What is digital blackface? CNN writer John Blake's article sparks hilarious memefest online

Former English journalist John Blake sparked hilarious memes online after he wrote an article on digital blackface, claiming white people who post memes, videos, and photos of black people are participating in racism.

On Sunday, March 26, the 74-year-old wrote an opinion piece for CNN, titled, “What’s ‘digital blackface?’ And why is it wrong when White people use it?” that sparked controversy online.

In his piece, John Blake argued that when white people post images featuring black people engaging in exaggerated behavior, they essentially make racist comments about them.

Quoting from a 2017 Teen Vogue article by Lauren Michele Jackson, Blake wrote that this type of racism involves white people “play-acting at being black.”

He added that Jackson wrote in the 2017 piece how white people laughing at memes and pictures showcasing exaggerated versions of blackness could lead some people to view black people as “walking hyperbole.”

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Twitter reactions to John Blake's claims on "digital blackface"

After John Blake’s CNN article on digital blackface went viral, Twitterati reacted to it with memes. Several users made fun of John Blake’s concept of digital blackface and posted memes challenging it. Some of the examples are:

Screenshot of a Twitter user reacting to the Digital Blackface concept.

In his article, John Blake mentioned how the viral video of Kimberly “Sweet Brown” Wilkins, where she narrated to a reporter about narrowly escaping an apartment fire, became a meme after she said, “Ain’t nobody got time for that!”

Stating other examples to explain his point, he added:

“Perhaps you posted that meme of supermodel Tyra Banks exploding in anger on ‘America’s Next Top Model’ (‘I was rooting for you! We were all rooting for you!’). Or maybe you’ve simply posted popular GIFs, such as the one of NBA great Michael Jordan crying, or of drag queen RuPaul declaring, ‘Guuuurl…’”

He described white people using those images as equivalent to modern-day versions of unfair minstrel performances.

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Brief background on John Blake

Born on November 6, 1948, John Blake is a native of Hitchin, United Kingdom, and a former journalist and publisher. He began working for the Hackey Gazette at the age of 17 after dropping out of school.

In the early 1970s, he started writing pop segments for the London Evening News. This became a news column and lifestyle guide called “Ad Lib.”

In 1976, he co-wrote the book Up And Down alongside the Rolling Stones. A few years later, in 1982, Blake became the first editor of The Sun’s celebrity gossip column, Bizzare, before launching another pop column, White Hot Club, in the Daily Mirror two years later.

Blake Publishing was established in 1991 by John and his sibling David. After the original company was dissolved in March 2002, he went single ownership and founded John Blake Publishing. In May 2016, Bonnier Publishing purchased the business for an unknown sum.