Filmmaker Jared Hess Accuses Utah State Commission of Racism Over Pulling Television Spots Featuring Black Singer

Filmmaker Jared Hess accuses the Utah State Fair Commission of racism over its decision to pull television spots featuring black singer.

The Utah State Fair Board is being accused of racism for pulling television spots that featured a black singer celebrating the fair. Filmmaker Jared Hess behind "Napoleon Dynamite" said fears of racism is behind the move but board members told the Salt Lake Tribune they took the action on Friday because the ads were too suggestive and reached the wrong "demographics."

But Jared Hess noted the board didn't pull the radio ads, which contain the audio from the television spots. "They're identical, but you can't see the actor. You do the math," said the filmmaker noted for the quirky humor of his 2004 "Napoleon Dynamite.""It's very strange. The spots celebrate the iconic things you can only find at the state fair. I can't help but think that the main actor being African-American is the reason they pulled them, which is very disturbing," he added.

Board Chairman Lorin Moench said the spots didn't accurately portray the state fair to the people the board was trying to attract. Board members say they found the sexual tone of the two "The Utah State Fair: Uncommonly Good" ads offensive.

"We felt the ads didn't meet the demographics that we felt need to happen," he told the Tribune. "We are trying to get families to come to the fair and to represent the agriculture interests of the state." Source

Sorry, but I find the YouTube video ad in poor taste. This isn't reminiscent of the late R&B singer Barry White. This is in the tradition of the characters who appeared in Keenan Ivory Wayans' "Living Color" and Eddie Murphy's singer character in "Coming to America." Below is a reminder of the character in "Coming to America." Sorry, it was ridiculous for the Utah State Fair Commission to even approve this commercial.