Watching Pam Grier break down on The View and recount seeing a lynching as a child is painful — nobody should minimize that trauma — but the way the segment turned into a spectacle of shouted accusations does more to inflame than to heal. Grier’s history and contributions to film deserve respect, and her story is a reminder of America’s ugly past, but daytime TV turned a solemn testimony into a ratings moment.
This isn’t an isolated incident; The View has built its brand on theatrical outrage, where the quickest way to stay in the headlines is to holler “racism” and watch the cameras zoom in. Viewers have seen the show regularly descend into shouting matches and performative moralizing that reward volume over substance. The result is a daytime circus that privileges anger and identity signaling over sober discussion of how to move forward as a country.
There’s a real danger in the constant cry of “racism!” becoming a catch-all for every uncomfortable conversation — when every disagreement is framed as bigotry, genuine instances of racial injustice get diluted. Some on the left even admit the tactic is used as a cudgel to silence inconvenient facts or opponents, which is corrosive to honest debate and to progress for minority communities. Conservatives should call out that hypocrisy: admit real wrongs, but stop letting woke theatrics substitute for real solutions.
The View itself has a long track record of controversy and missteps, including high-profile moments that required public apologies and suspensions, illustrating how the show too often confuses provocation with responsibility. When anchors are punished for false or reckless statements, it underscores that the program’s dramatic flair can have real consequences for public understanding. Americans deserve media that informs rather than performs.
We can mourn past injustices and still demand better from our cultural institutions. Instead of turning trauma into a slogan to score political points, why not use national airwaves to discuss concrete policy fixes — improvements in education, economic opportunity, and law enforcement that actually lift up communities? Conservative voices will keep pushing for accountability both for real crimes and for the media that exploits them.
At the end of the day, patriot-minded Americans should stand for truth, dignity, and the rule of law — not for a media ecosystem that monetizes pain and divides citizens into permanent factions. Respect for victims like Pam Grier means taking their stories seriously without letting them be weaponized by pundits seeking relevance. If the left wants to claim the moral high ground, it should stop treating trauma as a political prop and start offering real, lasting solutions.
