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Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

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Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#271

Post by bxjaii »

afavour wrote: post #39
f6v wrote: post #2

“X for black people” sounds so bizarre to me(non-American). The cultural divide between the people must be insane.

I don't know what country you're from but if you don't think there are subcultures in your country under-represented by the dominant media I'd assert you're almost definitely wrong. Perhaps it feels a little strange from the outside that such a subculture is definitively "black" but yeah, that's basically how things are in the US. The country has a deep history of racism and black people being literal slaves, in that…

[flagged]

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#272

Post by bobmaxup »

toto444 wrote: post #140
tcoff91 wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That comes with the territory of being the dominant ethnic group in our society. Everything is essentialy for white people by default unless explicitly stated otherwise. Also, it’s not like this blackoakTV doesn’t allow white people to sign up. But I bet you won’t, because you have no interest in black stories. Which in turn kind of proves why it should exist.

What's a black story ?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_American_cinema

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#273

Post by liotier »

mattlondon wrote: post #228
f6v wrote: post #2

“X for black people” sounds so bizarre to me(non-American). The cultural divide between the people must be insane.

Agreed. Where I work (US-company, but I work outside of US) it is similarly weird to me. We appear to have gone backwards in the past 5-10 years in my view - no longer can you just be "you", but now it feels like we have to be labelled, categorised, and segregated into different groups. We now have to make a big deal and a big song-and-dance to highlight our differences and define what our ethnic backgrounds are (app…

I'm typical French and my daughters' mother is African... I had to explain to my daughters the whole concept of race categories and I struggled because it seemed ridiculous and aberrant to them - it is alien to their multicultural daily life. They would laugh at having to chose between being black or white. I don't understand how Americans tolerate being categorized this way. My category: "Other" - always.

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#274

Post by Miner49er »

tomp wrote: post #253

Wow, I didn't think YCombinator was so eager to jump on the racism train! What's next, Funeral services for Jews ?

Is this sarcasm? That's probably a real thing. Different cultures have different funeral services Just like different cultures have different art, hence this company.

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#275

Post by ldargin »

silicon2401 wrote: post #142
jandrese wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You say this like the Hallmark channel or Lifetime don't exist.

What are you saying about non-white people who enjoy those channels?

I'm sure non-black people are welcome to this too.

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#276

Post by cptaj »

f6v wrote: post #2

“X for black people” sounds so bizarre to me(non-American). The cultural divide between the people must be insane.

Man, this is always such a spicy comment to make. Americans always get mad but its true. As a Venezuelan I always find the racism stuff coming from the US completely baffling.

I think most of the world is just completely weirded out by how US culture tackles this issue.

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#277

Post by warent »

mattlondon wrote: post #228
f6v wrote: post #2

“X for black people” sounds so bizarre to me(non-American). The cultural divide between the people must be insane.

Agreed. Where I work (US-company, but I work outside of US) it is similarly weird to me. We appear to have gone backwards in the past 5-10 years in my view - no longer can you just be "you", but now it feels like we have to be labelled, categorised, and segregated into different groups. We now have to make a big deal and a big song-and-dance to highlight our differences and define what our ethnic backgrounds are (app…

The problem is that white Americans don't have the same American experience as black Americans, which is where the divide comes from and it creates another culture. It's been getting a lot better, but there are still two legal systems, two education systems, etc.

My perspective as a white man is that when black people create something for themselves like this, it's reclaiming the power. Like how they use the N word with each other, or how Gay people use that word, it's a reclaiming. Taking the hurtful racist division and turning it into something empowering is the point.

I have no idea if that works in the long term or not, but I always think about Morgan Freeman who said something like the only way we can solve racism is if we stop talking about it

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#278

Post by swman »

Uzo0312 wrote: post #176
sokoloff wrote: post #11

Best of luck in your endeavor. I don’t personally have the guts to take on a space where it seems to me like Netflix could decide to squash you at any moment by outbidding for the catalog of work by other creators. I wonder to what extent that was also true with BET, which is an obviously extremely successful outcome. (Maybe I’m just chicken.) Again, best of luck; this seems like a really smart idea and has a team th…

Yeah, the Netflix squashing us is certainly something we've thought through. We think there are 2 reasons we've got a good chance here though. One, Netflix has to worry about competing with a lot of other major players, while also being profitable going forward, so they really can't over-spend on an audience that is likely underrepresented among their customer base relative to the global population. And two, we think…

I’m a brown guy and I have fond memories of watching the Cosby show with my parents as a kid. I was saddened and disappointed to learn of Cosby’s horrific behavior later on, and it sucks that the show is now going to be lost because of the main characters real life persona.

Really would love a modern day family show that is relatable and shows a successful family. Not too far fetched, but real like the set of Cosby show with the kitchen room and living room was relatable to me. Before moving to America my family with 5+ people lives in two rooms that were like 12x12. I’ve tried watching shows like Modern Family and they just don’t really carry the same weight IMO. Too rich or fake seeming.

Good luck

Re: Launch HN: BlackOakTV (YC S21) – Netflix for black people

#280

Post by imbnwa »

Server6 wrote: post #83
kitcar wrote: post #35

Out of curiosity - you mention that in the 90's there were a number of TV shows featuring prominent black characters but there isn't anymore. Why did you decide the solution to that problem was to create a black-focused distribution platform, instead of production company focused on creating new shows of similar quality to those in the 90's - has something changed about the market that would prevent shows like those…

Not OP, but yeah the market has clearly changed. Everything we consume today and media in general has been fractured, organized into subcategories, and is now delivered by algorithms. I my opinion the problem isn't that there is no demand for black-focused media, its that its just become another subcategory of Netflix. And because it may not be as popular on Netflix it doesn't get as much production. Look at what Net…

> Look at what Netflix is producing these days - its mostly lowest common denominator algorithm driven garbage.

This, the best content on Netflix in the last two or three years for my taste are largely foreign productions

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