News Story

There's an interesting news story making the rounds today. Dateline NBC is in the preliminary stages of doing a story on anti-Muslim sentiment in America (based off a Washington Post/ABC News poll about rising anti-Muslim sentiment in the U.S.). They decided to send a camera crew and a Muslim-looking person to various locations to guage reactions.

And they chose to go to last weekend's NASCAR race. The one I was at with bubblesbrnaid and eliz. In the foothills of Virginia. Not a big city track, mind you.

This pissed NASCAR off. I'm pretty sure it would piss off any sporting body who found out that Dateline was there for that story on their turf (MLB, NFL, NHL, PGA). Because they're still working on the story (obviously), NBC isn't revealing the other locations, but be assured, NASCAR is going to be all over it if the only sporting event is racing.

NASCAR rebukes NBC for Dateline tactics

What intrigues me about it is that I don't agree that Dateline was trying to provoke fans. Honestly? The only provoking that might happen would be if the person who looks Muslim (honestly, are we talking Muslim or Middle Eastern, because there's a major difference here) was wearing a Kurt Busch shirt. That would provoke a response from the crowd.

Hell, I saw a Middle Eastern guy at the race. So? I also saw several African American families, an interracial couple, quite a few white trash, rednecks and affluent whites. Saw a few Latinos. Saw the young and the old. (Saw way too much beer gut as well.) Shock of shocks, NASCAR has a diverse fanbase (it is largely white - not trying to say it isn't).

What I'm most interested in is seeing what all locations will be used for this experiment by NBC. Is NASCAR the only sporting event? If so, fair reporting just went out the window. Honestly, NASCAR doesn't have a great history with diversity, but dammit, it integrated WAY before golf, a rich man's sport. All sports have history with racism.

And the fact that apparently (I want the official word first, though) the NASCAR fans couldn't give a flying flip about the NBC plant is nice to hear, although I wouldn't be surprised if Dateline held back some results for their show. (Also, if the NASCAR fans didn't react, if the piece makes it to air - meaning, if there's a story - then there *better* be a mention that NASCAR fans couldn't give a flying flip.)

One thing that I'm curious about is whether Dateline will get a story out of this. Mainly because going to large locations like a race isn't exactly conducive to seeing racism. Lots of people doesn't equal a higher frequency of incidents, it just means more people in a location busy getting to something. At a race folks are more intent on getting to their seats, getting food, getting merchandise, seeing the sights and going to the bathroom. It's not about sitting around and looking at other people. I'm curious to see if any large crowd will show any racism.

(no subject)

I'm...agog. Honestly agog. Because apparently NASCAR is going to be the biggest sporting event covered for the "sting" to uncover anti-Arab sentiment. (An Arizona football game was already used for other portions. My confusion comes from the fact that apparently Sihks were used for the football game. Um, so ignorant Americans don't know the difference between a Sikh and a Muslim man wearing a kufi?)

What's contributing to the agog is the emails that let it be known what was up. (The NASCAR sting has possibly been extended to the Texas race.)

NASCAR Update on the Story

The emails

Highlights:

They want to do the same thing 2 or 3 other times (in various parts of the USA) with one or two Muslim men in each setting. They are looking for men who actually "look Muslim". They want a guy with no foreign accent whatsoever, a good thick beard, an outgoing personality, and someone willing to wear a kufi/skullcap during the filming.

They also want someone who is fairly well accomplished and has contributed to American society at large in some meaningful way.

Okay, so "Muslim-looking" obviously means the appearance of someone who practices the Muslim faith. This makes sense. Three to four "experiments" though? That's a fair sampling? (Especially in light of the fact that they're doing several in Virginia. So Arizona and Virginia and Texas represent the US as a whole?) What confuses me (although it makes sense in terms of who they want to speak to on their show, because knowledgable people are good interviews) is that these folks volunteering have to be "fairly well accomplished and [have] contributed to American society in some meaningful way". Why? Because discrimination is worse when it's someone who's done something with their lives? What about the everday Joe Muslim that runs into anti-Muslim actions? Does he/she not count? It feels like they're skewing this to make the most sensationalistic story without regard for the fact that their skewing of the story could cause resentment. Although I know they probably didn't mean for the emails to get out, but still. It's written communication. How are these tactics helpful to bridging a divide? Whatever happened to an educated dialouge?

Also, a couple of sisters have inquired about submitting info. While NBC did mention that they prefer male candidates (because they feel that people are less likely to show discrimination to a woman out of courtesy), I will also forward emails I receive from sisters. They may consider filming another hijabi sister if she's very qualified for the role. Please read the initial email I sent below about what to submit.

So Bubba may be a bigoted redneck, but his mama still taught him enough manners to be nice to women?