[twas]

It always struck me that the reason Friends has had such staying power is because its core racial make-up is believable. Much the way the core racial make-up probably contributed to the longevity of the Cosby Show.

If race characters were added the show would have vastly different expectations.

There would be those who would demand that the characters face and contront racial issues and the show as a comedy would be diminished.

Most people are looking to escape reality by watching sitcoms. They don't want to be continually confronted by issues they have to deal with outside their homes so why should anyone expect them to bring these issues into their living rooms.

As for adding anything to the show, one has to wonder why Ross struck out with every white woman he ever dated and will his success with women improve by crossing the racial line?

Stay tuned.

[Paul Atreides]

So, judging by this article, we can't have a television program unless it has a token race?

[OpusatFR]

I always appreciated the response from the Seinfeld writers that casting a black Elaine (promiscuous slut), George (habitual liar and usually unemployed), or minority Kramer (weird, never works but somehow has money, always looking for a quick score and buck) would have created a firestorm of protest that the minorities were being somehow slurred or stereotyped.

[Living Free in NH]

White" hits like Seinfeld or Will & Grace have scarcely featured on African-Americans' radar

Will & Grace? What a freak show if there ever was one. I've actually tried to watch it a few times, and by the frquency in which they show gay people, you'd swear that half the population were butt-pirates. I call it "Will you Grace my Butt."

[bourbon]

Uhh...didn't Ross date/marry an Asian girl earlier in the series? I guess that Asians don't qualify as "non-white" anymore, at least not in the mind of this nitwit author.

[Paul Atreides]

Meanwhile, most white people have never even heard of the most popular black shows like Girlfriends and Bernie Mac.

I've heard of both programs. And, it may shock the author of the article to know that I have watched programs will all black casts and have music by black people.

[flyer182]

So we do not even watch TV properly enough for the eurotrash. Seeesh.

[sheik yerbouty]

Different strokes for different folks.

[Lee Heggy]

I loathe enforced segregation only slightly more than socially engineered PC mandated integration.

[js1138]

How about the Simpsons? Or Malcolm in the Middle?

But I forget. Those are done by 19th Century Fox. The network that gave us "Living Color" -- Proof that comedy can't cross color lines.

[TEXASPROUD]

"The most segregated hour in America is 11 AM on a Sunday morning."

It is quite obvious this individual has never been to a Catholic Mass on Sunday morning.

[kerouacbal]

I don't know how you select your TV programs but I never took the race of the cast as a factor. Unlike you I don't try to find problems where there are none. I like Friends for it's humor not who's telling the joke.

[Johnny Gage]

Obviously this dip$hit doesn't watch the next hour of TV after friends.

I would have to say that ER has a completely "racially diverse" cast, covering the entire spectrum.

It's a shame the story lines have gone into the toilet, but that's another rant.

[WillVoteForFood]

And yet this article, while pointing out that TV is generally segregated, fail to point out that the segregation they see comes from directors, producers, and actors who on a daily basis try to ram diversity down our throat. Meanwhile a perceived lack of diversity at a private country club like Augusta is indicative of bigotry that must not be allowed to continue.

[dfwgator]

Looks like Friends is about to "jump the shark."

[cowboyfred]

The reality is that birds of a feather flock together. Bottom line, you are white because your parents were racists.

[just looking]

I don't know about anyone else, but I have tried to watch the "Ali G" show. I could only handle 3 minutes of it. Pure crap.

[ScottinSacto]

If anyone ever thought Friends represented anf form of reality in the first place they are not very high in the IQ dept. First, they would all have to live in just one of their apts to afford the rent, especially being that most of them have minimum wage jobs and are routinely unemployed. I just liked Joey's idiocy...wouldn't matter if he was a different race.

As for the assumption that show don't relate to other racial groups, this guy is stupid. Bernie Mac is actually our favorite show. It is funny and actually gives a positive message in a funny way to kids. Bernie Mac might be the funniest person on mainstream tv. His "Listen here, America" monologues are hilarious....and he can act, which is sorely lacking with most of the other shows. And it seems where most of the other folks that can't act, they try to make up for it in audience numbers by making tired jokes about the other racial groups and the oppression they are constantly under....kinda like Martin Lawrence (who can't do anything without Will Smith).

[SoCal Pubbie]

Recent "white" shows with regular black cast members:

Veronica's Closet, Ally McBeal, The Practice, Six Feet Under, Ed, CSI, ER, all versions of Star Trek, Dragnet (the new version) Boston Public, Judging Amy, Alias, 24, Sienfeld (anybody remember the Johnnie Cochoran-like attorney?), and Third Rock from the Sun. There are many more. Shall I go on?

[jae471]

Family Matters? You know, Urkel and the Windslows...

Every white person I know used to watch that show.

[RichInOC]

What about Ross' pet monkey Marcel? He's not white.