Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
How could they possibly show everything? People spend a lifetime studying their family history! I'm going on fifteen years, and I sometimes think I've barely scratched the surface. There are entire branches of my family tree about which I have just the barest information. Every WDYTYA and FYR episode is heavily edited to include what the producers think will appeal to the viewing audience, and this is no exception.
Affleck asked that certain aspects of his family history be left out in preference to others, which is not the same as asking to have his family history deliberately misrepresented. That being said, I agree with the previous poster that it would have been a more powerful show had the evolution of his family's beliefs and actions been explored. It was a missed opportunity.
Didn't they find time to talk about his mom being a freedom rider? That is not really digging very far into someone's ancestry now is it?
One side of my family immigrated from Germany, the other side are Cherokee.
I wonder how much land I can get back that was stolen from my Cherokee ancestors.
Why do so many white people claim to be part Cherokee? I'd wager the vast majority of them are wrong... but it makes me wonder why so many people push this? Is there something about the Cherokee tribe in particular that seems cool? Was it some unspoken acknowledgement among certain classes of white people decades ago to hide black or Hispanic elements of their family trees? I swear, white people tell me all the time that they're part Cherokee, and when I ask them how they know, it's usually something like, "My grandma told me" or "my great grandfather had high cheekbones"
I posted this on another thread, but I think it's also relevant here...
Quote:
Originally Posted by randomparent
Every WDYTYA and FYR episode is heavily edited to include what the producers think will appeal to the viewing audience, and this is no exception.
Affleck asked that certain aspects of his family history be left out in preference to others, which is not the same as asking to have his family history deliberately misrepresented.
Others have already pointed out, and I agree, that it would have been a more powerful show had it explored the evolution of his family's beliefs about slavery from Affleck's slave-holding 7x g-grandfather to his freedom rider mother. It was a missed opportunity, and I'm sorry to know that Ben could not understand the significance of that progression. It's a compelling narrative.
Why do so many white people claim to be part Cherokee? I'd wager the vast majority of them are wrong... but it makes me wonder why so many people push this? Is there something about the Cherokee tribe in particular that seems cool? Was it some unspoken acknowledgement among certain classes of white people decades ago to hide black or Hispanic elements of their family trees? I swear, white people tell me all the time that they're part Cherokee, and when I ask them how they know, it's usually something like, "My grandma told me" or "my great grandfather had high cheekbones"
also see: Elizabeth Warren
Agreed but since MOST US "Hispanics" also part Aztec and so on Indian, no reason to claim "Cherokee" over "Aztec" IMHO.
Two completely different topics, Affleck isn't violating any business laws by not wanting to talk about something in his ancestry. You do realize every tv show is edited?
They need to do a better job of not letting their non-edited version get out. Affleck made something out of something most people would have shrugged off. My guess he didn't trust his fans to understand he is not responsible for his families past, none of us are.
Look latest news Affleck has come clean....."After an exhaustive search of my ancestry for 'Finding Your Roots,' it was discovered that one of my distant relatives was an owner of slaves," Affleck, 42, admitted Tuesday on Facebook. "I didn't want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves. I was embarrassed. The very thought left a bad taste in my mouth."
spoken like a politician ......."I lobbied [the producer] the same way I lobby directors about what takes of mine I think they should use.
Seems to me he's being covered for, but whatever.......After the news broke, Gates told The Associated Press that even though the ancestor in question never appeared on the show, it wasn't because of censorship.
"For any guest, we always find far more stories about ancestors on their family trees than we ever possibly could use," Gates said in an emailed statement to the AP. "We decided to go with the story we used about his fascinating ancestor who became an occultist following the Civil War. This guy's story was totally unusual: We had never discovered someone like him before."
Wonder why an occultist would be more interesting, than a slave owner to talk about.......just wondering!
They need to do a better job of not letting their non-edited version get out. Affleck made something out of something most people would have shrugged off. My guess he didn't trust his fans to understand he is not responsible for his families past, none of us are.
Look latest news Affleck has come clean....."After an exhaustive search of my ancestry for 'Finding Your Roots,' it was discovered that one of my distant relatives was an owner of slaves," Affleck, 42, admitted Tuesday on Facebook. "I didn't want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves. I was embarrassed. The very thought left a bad taste in my mouth."
spoken like a politician ......."I lobbied [the producer] the same way I lobby directors about what takes of mine I think they should use.
Seems to me he's being covered for, but whatever.......After the news broke, Gates told The Associated Press that even though the ancestor in question never appeared on the show, it wasn't because of censorship.
"For any guest, we always find far more stories about ancestors on their family trees than we ever possibly could use," Gates said in an emailed statement to the AP. "We decided to go with the story we used about his fascinating ancestor who became an occultist following the Civil War. This guy's story was totally unusual: We had never discovered someone like him before."
Wonder why an occultist would be more interesting, than a slave owner to talk about.......just wondering!
I thought that you were for reparations? Sounds like a guy that should start repaying.
What exactly did Affleck do wrong? I don't believe he owns or has ever owned any slaves.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.