Teaching “The Wire” and Remembering the Founding of Vibe Magazine on the October 10^th Episode of Left of Black

On the October 10^th episode of Left of Black, host and Duke University Professor Mark Anthony Neal is joined by Anne-Marie Makhulu, professor of Cultural Anthropology and African & African-American Studies at Duke University. Professor Makhulu is currently teaching a class on the HBO series The Wire. An expert on economics in South Africa, Makhulu compares and contrasts the urban American inner-city portrayed in The Wire with that of South African cities. Makhulu talks about getting into the show after its final season and deciding to teach it to Duke students because of the story it tells about the decline of the American city. She also looks at how the American dream portrayed in the series impacts public policy. Makhulu reveals her favorite characters, discusses her experiences teaching the show, and lastly keeps the audience up-to-date on her current projects regarding informal settlements in South Africa.

Later, host Neal is joined by Scott Poulson Bryant, one of the founding editors of Vibe Magazine and author of the 2005 book Hung: A Meditation on the Measure of Black Men in America and the just published new novel The VIPs. The two scholars speak to the book’s setting in Sag Harbor, a black elite leisure space in Long Island, New York comparable to Martha’s Vineyard. The fiction writer talks about who he would cast in a movie version of The VIPs and what he was intending to offer his readers. The Long Island bred author and journalist , who is currently enrolled in Harvard’s doctoral program in American Civilization, talks about the people and publications who influence his work. Bryant, who crowned the name Vibe Magazine tells Left of Black about the impact of hip-hop and black popular culture on contemporary journalism.

Left of Black airs at 1:30 p.m. (EST) on Mondays on Duke’s Ustream channel: ustream.tv/dukeuniversity. Viewers are invited to participate in a Twitter conversation with Neal and featured guests while the show airs using hash tags #LeftofBlack or #dukelive.

Left of Black is recorded and produced at the John Hope Franklin Center of International and Interdisciplinary Studies at Duke University.

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