On Friday (May 5), “REVOLT Black News Weekly” aired and covered an array of topics, including the death of Tyre Nichols, racial bias in the rising use of AI, and the controversial Kevin Samuels’ message spreading a year after his death. With global news anchor Mara S. Campo leading the episode aptly titled, “Who should pay for Tyre Nichols’ death,” she was joined by social media influencer Ace Metaphor, activist Ngozi Fulani, and retired police officer Dr. De Lacy Davis, among other guest panelists.
On Jan. 7, Nichols was pulled over for an alleged traffic violation and was aggressively yanked from his car by officers. Following a reported attempt to flee to his nearby home, officers caught him, punching and striking him with a baton as he desperately cried out for his mother. As Nichols laid suffering on the ground, officers nonchalantly conversed, took photos of him, and shared them via text. Though EMTs arrived at the scene, it took 27 minutes before Nichols was transported to the hospital and tragically, he passed away three days later.
Although a private autopsy was commissioned upon his death, the report was released to the public earlier this month, revealing that the 29-year-old succumbed to severe blunt force trauma to his head following a brutal beating by Memphis police officers during what should have been a simple traffic stop. The medical examiner’s findings showed that Nichols sustained extensive injuries to his head, neck, torso, and limbs, as well as numerous contusions and hemorrhages throughout his body. It also stated that Nichols experienced brain hemorrhages and liver failure, concluding that the manner of death was indeed homicide.
In response to the public’s outrage, the five African American officers implicated in the incident have been charged with second-degree murder, while their white counterpart has been dismissed from duty. An additional officer chose to retire before facing termination, and three fire department personnel present at the scene were also relieved of their positions.
“There’s also some of my counterparts who were caught abusing Black and brown people who were leaving to preserve the future of their pension because if they can get out with their pension intact before they’re convicted of a crime, they still get to collect their pension in jail,” stated Dr. Davis.
Campo also pointed out that while much of the focus has been aimed at the five officers charged with murder, not much accountability has been held by the EMTs who arrived at the scene. Attorney Shelia Huggins chimed in, “Imagine seeing someone who’s hurt, seeing someone who’s not responding to your communications, seeing someone who can’t continue to sit straight up, seeing someone who continues to fall over for 19 minutes, and you choose to do absolutely nothing. Nothing!”
However, Tyre Nichols’ untimely demise wouldn’t be the first time that a Black man was refused proper care after being severely injured by law enforcement. Host Campo pointed to the tragic death of George Floyd, who was killed in police custody in May 2020 after former officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for over nine minutes.
Elsewhere in the episode, Campo covered the colossal rise of artificial intelligence (AI), especially as it pertains to the music industry and Black voices. REVOLT partnered with Advanced Democracy, a nonprofit organization, to delve deeper into the “Black code.” From the various highlights of this topic, she covered Spotify launching its AI DJ and most shockingly of all, artificial intelligence being used to make a collaboration between Drake and The Weeknd dubbed “Heart on My Sleeve,” which seemingly gained thousands of streams overnight. This prompted Universal Music Group to push back against streaming services allowing unauthorized music on their platforms.
“The stakes are getting higher and higher in terms of what we’re asking these machines to do,” shared University of Texas professor Dr. Craig Watkins. “That has led to what has increasingly been recognized as bias in AI, a lack of fairness in AI, discriminatory AI.”
Other topics spoken about in the segment included the polarizing death of Kevin Samuels, Eboni K. Williams’ viral interview with TV personality and life coach Iyanla Vanzant about “dating a bus driver,” and the 2023 Met Gala. Among the stunning celebrities that hit the red carpet were Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, Cherelle and Brittney Griner, Diddy, and Yung Miami.
Be sure to catch new installments of “REVOLT Black News Weekly” every Friday at 5 p.m. ET via REVOLT’s app. Plus, watch a clip from this week’s episode below.
