Source: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin / Getty
Earlier this year, Black film and TV mogul Tyler Perry expressed interest in purchasing a majority stake in BET Media from Paramount Global. He wasn’t the only prominent Black figure in the entertainment industry exploring the possibility of making Black Entertainment Television Black-owned again. Music mogul Diddy and media giant Byron Allen have also been in the mix of names of potential BET owners.
Anyway, fast forward a few months and it appears that Perry’s bid to own BET has become a reality.
https://twitter.com/VibesExchange/status/1668646831662993415
Only, maybe not just yet.
While numerous publications have reported that the deal to grant ownership of BET had been finalized, it appears that those publications may have been spreading the “news” taken from a single source, TheStreamr, which, apparently, has since taken down its report on the matter.
Suffice it to say, this update has caused Black Twitter to go from celebrating the news of Perry’s finalized purchase to waiting around in Black excellence limbo to find out if the news is actually true or not.
Currently, reports have shifted from confirming language that definitively claimed Perry’s purchase of BET is official to reporting that Perry is “set” to purchase the network.
So, basically, we’re all going to have to sit and wait for actual news that confirms Perry as BET’s majority shareholder before we can collectively rejoice in celebration of BET being Black both in name and ownership. Meanwhile, this appears to be the perfect time to remind everyone that just because the internet says a thing is true, doesn’t mean it is.
It’s also worth mentioning that Black Twitter isn’t 100% on board with the Madea creator, who once bragged that he doesn’t hire writers, becoming BET’s newest owner.
Allen, 61, already a media mogul in his own right, has also said he was “interested in buying BET, and he will be pursuing the acquisition of the network,” a spokesperson told Variety. If he’s successful, it would be Allen’s second major media acquisition in less than a year’s time.
Last summer, Allen — the founder, chairman and CEO of his expanding Allen Media Group, the parent company for recognizable entities like TheGrio and the Weather Channel — bought the Black News Channel out of bankruptcy for $11 million. At the time, Allen said he intended to grow the Black News Channel viewership from 45 million linear subscribers to 80 million linear subscribers within the next six months.
So, what do y’all think? If the news is true, are you excited about Tyler Perry owning BET, or nah?
SEE ALSO:
Tyler Perry To Donate $2.75M To Atlanta’s Low-Income Senior Citizens
Everything To Know About Byron Allen’s $20 Billion Racial Discrimination Lawsuit Against Comcast
