and not the same people we hear about all the time.

MC: This documentary is focused on four decades after King’s assassination. Do you think America is far away from that dream or are we getting closer?

SO: In some ways we are far away. In some ways we are closer. It’s kind of a mixed bag. In a lot of ways America is divided between Blacks who have done very well (benefited from the Civil Rights Movement) and African Americans who struggle, have a tough time now because what you see is a big division. There are people in our documentary we talked to who tend to identify more with their upper middle class White neighbors than they do their Black colleagues or counterparts who live in the inner city. They feel that even though they are of the same race, they don’t connect. And I think that’s a very interesting change in the last 40 years. So I think it’s a combination. Some people have been able to reap the benefits and others have been left behind. Absolutely left behind.

MC: In the documentary you talk to young Black men in prison. Now there is a school of thought that unless the criminal justice system is somehow revamped in terms of the way justice is dispensed, there will continue to be an upsurge of Black men in jail. When you talked to those incarcerated young Black men, did you get the same opinion that justice is not being fairly dispensed?

SO: What happened is that you see that society picks on young Black men. (As an example), this researcher talked to us about finding out that when it comes to hiring, Black men are lower on the totem poll than White men who have felony convictions. Some employers would rather hire a White guy (who had been a) convicted felon than hire a Black guy who has no criminal record. And you add to that a number of Black and Brown people who are in failing schools, who drop out of school. Some people would argue that education is the centerpiece of all of this and until you really figure out how to make sure that young Black men who are not going to school, dropping out of school at incredible rates, once you fix that problem, whatever happens there will affect healthcare, job opportunities(and so many) other things.

MC: In your interviews what would you say has been the most striking?

SO: I think that the problems are very deep. So what has surprised me the most is the degree to which people in this country, Black people, are saying “we’ve got to fix this problem.” Like a surgeon in Baltimore who we interviewed who still works 15 hours a day as a surgeon saving people’s lives, or Roland Fryer who is our young Black economist (at Harvard University), who could make up to a trillion dollars on Wall Street but has instead dedicated himself to education in New York City. He doesn’t have to be there. But here is a guy who before he was a Harvard professor was sellling drugs out of his car in Florida where he grew up. He doesn’t have to be doing what he’s doing. (These kinds of people are) dedicating their lives to fix problems in the community. That has been encouraging .

MC: What can you say CNN learned from this documentary?

SO: Well, I think that our goal was to present a newer picture of Black people in this country. That was our goal and if we’ve learned anything it is what we have to do to make a good documentary on people who rarely get fair coverage.That’s really what we do. I learned in the meetings that the desire of people to support this project was overwhelming, and that people would like to see fair and accurate coverage of themselves on TV. So we are really excited about this documentary because it is the first time that these stories would be told — good stories and the bad stories.

MC: Will this influence how CNN covers Black America from now on?

SO: I certainly think so. As an employee I think CNN has done a good job covering stories — international news, domestic news — but I think that anytime you do a high profile, long story on a group of people you can’t help but learn from it.

MC: Most people are apprehensive about journalists, believing that what they say will not be reported accurately. Did you encounter that?

SO: The important thing that I would say is that I have long enjoyed a reputation for being a straight shooter. That means if I interview you it’s a very straight forward interview. I don’t trick people. I don’t ambush people. To some degree I’m reaping the benefits of that reputation. Because when I call people up and ask them to sit down for an interview they understand that whatever they say is going to be the what airs and that I am going to be the voice of what their position is. My position has nothing to do with their position. I would accurately reflect their point of view.

MC: Looking at the documentary, there is a debate out there that we are now living in a colorbind society. True?

SO: No, I don’t think that’s true. We are not living in a colorblind society. I think a lot of times people talk about a colorblind society, but why? I am proud to be Black. I am a Black woman with a Black mother and a White father. That is who I am and I’m proud of that. I know every Black friend of mind is proud, whether their families are from America or came from a slave ship hundreds of years ago, or from the Caribbean like mine or wherever. I’m proud of where I’m from. So I don’t buy colorblind society. I want people to recognize who I am and the achievements I’ve made. I’m very proud of who I am.

MC: Doesn’t this documentary contradict the notion that is sometimes pushed out there that we are now in a colorblind society?

SO: Absolutely and I rarely don’t give my own opinions.

MC: Will there be a follow-up to this documentary?
SO: Yes, there definitely will be. There is no question, and it may require another whole documentary after that.