TABOO is based on the 1989 NBC News documentary "Black Athletes: Fact and Fiction,"
produced and written by Jon Entine with Tom Brokaw. The program, which included
an hour-long documentary and a forty-five minute discussion and analysis that
followed, was awarded an Ohio State University Award for Excellence in Broadcasting
and was named Best International Sports Film at the International Sports Film
Festival. The media reaction, even from those cautious about the thesis, was overwhelmingly positive:
"It was an hour spent mentioning the unmentionable."
– USA Today"This is a step forward in the dialogue on race and sports."
– Newsday"This program – reported by Tom Brokaw and written and produced by Jon Entine – is very good, very fair and stands on its own. And this program is controversial, but only because it publicly suggests what countless avid sports followers know to be true and say privately."
– Los Angeles Times"It is the best documentary NBC has put together in a very long time."
– Philadelphia Daily News"What is about white America that so relentlessly demands an explanation for the rising prominence of blacks in sports? Is it the fact that so many other myths about blacks have been shattered that we have one last excuse to hang onto racism?"
– Rocky Mountain News"The program opened the door to enlightenment on a controversial subject."
– Dr. Harry Edwards, University of California-Berkeley Sociologist"'Black Athletes' presented a strong case that there are, in fact, fundamental physiological differences between blacks and whites."
– Houston Post"Producer-writer Jon Entine and host Tom Brokaw offer us a thoughtful look at widely held beliefs about black athletic superiority."
– Los Angeles Herald Examiner"The network should be applauded for its bold venture, for the willingness to tackle a sensitive subject such as alleged athletic superiority of blacks, and for taking risks in the name of truth-seeking."
– Denver Post"I think the furor it caused means there is a lot of strong feeling that has been kept private or discussed in small groups. NBC didn't please anybody. But they got it in the open and got people to talking about it."
– Brooks Johnson, Stanford track coach"Blacks have suffered so much cruelty at the hands of whites, they are now unwilling to accept what could be a compliment because they are scared to hidden meanings and implications. That's sad for blacks. And if you think about it, it's sad for whites, as well."
– San Francisco Chronicle
Interested in finding out more about the documentary? Jon gives talks on the issue of sports and genetics in which he shows snippets of the original documentary. Please contact Jon for more details.