Black Out Loud with Geoff Bennett

Black Out Loud with Geoff Bennett

From Naked Sports with Cari Champion by The Black Effect Podcast Network and iHeartPodcasts

April 15, 2026 · 50 min · Season 5 · Episode 17

About this episode

Cari Champion interviews Geoff Bennett about his book 'Black Out Loud' and the significance of Black television in the 1990s.

Today, Cari talks with PBS NewsHour co-anchor Geoff Bennett about his book “Black Out Loud” and why the ’90s felt like a once-in-a-lifetime run of Black TV—“how did all of these shows exist on the air at the same time?” He traces the history from minstrelsy and vaudeville to comics like Moms Mabley, Dick Gregory, Richard Pryor, and the Fox era that helped power “In Living Color,” “Martin,” “Living Single,” and more. Jeff explains the shift wasn’t just culture, it was business: networks later “pivot[ed] to whiter audiences,” and that helped end the boom. After listening to this episode, you’ll walk away understanding how comedy “lowers our defenses,” why representation changed real choices (like the “Maxine Shaw effect”), and why today we have “way more volume, but…less impact.” Connect   @CariChampion @GeoffRBenett Read: Black Out Loud By Geoff Bennett Subscribe   Cari Champion's YOUTUBE Channel See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

People in this episode

Host: Cari Champion

Guest: Geoff Bennett

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: PBS NewsHour

Books & works: Black Out Loud, In Living Color, Martin, Living Single

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