Fox News refers to Michelle Obama as "Obama's Baby Mama"

The BBQ Pit
181

[QUOTE=magellan01]
They took the phrasing Michelle used (which was already odd) and pushed it to the more urban slang that it was reminiscent of. Yes, it changed the connotation, I’ve not denied that one bit. And I’m not surprised that someone would attempt to nudge things to portray a politician in a worse, or better, light. You might want to reread my posts to see what I’m defending and not defending. Or not.
[/QUOTE]
Ninety-nine percent of the time I take great care to read every post before replying. Perhaps you should have read mine (post #155).

[QUOTE=5-4-Fighting]
. . . . This is especially true, since it was used with a segment that wasn’t at all lighthearted (as has been noted). Why would a putative newscaster (or producer) think it was okay to use this phrase in a chyron, even if Michelle Obama said something similar? It’s called professionalism, a sense of discretion and being fair and balanced.

Oops, why would I expect that in a reputable news organization?
[/QUOTE]
I understand that you’re trying to see the big picture here and lay out a reason that Fox might have extended a phrase used by Mrs. Obama. I also understand that you’ve indicated they were wrong to go there and should have issued a real and frank apology.

What you don’t seem to recognize in your bigger-picture view is that, if Fox had not meant anything by it and was simply trying to engage in an “Obama-Bofama-Bo-Fe-Fi-Yo-Mama” kids’ game on a national news program, there is no mitigating factor, Michelle’s phraseologoy notwithstanding.

Especially given the expectation placed on Fox by the standards outlined in the bolded portion of my quote above.

182

[QUOTE=magellan01]
It was a minor point I made, but a point nonetheless. The phrasing, while grammatically correct, is not one that I’ve ever heard a white person use. Granted, I don’t watch Jerry Springer.

And you might want to look up “tu quoque”. Whether you like the reasoning or not, what Michelle said was not offered as a tit for tat, but rather that she ventured into a territory that brought race into it. YMMV, obviously.
[/QUOTE]
As others and I have advised multiple times now, the phrase “my babies’ daddy” is commonly used by folks from different races, education levels, and economic statuses. Having said that, I can understand you not being familiar with the term. If my office weren’t a veritable nursery* I’d probably consider it odd too. However, your presumption that because Michelle used phrasing you’ve never heard, and Michelle is Black, therefore “my babies’ daddy” is a black term, is a huge leap not to mention false. This also explains why you contend Michelle injected race when she didn’t.

magellan01, please understand that I’m not taking pot shots at you, nor am I attempting to embarrass or insult you in any way. I’m continuing this discussion because I believe you and a few others are misinformed on this issue, and I look at this as an opportunity to clear up misconceptions.

*People under the age of 30 should be flown to a remote island until they get all the baby-making out of their systems. Also, I’d like to garotte whoever came up with ‘take your daughter to work day’ and new employees who (falsely) consider this an open invitation to assail my senses with non-stop crying, toys in the corridors so I can trip and kill myself, and rancid smells of poop.

183

Although I don’t think there was any racial element to it, I do think it wasn’t the best choice of words. “The father of my children” has a much more dignified impact than “my babies’ daddy.” I call my stepmother “my dad’s wife” in order to put distance between us, same as “my babydaddy” is meant to distance the mother from the father, and “my babies’ daddy” isn’t that far off from either.

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deleted.

185

It would be interesting to compare our opinions with our locations.
I am in Central Arkansas. A Black woman I work with is of the opinion that it is a Black phrase.

186

[QUOTE=carnivorousplant]
It would be interesting to compare our opinions with our locations.
I am in Central Arkansas. A Black woman I work with is of the opinion that it is a Black phrase.
[/QUOTE]
Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York (by way of MS & CT):

“My babies’ daddy” – standard English
“My baby daddy” – slang, urban vernacular, not necessarily only used by blacks.

187

[QUOTE=magellan01]
And you might want to look up “tu quoque”. Whether you like the reasoning or not, what Michelle said was not offered as a tit for tat, but rather that she ventured into a territory that brought race into it. YMMV, obviously.
[/QUOTE]

I confess i don’t understand this,“she brought race into it” idea. People have “cultural” patterns of speaking. Some of this is regional, some of it is racial; some of it transcends both and people slip in and out of such speech, depending on whom they’re speaking with.

Being married to an English person for 20 years, my speech ebbs and flows depending on where I am.

If an ethnic person and I consider African-Americans to be an ethnic group in America, use speech that is familar to their particular community. I don’t see how that opens them up to being called another term, that doesn’t have the same meaning; just because someone decided that it was of similar ethnicity or sounded good with the guy’s name.

If an English person in America used the term “bird” (a term for woman) in conversation speaking about the person he’s with, can i then call that same person a “bint”? (the difference according to my SO, is that a bint is ether a whore, or easy woman; but clearly not the type of woman you marry).

Example: Larry Lint says his wife is the same lovely bird he met twenty years ago.

Reporter writes: Lint’s Bint.

That term would be unacceptable and telling people that the speaker used an English term, wouldn’t excuse them for using another English term, that was an insult. That to me is exactly what FOX did with Ms. Obama.

Larry has used a term familar to his culture. According to what I’ve read in this thread; i have wiggle room to call her a bint, because Larry brought his UK culture into a discussion and opened the door for me to use his culture or in the case of Ms. Obama anyway i see fit…and bint is ‘similar’ to bird. They both start with the letter “b” and refer to women. Content and context don’t matter.

So unless a person speaks perfect standardized English, any cultural manners or speech opens them up to being insulted? To have content and context tossed away? Don’t I have a responsibility to use terms within the context of that same culture, I decided to use, regardless of who I think opened the door? Can I just say that their speech wasn’t Standard, so here you go…bird=bint. Baby’s Daddy=babymomma. Wife=Whore. Stable Family=unstable family.

If that’s the conclusion, it seems an insane standard to hold a nation of immigrants to.

YMMV, of course.

<respect knuckles> tap <respect knuckles>

188

[QUOTE=Captain Amazing]
Wasn’t part of it to rhyme “Obama” with “baby momma”?
[/QUOTE]

Presumably, Fox is quivering with anticipation at the possibility of a story involving Michelle Obama and an ungulate kept in Mobile so they can use the chyron:

“Obama’s Baby Mama 'Bama Llama Drama”

[We now return you to your regularly scheduled pit action]

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Good thing their name isn’t Doe or Rich.

190

[QUOTE=42fish]
Presumably, Fox is quivering with anticipation at the possibility of a story involving Michelle Obama and an ungulate kept in Mobile so they can use the chyron:

“Obama’s Baby Mama 'Bama Llama Drama”

[We now return you to your regularly scheduled pit action]
[/QUOTE]

Too late:

Please don’t help my Mama bomb a Osama Obama llama diorama

191

[QUOTE=carnivorousplant]
I asked a Person of Color about that, and she said it was a slip of the tongue; “baby daddy” means the same as “my baby’s daddy.”
[/QUOTE]

I honestly can’t believe you think “baby daddy” is the same thing as “my baby’s daddy”. I also have a very hard time believing you found anyone, let alone a “person of Color” that agrees with you.

“My baby’s daddy”- that’s a proud statement and accurate description of her husband.

“My baby daddy”- the very first definition listed in the Urban Dictionary is “The father of a woman’s child, used to denote that the father is neither the mother’s husband or boyfriend, but just the sperm donor.”

So. Do you maintain that Michelle Obama views her husband as a “sperm donor”?

The Urban Dictionary defines “Baby Mama” as “the mother of a man’s child when the parents are not married”. Do you maintain that it’s *appropriate *to refer to the Presidential candidate and his wife in that manner, *especially *when it isn’t true? It doesn’t matter, anyway, HOW Michelle referred to her husband. Insinuating that she is Obama’s “baby mama” is a sloppy attempt at slander and should be beneath Fox News. What’s more, I can’t believe there are still apologists who are trying to handwave this away.

192

[QUOTE=Onomatopoeia]
As others and I have advised multiple times now, the phrase “my babies’ daddy” is commonly used by folks from different races, education levels, and economic statuses. Having said that, I can understand you not being familiar with the term. If my office weren’t a veritable nursery* I’d probably consider it odd too. However, your presumption that because Michelle used phrasing you’ve never heard, and Michelle is Black, therefore “my babies’ daddy” is a black term, is a huge leap not to mention false. This also explains why you contend Michelle injected race when she didn’t.
[/QUOTE]

“My baby’s daddy.” Grammatically correct. I have heard only black people say it. (Not accepted by all to be a black phrase.)
“My baby daddy.” Grammatically incorrect. I have heard only black people say it. (Accepted by all here to be a black phrase.)

Given the similarity, it is reasonable that a person (me, a producer) who has this experience would assume that the first phrasing is popular in the black community, as well. Unless, of course, one believes that it can’t be a predominantly black phrase because it is grammatically* correct.*

193

I dunno. Baby mama/ baby daddy has probably crept into white trash America by now. Jerry Springer et al being a great facilitator for things like that.

holmes–you speak a great deal of sense. It may not be appreciated, but I wanted you to know that I, at least, did. :slight_smile: (and now I have random phrases floating in my head: bint’s blintz by dint of mint was skint. It doesn’t make much sense (yet).

194

[QUOTE=Lightnin’]
I honestly can’t believe you think “baby daddy” is the same thing as “my baby’s daddy”. I also have a very hard time believing you found anyone, let alone a “person of Color” that agrees with you.

[/QUOTE]

I don’t have a clue what it means. I asked an African American woman I work with.

195

[QUOTE=samclem]
Gee, I wonder why Fox News haters do this 16 times/year. Maybe because Fox News does this repeatedly? Did you even consider the possibility?
[/quote]

That’s a good question. The answer is that the half life on one of these manufactured tempest in a tea pots is about two weeks. After that everybody’ heard it who’s gonna hear it and it’s about time to move on to something new. Usually it takes about a week or so to gestate a new scandal du jour.

So, if one wanted to keep up a constant campaign to discredit a competing news agency that ran counter to your goals you need about 15 - 18 little scandals a year. Considering that they are on 24 hours a day chances are pretty good that they will say or do something that you can pounce on and misinterpret.
I’m glad you brought this up, because the regularity of the scandals is to me one of the strongest proofs of a campaign to discredit. The same thing happens with Rush Limbaugh. The same thing happens with Bush.

Call it the “scandal of the week strategy.”

Further proof that it occurs could be seen during the democratic race, as Hillary fell victim to this campaign.

It’s so old and transparent and common that the only way you can’t see it is if you’re a total partisan wingnut.

No. Not usually. It seems to me that the left uses a constant attack strategy against the right, picking at lots of little things. The strategy on the right is to usually let the little stuff go buy and pick one or two major things (or things that can be made to seem major) and work those over real good.

I’m not sure which is the better strategy.

196

[QUOTE=magellan01]
“My baby’s daddy.” Grammatically correct. I have heard only black people say it. (Not accepted by all to be a black phrase.)
[/quote]
Not accepted by anyone to be a black phrase. As someone mentioned upthread, Laura Schlessinger (Dr. Laura) says “My kids’ mom” multiple times a day on her program. And although perhaps a little too anecdotal, I hear people, usually women, who are married and not black, speak in this way from time to time.
[QUOTE=magellan01]

“My baby daddy.” Grammatically incorrect. I have heard only black people say it. (Accepted by all here to be a black phrase.)
[/quote]
Not entirely correct, as the term has, unfortunately, crept into non-black, non-urban vernacular, but I’ll give you this one.

[QUOTE=magellan01]

Given the similarity, it is reasonable that a person (me, a producer) who has this experience would assume that the first phrasing is popular in the black community, as well.
[/quote]
Based on similarity alone, and given your stated personal experience, yes, this would be a reasonable assumption.
[QUOTE=magellan01]
Unless, of course, one believes that it can’t be a predominantly black phrase because it is grammatically* correct.*
[/QUOTE]
Then one would be making an assertion (or presumption) of equivalence in the two terms that doesn’t exist. Grammar has nothing to do with it.

197

[QUOTE=eleanorigby]
I dunno. Baby mama/ baby daddy has probably crept into white trash America by now. Jerry Springer et al being a great facilitator for things like that.
[/QUOTE]

Hell, the first term I really heard the terms used was in “Hit That” by The Offspring. I don’t know if the phrase has crept into the gossip magazines, as I look at those as little as possible.

198

[QUOTE=eleanorigby]

holmes–you speak a great deal of sense. It may not be appreciated, but I wanted you to know that I, at least, did. :slight_smile: (and now I have random phrases floating in my head: bint’s blintz by dint of mint was skint. It doesn’t make much sense (yet).
[/QUOTE]

bint’s skint blintz was dint by a mint flint tint.

I’ll be over here in the corner, playing with words…

And now back to the thread.

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  1. Is there any evidence whatsoever that the producer who elected to use that chyron was even aware of Michelle Obama’s introduction of her husband as her babies’ daddy before she used that offensive phrase?

  2. Is there any transcript anywhere that puts Michelle Obama’s introduction of Barack as her babies’ daddy into context? For instance, perhaps she’d just been regaling the audience with stories about their children, then segued into “. . . and speaking of our little girls, I’d like to introduce my babies’ daddy, Barack Obama!!!”

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[QUOTE=Shayna]

  1. Is there any evidence whatsoever that the producer who elected to use that chyron was even aware of Michelle Obama’s introduction of her husband as her babies’ daddy before she used that offensive phrase?
    [/quote]
    Not that I could find, but then again, I’ve been accused of having weak Google-fu.

[QUOTE=Shayna]
2. Is there any transcript anywhere that puts Michelle Obama’s introduction of Barack as her babies’ daddy into context? For instance, perhaps she’d just been regaling the audience with stories about their children, then segued into “. . . and speaking of our little girls, I’d like to introduce my babies’ daddy, Barack Obama!!!”
[/QUOTE]
I haven’t looked for actual transcripts, but, yep, that’s pretty much how I remember it. It seemed an expression of pride and not strange at all…and the audience ate it up.