Gay
author
and
activist
Keith
Boykin
describes
his
new
television
show
as
an
"African-American
version
of
‘The
View.’"
He
does
admit
that
the
show,
a
daytime
talk
show
on
BET
J,
is
a
little
more
complicated
than
ABC’s
daytime
talk
staple.
"It’s
a
colorful
cast
of
hosts,"
Boykin
says
about
his
cohorts.
"We’re
all
black
professional
New
Yorkers,
but
we
come
from
completely
different
perspectives."
"My
Two
Cents"
launched
on
March
1,
which
was
also
the
date
of
BET
J’s
debut.
The
channel,
formerly
BET
Jazz,
evolved
to
take
a
more
cultural
approach
to
jazz
and
contemporary
African-American
life,
according
to
a
company
statement.
The
channel
is
available
as
a
digital
channel
on
Comcast,
which
provides
cable
for
most
D.C.
homes,
on
the
expanded
cable
platform
with
Cox
(a
large
provider
in
Northern
Virginia)
and
satellite
provider
DirecTV.
"It’s
a
real
conversation,"
says
Cassidy
Arkin,
a
co-host
and
producer
of
the
show.
"The
idea
is
you’re
out,
you’re
with
a
group
of
friends,
you’re
having
coffee
or
dinner
and
you
talk.
It
spawns
into
everything
from
a
conversation
about
family
values
to
homosexuality
to
guttural
types
of
things,
whose
the
cutest
artist
or
actor
in
the
last
film
you
saw."
The
show
features
four
of
a
revolving
cast
of
six
to
eight
hosts
who
discuss
contemporary
issues
for
black
Americans.
Spliced
between
the
commentary
segments
are
interviews
with
people
on
the
street
and
music
videos
from
artists
like
Jill
Scott,
a
Tribe
Called
Quest
and
Floetry.
"I
think
there
was
no
kind
of
talk
show
that
reaches
that
30-ish
African-American
professional,"
says
Sean
Johnson,
the
show’s
executive
producer.
"There’s
the
Sunday
political
talk
shows,
which
are
kind
of
heavy
or
way
too
light,
frivolous.
I
wanted
something
that
made
the
community
better
and
touched
on
all
issues."
In
addition
to
Arkin,
the
hosts
include
April
Silver,
an
activist
and
entrepreneur,
Crystal
McCrary-Anthony,
an
author
and
"diva,"
according
to
Boykin,
and
Selwyn
Hinds,
hip-hop
critic
and
former
editor-in-chief
of
Source
magazine.
BOYKIN,
WHO
SERVES
as
president
of
the
board
of
directors
for
the
National
Black
Justice
Coalition,
a
black
gay
civil
rights
group,
says
that
a
career
in
television
appeals
to
his
desire
for
a
broader
audience.
"I’ve
done
the
activism
thing
for
a
long
time
now,
and
this
is
a
much
better
opportunity
for
me
to
get
my
message
across,
make
an
impact,"
Boykin
says.
"Being
a
part
of
the
media,
you
get
a
chance
to
be
part
of
shaping
a
dialogue,
creating
a
dialogue.
You
have
much
more
of
an
opportunity
to
create
change."
Johnson,
the
executive
producer,
has
known
Boykin
for
a
long
time,
Boykin
says,
and
the
two
were
eager
to
collaborate,
so
when
the
opportunity
arose,
Boykin
jumped
at
the
chance.
"I
think
Keith
has
a
great
voice,"
says
Johnson,
who
is
also
a
programming
analyst
for
BET
J.
"He’s
articulate,
he’s
smart.
He
represents
not
only
the
black
community,
but
also
the
gay
and
lesbian
community
and
I
think
it’s
a
voice
that
needs
to
be
heard."
Boykin
says
his
sexual
orientation,
as
well
as
gay
topics
in
general,
are
interlaced
into
the
program’s
discussions.
In
a
discussion
about
building
better
families,
for
example,
Boykin
says
he
talked
about
his
partner
and
centering
a
relationship
on
creating
love.
"It
just
happened
to
be
woven
into
the
dialogue,"
Boykin
says.
"I
think
that’s
great.
It’s
revolutionary
in
many
ways,
not
to
make
a
big
deal
of
it.
The
difference
between
being
out
and
coming
out
and
being
out
just
means
being
open
and
honest
about
who
you
are.
I’m
not
on
a
show
with
a
pink
triangle
or
[rainbow]
flag.
I’m
just
me
on
the
show
and
being
me,
which
means
that
being
gay
is
just
a
part
of
who
I
am."
