The View got fiery this morning during a heated debate about Jason Aldean‘s controversial song, “Try That in a Small Town,” which has been accused of sending a “pro-lynching” message.
Aldean’s music video — which was filmed at the site of the 1927 lynching of a Black man and features clips of protests, some of which are pulled from 2020 BLM protests — was pulled from Country Music Television (CMT) on Monday (July 17), although the network did not offer an official explanation for removing the visual from their channel.
The View was split over Aldean’s video, with some offering him “the benefit of the doubt” and others sharply decrying his song and its video.
“I’m gonna give him the benefit of the doubt that his intention was not to stoke division, glorify violence or racism,” Alyssa Farah Griffin told the table. While she said some of her friends and family found connection to Aldean’s release, the song reminded her of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, “who got shot for doing nothing wrong.”
She continued, “I think if people of good faith can see both sides, they can see there is an issue with this song because of what it means to a lot of communities, but there is an issue of violence, of looting, or rioting—” but Whoopi Goldberg cut in to ask, “Yes, but why are you linking it to Black people?”
And Griffin agreed, replying, “That’s the issue. The imagery [in Aldean’s video] is what becomes very problematic.”
While Joy Behar admitted Aldean’s lyrics were “very divisive and provocative,” she said, “I defend his right to do this video. Because they can’t censor me, they shouldn’t censor him, either.”
As for Sara Haines, she, like Griffin, seemed to offer Aldean some grace, telling the panel, “Maybe he doesn’t consciously realize why a lot of people are not okay with this song,” but by then, Sunny Hostin had had enough.
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She cut in, “I’m actually not gonna give him the benefit of the doubt,” but clarified that she does not believe in censorship. Still, her personal experience visiting Aldean’s hometown of Macon, Georgia, as a child, made her doubt that Aldean wasn’t aware of the message he was sending with his video.
“It is one of the most racist places in this country,” Hostin said. “So don’t tell me that he knew nothing about what that imagery meant.”
She then called out her mother, who was sitting in The View audience that day. She recalled, “My mother and father, because they were an interracial couple, were run out of South Carolina by the KKK.”
She added, “This became the No. 1 song on U.S. iTunes. We have a problem in this country about race. And the biggest problem is, we refuse to admit that is exists.”
Aldean has since defended his song on Twitter, hitting back at the “meritless” and “dangerous” claims about his video on Tuesday (July 18).
“While I can try and respect others to have their own interpretation of a song with music- this one goes too far,” he wrote.
The View airs weekdays at 11/10c on ABC.
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