Some of the suits (mostly white executives) at Univision came after me and tried to discredit what I was saying. They failed because I used simple, publicly available census data and basic research that advertisers could fact-check. I also had ratings to back up the claim that we reached our target audience in ways that neither Spanish language nor General Market TV did. Though tiny in comparison, our existence threatened Univision’s near monopoly and, worse, their narrative that all U.S. Hispanics sat around and watched Sabado Gigante (Big Saturday) every Saturday night, from grandma to the kids. A lot of noise but little to back it up.

I get a similar vibe here.

Allen seems to be less about fighting for African American media to garner ad share as much as for Allen Media to garner more money from advertisers it harangues, bullies and shames into buying for itself.

Allen Media presents advertisers with many options but very few “good” options. Their weekend syndication offerings are packed with so many ads and so little content as to be borderline unwatchable by anyone of any ethnicity. Many of the 24/7 network content includes the same BA-produced shows over and over and over. Some legit offerings are on the table, and those few warrant support, but Allen seems to want more and more, regardless of quality, couching it as “equity.” At the same time, there is a massive blind spot concerning the watchability and, thus, reach and effectiveness of his company’s offerings.

Advertisers can ill afford to waste money on media that does not deliver, no matter how cleverly disguised. Moreover, most of Allen Media’s offerings do not seem even very cleverly disguised. Just try watching some of the shows, from start to finish.

Allen is right to press for more equity and ads supporting black-owned media. Where he needs clarification is presenting the case that he and his company’s high volume but (mostly) slap-dashed, unwatchable content is the only or even main answer to this issue. Money is green, and it is the one color all corporations understand. The African American audience, like the Hispanic audience, or Asian, or whatever audience, is all of interest to companies that sell stuff to people who buy stuff. However, they must have legitimate media choices that reach the target audience efficiently and effectively.

Much of what Allen Media has on offer looks less like it was produced to target an underserved audience providing value to viewers and advertisers, and more to be a spot carrier for companies it can bully and intimidate into buying into its narrative.

I assume most advertisers know this, but it goes unspoken because, well… who wants to get sued?