VIDEO MOCKS TURKISH LEADERS, NOT OBAMA
W.T.O.P.
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April 9 2009
WASHINGTON – A Turkish TV video is raising eyebrows because it shows a
man in black face appearing on the split screen with President Barack
Obama. While the video at first glance could appear to be racist,
the head of the American-Turkish Council says it isn’t.
James Holmes, president and chief executive officer of the bilateral
non-profit, says the Flash TV spot that received a lot of attention
after it was posted on The Drudge Report plays off a Turkish proverb.
Loosely translated, Holmes says the proverb says, "He who asks a favor
may be embarrassed, that is have a dark face. But he who refuses,
when he could have agreed, should be doubly embarrassed, that is be
twice as dark."
Holmes says Flash TV broadcasts sensational journalism similar to
Jerry Springer. The correspondent in the video, Gokhan Taskin, is a
sometimes sensational news reader.
Holmes says he initially was appalled by the video that seemingly mocks
Obama, but he asked his Turkish staff to clarify why he shouldn’t
be offended. His staff explained then explained the proverb Taskin
references when he appears on camera.
"Clearly this was a bid for the viewers’ attention by being outrageous,
but he was mocking the Turkish leaders, not President Obama,"
Holmes says.
Holmes says Taskin blackened his face to make an embarrassing request,
one Taskin says Turkey’s leaders should have made but were too polite
to do so when Obama visited Turkey.
Taskin makes three requests of Obama. He asks Obama for support
against the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, to reject the charges
of Armenian genocide and to nail down support for the International
Monetary Fund. Taskin did not ask Obama for money for Turkey,
just support
Taskin concludes with an appeal to Obama to respond positively so the
proverb isn’t changed to read, "then the person who fails to respond
to the embarrassing request is an Obama."
"People understood it was outrageous," says Holmes, who served as
ambassador at the American Embassy in Ankara, Turkey from 1992 to
1995. "They certainly understood the connection. I don’t know of
any negative backlash, but I don’t know of any positive response to
it either.
"We should not demand an apology. We should not be outraged. Best
for us to understand that this is a cultural difference. Recognize,
in Turkey, just like the United States, you have broadcasts that
are outrageous."
(Copyright 2009 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON – A Turkish TV video is raising eyebrows because it shows a
man in black face appearing on the split screen with President Barack
Obama. While the video at first glance could appear to be racist,
the head of the American-Turkish Council says it isn’t.
James Holmes, president and chief executive officer of the bilateral
non-profit, says the Flash TV spot that received a lot of attention
after it was posted on The Drudge Report plays off a Turkish proverb.
Loosely translated, Holmes says the proverb says, "He who asks a favor
may be embarrassed, that is have a dark face. But he who refuses,
when he could have agreed, should be doubly embarrassed, that is be
twice as dark."
Holmes says Flash TV broadcasts sensational journalism similar to
Jerry Springer. The correspondent in the video, Gokhan Taskin, is a
sometimes sensational news reader.
Holmes says he initially was appalled by the video that seemingly mocks
Obama, but he asked his Turkish staff to clarify why he shouldn’t
be offended. His staff explained then explained the proverb Taskin
references when he appears on camera.
"Clearly this was a bid for the viewers’ attention by being outrageous,
but he was mocking the Turkish leaders, not President Obama,"
Holmes says.
Holmes says Taskin blackened his face to make an embarrassing request,
one Taskin says Turkey’s leaders should have made but were too polite
to do so when Obama visited Turkey.
Taskin makes three requests of Obama. He asks Obama for support
against the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, to reject the charges
of Armenian genocide and to nail down support for the International
Monetary Fund. Taskin did not ask Obama for money for Turkey,
just support
Taskin concludes with an appeal to Obama to respond positively so the
proverb isn’t changed to read, "then the person who fails to respond
to the embarrassing request is an Obama."
"People understood it was outrageous," says Holmes, who served as
ambassador at the American Embassy in Ankara, Turkey from 1992 to
1995. "They certainly understood the connection. I don’t know of
any negative backlash, but I don’t know of any positive response to
it either.
"We should not demand an apology. We should not be outraged. Best
for us to understand that this is a cultural difference. Recognize,
in Turkey, just like the United States, you have broadcasts that
are outrageous."