At 8 p.m. on January 28, Black Entertainment Television aired the premiere episode of College Hill, a series about eight African-American students on Southern University’s campus. As viewers across the country watched the first-of-its-kind reality show, students and faculty across campus spawned opinions about a show that was diverse as the show’s cast.
“I liked the show,” said Adrain Hezekiah, a sophomore biology major from Monroe. “I think that it’s a ‘Black Real World.’”
Seeking diversity, the series, produced by Edmonds Entertainment Group, profiles the lives of the students during a semester. The students’ backgrounds range from a cheerleading diva (Nina) to an aspiring rapper (Delano) and a band-marching fraternity member (Gabriel). However, one member of the cast, Kinda, a self-proclaimed “wild child” ignited conversation and controversy campus- wide.
“She should not have done the things she did on that show,” said Tarianne Green, a freshman fashion merchandise major from New Orleans. “She didn’t represent SU well at all. Now people across the country have developed stereotypes about women at Southern. She just doesn’t make Southern look good.”
Earl Jones, a staff member in the registrar’s office said that Kinda’s performance made the show.
“If everyone on the show was ‘goody-goody,’ nobody would watch it,” Jones said.
Donald Wade, SU Alumni Federation President, does not want to see another episode. He said that people who did not understand the “Southern tradition and values” should not have played a part in making such an endeavor.
“I do not have one positive comment about this program,” said Wade. “I’m completely knocked off my feet that something like this could be shown about Southern. Reality is something I don’t understand when this is a depiction is of Southern.”