United Shades of America

Some of the episodes are interesting in terms of the physical location, but I can sum up every episode; Every non-white person is a helpless victim, every white person is bad (at least a little bit). The show would be more accurate with the title "The White Devil". It's very obvious that the creator(s) are racist in my opinion.

I was at one time a journalist. Journalists objectively explore subjects. I see from his CV here on IMDb that Kamau Bell used to have a show called "Totally Biased." That would be a good title for this show also. I guess there are some people who are less interested in learning something new than they are in wallowing in their own paranoia and self-righteousness.

According to Wikipedia Walter Kamau Bell is a stand-up comic and television host. I don't know Bell's work but I was attracted to United Shades of America, the episode about Portland, since my son has been talking about moving there.

In Portland men like to wear beards and women like asymmetrical haircuts. They value the environment and many of them use bikes, not only to transport themselves and their kids, but also their goats. Coffee shops are a mainstay of Portland hipster, though few people will cop to being a "hipster". Portland has "cuddle shops" and Bell spends an hour cuddling there, and he finds a home industry where they sell bow ties for dogs, made from recycled material.

So the counter culture is alive and well in Portland, but Bell seems very upset being around so many white people. After about 15 minutes of moving around the City, Bell does some stand-up, then fortunately goes back to the documentary, though if you stick around long enough, you'll have to endure more stand-up. Let's just say he's no Chris Rock (who produced Bell's TV series "Totally Biased")

The main theme throughout is Bell's scorn for hipsters and gentrification, and his sorrow that more black people don't live in Portland (Bell himself lives in San Francisco). Bell is worried that black people are being negatively impacted by gentrification, although his own interviews show that both black and white people are impacted.

I think the idea of "United Shades of America" is a good one and I don't mind a guy with a chip on his shoulder. Some of Michael Moore's films are among my favorites (Roger and Me, Bowling for Columbine). But you need more than a chip, and I didn't see much from this one episode. That being said, I did enjoy the tour of Portland and his interviews with the hipsters he was trying to expose. But unlike Michael Moore, he isn't successful in using the people against themselves, which I gather is a prime intention of Bell. That skill, fine-tuned by people like Moore and Sacha Baron Cohen ("Borat") seems beyond Bell's abilities.

Evaluating a whole series based on one episode isn't entirely fair, so I suffered through a few more episodes. Bell was less angry and tried to be more funny. I don't find him funny, so maybe he should stick with the angry angle.

If you're a fan of Bell you'll probably enjoy the series.

Now in its second season, CNN's series 'United Shades of America' addresses different issues throughout the country ~ with a completely different spin. Hosted by African-American standup comedian W. Kamau Bell, he presents things through a refreshingly different prism.

For example, Bell interviews white privilege advocate Richard Spencer, a neo-Nazi who abhors any race that is not his own, travels to Puerto Rico to talk to its residents about it becoming the 51st state, and what it's like to be a Muslim in small town America. It is interesting to hear stories reported by a person of color as they have insights to things that may be unknown to mainstream white America.

Past episodes have focused on people who have gone 'off the grid', what is entailed in buying a gun, and the dangerous street gangs of Chicago. All in all a very fascinating show, especially since it's addressed from a new perspective.

Having never commented on IMDb, it is an assumption on my part that I will be able to edit this review once the series has actually premiered.

I have to wonder why this show has a rating already when it has yet to air. Walter Kamau Bell has never denied that he is a politically polarizing figure, but I don't know what would motivate users to vote down something that they have never seen, and therefore of which they could judge neither the journalistic nor the entertainment value.

Perhaps those Klan guys weren't happy with the clip editing.

Regarding said clip and related interviews, I think that this show looks promising as an exploration of American diversity, not just ethnically but culturally. If Bell can remain in the role of either calm observer or funny comedian without being overly proselytic towards the audience, it should have pretty broad appeal.