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"From the inception of the Black American experience, the struggle of the bond between Black women and man has been systematically sabotaged."

     *That was the opening statement of "Hip Hop vs. America II: Where Did the Love Go?" hosted by MC Lyte and Jeff Johnson. 

     It's good premise worthy of analysis and discussion. Unfortunately, that was the first and last time the issue was raised. 

     Instead, what followed was predominately condescension, intellectual grandstanding, shouting, eye rolling and ill mannered behavior that was demonstrative of the problem, and failed to illuminate any solution. 

     There were good points made, and not everyone on the two panels engaged in conversation or behavior that wasn't representative of their best self.  However, that was the exception, and it was disappointing to watch.

     In addition to the substance of the program, (hang on while I get a little technical) the production value just wasn't good.  The lighting was terrible.  Performers of color know how rare it is that we are lighted properly for the camera.  Well, this is BET for goodness sake!  If I can't demand BET get it right, then who?  It looked like my people were under a tree in the shade! 

     Next, forgive me in advance, this is not a criticism of the man in any way, but I must be honest.  I didn't know who Jeff Johnson was.  There was no mention of the brother's name until he signed off the air!  There were no names on the screen or voice over introduction to let the viewer know who was on the air.  MC Lyte is a hip hop LEGEND we all know.  She introduced herself at the top of the show.  The producers should not have let Jeff's introduction of Ali LeRoi as the executive producer of "Everybody Loves Chris" instead of "Everybody Hates Chris" make it to air.  Beverly Bond on the second panel was introduced, and then never heard from at all!

     I've got to stop there.  If I continued to be constructively critical of everything I saw, just in terms of the presentation, I would exceed any reasonable length for one post.  My final word on production: BET has got to do better ...

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Urban Thought Collective is a new digital community exploring everything from pop culture to politics from an African-American perspective. Darryl Bell is an actor and Chicago native, best known for his roles in classic TV series "A Different World" and Spike Lee's "School Daze." His unique television commentary is exclusive to Urban Thought Collective.