Connie Chung, CNN Banished from George Lucas Ranch After Questions On Racial Stereotyping

The Force.net, IMDB.com and Electronic Media Magazine ^ | Monday May 20, 2002 01:40:25 EDT | Internet Movie Data Base News Staff

[codebreaker]

Connie Chung and a CNN crew were barred from a press junket on the property of George Lucas Skywalker Ranch, north of San Rafael, CA. after Chung, in a taped introduction to an interview with Lucas that appeared on CNN on May 7

(Chung) Referred to Star Wars:Episode 1 The Phantom Menace as a 'disappointment,'

Then alluded to charges that Jar Jar Binks character represented racial stereotyping Electronic Media Magazine reported Monday.

The trade publications 'Insider' column commented:

'At CNN, the stance is that Mr. Lucas expected a one hour love letter and a wet kiss in return for the access CNN was allowed and didn't feel he got that.

[codebreaker]

Put some ice on it Connie..and the actor playing Jar Jar begged to be able to create the voice

[spald]

Way to go Connie. With stealth moves like that, it'll be no time before you're anchoring the CBS Evening News again!

[Clemenza]

I think the best was the Mexican-American professor who b-tched about how Django Fett was portrayed as an "evil Latino" even though the actor who played him is a Maori from New Zealand!

[RikaStrom]

and the actor playing Jar Jar begged to be able to create the voice

He did? Really?

I can't say that that was his best career move.

[pabianice]

>>Then alluded to charges that Jar Jar Binks character represented racial stereotyping Electronic Media Magazine reported Monday.

Absolutely true. As one of the race of people whose eyes come out of the top of their heads on stalks, I was outraged at the Binks character!

[codebreaker]

Gunga Dan is getting ready to leave soon..

[Clemenza]

Jar Jar is evil. One of the reasons I enjoyed AOTC over PM was that his role was minimalized.

[DoughtyOne]

Poor diluded Connie has probably never seen a Star Wars movie. If so she might have remembered Lando Calresian a prominent character in the Empire Strikes Back, played by Billy De Williams, a black man. So much for racial stereotyping.

The problem with people like Connie is that sooner or later it dawns on them what worthless non-productive human beings they have become. Seeking to find meaning in life, they must trash everyone else in their quest to prefect all humanity but themselves.

[codebreaker]

But doesn't it feel good to know that Jar Jar is indeed responsible for the Rise of the Empire?

[litany_of_lies]

If I were Lucas, I'd be pi**ed off too. You have to be looking to invent trouble to think that Jar Jar or Jango are racial stereotypes. There's an awful lot of people who need to get a life, and it's not the longtime fans of Star Wars.

[rageaholic]

I am surprised Connie did not complain that the two frog-aliens were not a slur against asians. They had japanese accents and slanty eyes. In the role they played, they were obviously meant to resemble the Japanese diplomats in Washington DC just before the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor.

And yeah I think Jar Jar Binks was deliberately modeled on J.J. from "Good Times".

[TheLurkerX]

Exactly! As a gangly, flap eared creature myself, I was appalled at the lack of intellect written into Jar Jar's parts. Think how much he could have done to forward our culture by playing Jar Jar with a rasta-shakespearian accent.

[clintonh8r]

But dudes, don't you think Uhura was, like, awesome ?

Oops! Sorry, looking for the Trekkie thread...

[AppyPappy]

We just saw PM last week. My wife remarked that the Jar Jar race was awfully "black" and that Jar Jar was gay.

[rageaholic]

(the Frog Aliens were from Episode 1)

[codebreaker]

Connie is even doing background research these days..must be waiting for Rather to move on to 60 Minutes II before she goes back to the CBS Evening News.

[Clemenza]

But doesn't it feel good to know that Jar Jar is indeed responsible for the Rise of the Empire?

Heh, heh, heh (chuckle)... Almost as good as the fact that Senator Palpatine was made up to resemble the Senior Senator from West Virginia, hair and all.

[Brian Mosely]

The race baiters just won't let this one go... Left with nothing to bitch about, these group pour through popular culture...looking for the lastest example of bigotry...real or imagined...mostly imagined.

One another note, perhaps we can say that Connie Chung herself has created "a racial stereotype" by her very existence. Just pick up the DVD of Cheech & Chong's Up in Smoke and check out the scene at the Mexican border with the Asian reporter named after two Japanese motorcycles companies or just about any cheap flick from the late 70's and early 80's...which had too many parodies of Ms. Chung and Asian-American journalists to speak of....

[Billthedrill]

For Xortan's sake, knock it off, you two! The humans are beginning to suspect...