Issa History Lesson At SXSW: Issa Rae’s New HBO Docuseries “Seen and Heard” The Erasure Of Black TV

The old school can remember television were husband and wives slept in separate twin beds and black people were portrayed as the help.  The old can also remember the transition of commercials where you never seen black people in commercials then the transition came to including at least one black person in a commercial.  The new school is now experiencing every kind of race, nationality as well as gender preference in television as well as commercials.  What a long way we have come.  

We take two steps forward, but as of late we have been experiencing taking two steps back.

Actress, producer, and writer, Issa Rae, is shining a spotlight on the history and concerning erasure of Black television with her upcoming HBO docuseries “Seen and Heard.”

According to Issa Rae during a keynote at SXSW recently, Issa Rae discussed her upcoming two part docuseries “Seen & Heard,” focuses on how studios have historically “used Black audiences” only to “abandon them as soon as it was convenient.” Acknowledging that this notion goes beyond just being a “conspiracy,”

“It’s one thing to say it. You might have heard someone say that in the history of television and the history of particular networks,” …“But to have the actual creators, showrunners and writers chronicle the history of that is undeniable. We wanted to make a comprehensive history and showcase, with evidence, that this is how they built the success of their networks on our backs, and we almost don’t have anything to show for it as a result. It’s tragic, and history repeats itself.”

‘Seen and Heard’ that premiered at the SXSW festival stars Tyler Perry, Issa Rae, Lena Waithe, Shonda Rhimes, Swizz Beatz and Ava DuVernay, to name a few, and coming soon to stream on HBO.

See Issa Rae’s complete keynote conversation below.

Issa Rae brings another powerful new story to the screen.

Seen & Heard, an HBO Original Documentary celebrating the history and impact of Black representation is premiering at #SXSW and coming soon to @StreamOnMax. pic.twitter.com/I8h6HWu93x

— HBO Documentaries (@HBODocs) March 4, 2025