A compelling argument can be made for Donald Glover as the hardest working man in entertainment today. He's a co-star on 71 episodes of NBC's cult favorite comedy Community, a touring stand-up comic, a television writer and an accomplished MC/producer as Childish Gambino. And, according to the New York Post last Friday, Glover can now add “black actor” to his impressive résumé as he shoots scenes for season two of HBO's hipster hit Girls.
Only in the Post's newsroom can Glover have a less influential name than relative newcomer Lena Dunham, the Girls creator and star. By writing “Dunham films with black actor” as a “quick fix” to the Brooklyn-based show's lack of ethnic diversity, the Post offers its customary condescending view that is remarkably out of touch with the entertainment landscape.
If Twitter followers are a viable unit of measure to quantify fame,
then the 633,000+ people paying attention to Donald Glover are well
aware that he's more than just a “black actor.” Compare Glover's numbers
against Dunham's 116,000 followers and the Post's decision to leave Glover nameless becomes even more irresponsible.
Then again, this is the same tabloid that published Phil Mushnick's racially charged tirade against the Brooklyn Nets last month because Jay-Z selected black uniforms, and also suggested that a murdered chimpanzee was President Barack Obama in a 2009 political cartoon.
Glover will join a world centered on Dunham and her three friends as
they try to survive in New York City while balancing their jobs, sexual
identities, and relationships. The goal now is to hope that the “black
actor” is more than the “black friend,” or worse–something like Blair
Underwood as Miranda's secret lover in S-x and the City.
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