Jonathan Weisman, Washington Post Reporter: Obama "Much More White Than Black"

During an online chat Monday at WashingtonPost.com, Washington Post Congressional Reporter Jonathan Weisman said that Barack Obama is "much more white than black." The comment came as part of an answer to a question asking why a recent Obama ad, seen below, was "playing up his white family." Obama's mother was white and his father, who he was not close to growing up, was black.

The full question and answer:

Alexandria, Va.: Obama's new ad (which plays a lot in Alexandria) shows pictures of his mother and grandparents, playing up his white family. Until now he's been "African American"; now suddenly he's a white Midwesterner? During the primary Hillary was criticized for changing her image too many times. Won't Obama be criticized for doing the same thing?

Jonathan Weisman: I haven't heard that criticism, but it is striking. Not a single picture of his father. Now, that really is consistent with his upbringing. He really did not become immersed in black American culture until he left college and went to Chicago. The great irony is that he is much more white than black, beyond skin color.

Watch the ad in question below:

Read the entire WashingtonPost.com Q&A here.

Comments

[brijit]

Amazing how many white men (Weisman, Nader) set themselves up as the grand arbiters of blackness. Apparently all really black people must talk like Flavor Flav.

[dabeckster]

Wait a min! OK, I haven't read all 7+ pages of comments so I don't know if my critique of the slant of your post has been covered already. Pardon if I am making points already brought up. Also, pardon for taking up everyone's reading space if someone has made these points. BUT! let me makea couple of points here.

To start off, from what I have read about Obama, Weisman is correct in that he (Barack Obama) thought himself more white than black while growing up. Credit Weisman for reading a lot about the candidate and taking him at his word. Next is that Weisman responds later on in the chat to a respondent who questions his statement about Obama's "whiteness". See the exchange with 'Columbus, Ohio who echoes BO's questions about grappling with mixed racial identity.

Although Weisman is flippant yet friendly, don't automatically label him the "untrustworthy reporter" because he sees a different non-HuffPo picture. Several times I have noted a decided bias against J. Weisman of the WaPo. The role of viewer/manipulator, or political framemaster, is a role best (more accurately?) assigned to talking heads/pundits and radio/tv talk show hosts. I would put Tim Russert (O the enormity!) at the top of manipulator/political framer list. But , I was never a fan, and I didn't consider the guy some sort of late 20th century hero as did everyone else in the MSM media.

[Heru1]

As he himself acknowledges, Obama is an African American. PERIOD. The only people who refuse to accept this identity are white supremacists. We've had 8 years of an Administration telling us down is up and evil is good. Now you try to convince us black is really white. If you can't see that Obama is not white, see an opthalmologist.

[dejtemper]

This is typical. Divide, divide, divide. Barack Obama is biracial, but always has to choose one. He can never just be himself. My son is biracial, and we had to choose one race to enroll him in school. Most forms he fills out only allow you to choose one race. Why should one half of what he is constantly be denied? He is black and he is white, so what? His mother and his maternal grandparents were the ones who raised him, why shouldn't they be in the commercial he is using to state his story? I would suppose that had he included a picture of his father, it would have been said he was trying to pander to black voters. Give it a rest.

[MKJeeves]

"Not a single picture of his father."
Hmm, do you think that might be BECAUSE HE WASN'T AROUND to have his picture taken? What a numbskull.

[AmeriScholar2007]

Look, As a child of African parents who was raised in the U.S., I know the distinction between how you were brought up and your surroundings outside of the home. Barack Obama hardly, if ever, saw he father while growing up. His cultural upbringing was based off of his white mother, his indonesian step-father, but mostly is white, midwestern grandparents. That is who he is and having a commercial high-lighting that is giving the same information that anyone who read his book would already know. He is coloring in his identity more, not shifting who he is. His black wife, black children, and black best friends are indicators of how he has come to live his adult life but his unique perspective on America and needs of all Americans is born from that white-midwestern upbringing. My african heritage is as much apart of me as my American identity. And Obama NEVER played up his black side for political gain, Clinton tried to do that. We are all aware that being "black" does not help anyone running for a NATIONAL office. He has stradled that line and the question for very leading. NO ONE i know has ever accused Barack of that.

[arvay]

Weisman, in German, means "white man." Does that mean he's more German than Jewish, or the opposite. Isn't this stupid? So is Weisman.

[jazzman]

Obama is race transcendent. He incorporates a uniquely American phenomenon; the new mixed race citizen whose identity and characteristics are truly rooted in American culture. It's a new race forged out of decades of immigrants from various cultures meeting in the great melting pot and open society called the U.S. There's very few places like it on the earth. We should celebrate the fruit of our nationhood. We'll be seeing more and more like him in the future.

[sueno]

I have a serious problem with the comment by Washington Post Congressional Reporter Jonathan Weisman, his assessment of someone's ethnicity is troubling. The base of his assessment clearly
comes across as racist, because he doesn't seem to know what he's talking about.

Blacks, in particular and people of color in general, are bilingual and have to be to succeed, this reminds me of english only legislation, where if one speaks outside of the english idiom, you are "ghetto" or non-conformist. By the way what does it mean to be more white than black?
to dress and look like Jonathan Weisman and Karl Rove? To speak like Bill Kristol and O'Reilly?

His assessment is valid in his own mind, and based on his comfortability with upscale or well-educated people of color. If Jonathan Weisman, spent more time talking to a broader range of people of color, I'm sure he would find a lot more people of color who are able to speak in the standard english manner, in which "he" is comfortable with. His point is ass-sinine and he looks like an inexperienced ass.

- Jonathan Weisman needs to leave both his office and the exclusive bar that he writes from, and hang out with the "black" people that he does a disservice to, and work on his post-racial politics. The times have changed, and I can see that Jonathan Weisman is having difficulty with it.

[TJC]

Obama is both and may have a human desire to be true to both or at least relate as a leader to all races. His narrow minded review is not worth words, I digress.

[disgustedbyitall]

repulsed reader: Jonathan Weisman much more ass than not

[youknowwhat]

And this joker has what kind of credentials to make a statement like this? I'm guessing he can tell us what percentage of white he is. What kind of journalism is thia?

[buckbuck11]

I'm glad that the Democratic candidate is descended from humans. I'm not sure we can say that the current resident of the White House is the progeny of such an evolved species.

[SanityClaus]

Weisman is much more boneheaded than brilliant.

[Ivar]

Amen! racial epitaphs are tempting here. ( and I do not mean about Obama) If Weisman can read, he should read one of Obama's books (he has written three) the video is about when he was young and it is correct...his father was not there. Open your eyes Weisman.

[Genisa]

What does "more white" even mean?

What is it that Obama is doing that makes him "more white"?