Where are the black faces on University Challenge?

Scroll to see replies

Reply 40

Totally Paused

Original post by HeritageofEurope

algerians are not white

That still makes it diversity...

Reply 41

moonriver96

Original post by HeritageofEurope

no they are not white. white is mot just defined by skin colour but is a common identity and term used to describe those of european ancestry.

algerians are not white and arabs are not white

Can I just ask, since you are so pro-white and anti every other colour on earth, what do you think about Europeans with brown skin? Google Penelope Cruz or even Monica Cruz.They're 100% SPANISH., not mixed before you start..

Reply 42

HeritageofEurope

Original post by moonriver96

your argument is non existant and over simplistic.

being white is not just tones in light skin colour. being white is complex identity shared by europeans who identify themselves as belonging to a distinct groupd hence the definition of identity. being white is perceived as sharing common attributes including very light to light skin along with common ancestry, culture and self awareness and so on it multi faceted and far more complex than posting some random celeb and going look at him, what about her

and I am not anti non white so grow up

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 43

UniMastermindBOSS

You don't see black people on any quiz shows really tbh, even like Pointless and the Chase.

And those shows have some extremely thick people on, so I guess it's down to black people not being interested in stuff like that more than not being intelligent enough.

Reply 44

diggy

Original post by + polarity -

maybe they're just not interested

This.

Black guy going to top 20 university

I am not interested

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 45

duchess wendy

Original post by CryptoidAlien

where are the white faces and diversity in Africa?

Y'all wouldn't go to africa to study would you?..

Reply 46

SaucissonSecCy

Original post by childofthesun

Africa isn't a country :tongue:

Tell that to George Bush.

Reply 47

SaucissonSecCy

Boring thread. It's not important, and I'm sick of people going on about quotas and representation. The thing is, they think they are anti-racists, but all they are doing is perpetuating the obsession with racial categories. Much more important to worry about black faces in the police force and legal system, because that is where black people are suffering injustice.

Reply 48

GlobalBruthahud

Because blacks aren't really interested in pursuing knowledge for its own sake, they generally see education solely as a means towards making money.

Reply 49

duchess wendy

Original post by GlobalBruthahud

Because blacks aren't really interested in pursuing knowledge for its own sake, they generally see education solely as a means towards making money.

I am black but i totally agree with you. I think thats our problem

Reply 50

Serine Soul

Who'd want to be a snotty little... on live tv anyway?

Reply 51

caravaggio2

Could it be that black people don't choose the subjects that most of the questions tend to be asked on?
At first I thought it may be that they weren't in the circle of friends that make up the team's , until I watched a program on how the team's are picked. Many of the members on each team don't know each other before they are chosen, so it isn't that

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 52

VergeofInsanity

Original post by CheGuava

More White people tend to go to university (Because it is the majority of the population, no race reason), so this narrows down the pool of people to pick from when forming a team.

So we can assume, for instance, if everything was directly proportional, there are 80% white people in an given university (This isn't the case, but we're running with it for the argument.) We're then going to assume that the other 20% of people are black. We're now going to assume that there are 100 people in this university (For easier maths).

So, we have 80 white people, and 20 black people. University challenge is a very difficult program, so you need to select from the best of the best, let's assume we take the top 10% of people in any university to interview to join the team. We now are left with 8 white people, and 2 black people. That's 10 people in total to make up a team of four. The odds are, whatever combination of people you take, you will generally consist of an all white team. This isn't racist, that's just statistics.

Then add in socio-economic reasons and such, which I shan't go into as I do not necessarily subscribe to them, and other people have already covered them. Also there have been black people on university challenge.

Your logic is flawed. Out of population? Can you explain why there are just as many black football youngsters in professional academies as white then?

Reply 53

Copperknickers

Original post by CryptoidAlien

where are the white faces and diversity in Africa?

Not an intelligent comment. In African countries with sizeable populations of white people (Namibia, South Africa) white people hold a disproportionate level of senior positions of power, even after apartheid.

Reply 54

PrincePaul353535

Original post by caravaggio2

I was watching a programe about how they pick the teams. What struck me was the lack of black faces. A smattering of Asians but no black students, not one.
Go to any city Uni and you will see plenty of black faces around, or check out the Uni websites there are plenty.
I was wondering why this is.

Well first off, a black person has to join the quiz or debate team or something. That quiz or debate team is most likely white. So that would put me off and a lot of black people who would feel out of place.

Secondly black people at uni are a minority to begin with and university challenge tends to focus on the more red-brick uni's were black people are even more of a minority.

But just let's say. There is a black person at red brick university who wanted to join the debate team or quiz team. First off they are going to have to get the green light from a white person to allow them entry.

On top of that, most of the questions asked on university challenge tend to favour white middle class student. But let's say you got a rare black student who went to Eton or Harrow and studied, studied UK history, Ancient Rome and Greece. He spoke like Chris Eubank and dressed and acted like Carlton Banks from Fresh Prince of Be Air

Well, forget about race for a second. The fact is even for a white student to get on a team for university challenge is going to be tough. I mean. Four slots ? And they more than likely have 80 or 90 to choose from ?

And them 80 or 90 are most likely real egg heads when it comes to general knowledge. So the black person is going to have to be a Jedi when it comes to general knowledge.

And even if the black person out scores them all (Which is tall order) university challenge represents the whole university, so sometimes the decision for who get's the gig is just as much down to connections and whether that person fits in and whether they get along with them, just as much as how strong their general knowledge is.

Reply 55

Drewski

Original post by PrincePaul353535

On top of that, most of the questions asked on university challenge tend to favour white middle class student.

Most of what you say is accurate, but the paragraph above is bovine excrement.

The questions on the show favour university students. There's nothing else to it. If you study the subject they're asking about, you'll know (or at least, should know) the answers. Colour plays absolutely no part in that, to suggest it does is ridiculous.

Reply 56

MAINE.

Original post by caravaggio2

Not true at all.

Black people are only 2% of the population in the UK, and the % of black people at uni in the UK is much smaller number than that, and the % at top unis in the UK an even smaller number.

Reply 57

PrincePaul353535

Original post by Drewski

So if you don't think a history which is taught at schools were white people are shown as the fathers of maths, the fathers of music, the fathers of religion, the fathers of physics. The most intelligent man of all time ? Einstein. Greatest explorer of all time ? Columbus. Greatest painter of all time ? Da Vinci. Greatest warrior of al time ? Napoleon

Now I think that is very white supremacist view of history. And they are the type of questions asked on university challenge.

Now if you are going to sit there with a straight face and still tell me that white people do not have an advantage in that, then its hard to take you seriously.

Reply 58

Drewski

Original post by PrincePaul353535

Are you seriously telling me that black and Asian people who have grown up going to school and university in Britain are taught an entirely different version of history?

Do you not realise how absurd that sounds?

If you did A level history you learnt the exact same things the white students did. Hence you get the exact same questions.

The questions are colour blind. It's you who isn't.

Reply 59

PrincePaul353535

Original post by Drewski

The questions are colour blind. It's you who isn't.

The only colour you are blind to is white.

Original post by Drewski

It's not about learning the exact same history. It's about learning a history that glorifies white people, that history is taught at school and that is the the history that university challenge asks questions.

So you when you are told about your national heritage or about“civilization,” you are shown that white people made it what it is and you can be sure that white people at school or uni will be given curricular materials that testify to the existence of the white race.

That gives white students the advantage when it comes to programmes like university challenge