A “60 Minutes” episode that included a spotlight about the career and success of former Jackson State Football Coach Deion Sanders is drawing ire from those within the city.
The episode juxtaposed the conditions of Jackson and Boulder, Colorado, where Sanders now serves as head coach for the University of Colorado. The segment used shots of an old, dilapidated house and volunteers helping with the city's water crisis to represent Jackson while showing wide shots of a clean college campus and green scenery when discussing Boulder.
Brad Franklin is a radio host and JSU alumnus. He says the editing of the episode was not just a reflection on how the national media views Jackson, but how it views Historically Black Colleges and Universities in general.
“Shedeur [Sanders] and Shilo [Sanders] and Travis Hunter played no differently than they had played at Jackson State University, but because [they] did it in Colorado all of a sudden now it's legitimate,” he said. “I think [the media] have been trying to paint the picture the entire time that HBCUs are inferior, athletically and academically.”
Jackson has roughly an 83% Black population while Boulder has nearly 1%. During a press conference, JSU Head Football Coach T.C. Taylor also commented on the episode, saying it gave Jackson "a bad look."
“Jackson has plenty of bright spots,” he said. “There’s some good things going on in the city… [but] They’re the media, they can control the narrative.”
