nprfreshair: A profile of Ta-Nehisi Coates over at The New York Observer — “Fear of A Black Pundit” — makes clear the point that “the man has arrived.” Coates writes for the Atlantic about race, the Civil War, America, music and a host of other subjects: For Mr. Coates, the job of the writer, even the pundit, is not to persuade. “The job of the writer should be one of humility, I think, one of being ignorant and learning—not to stand up and pretend to know everything,” he said. “I’m not a consultant or a race expert.” Indeed, Mr. Coates is particularly anxious about being seen as some kind of black spokesman. And even Stephen Colbert poked fun at this idea when, in January, Mr. Coates appeared on The Colbert Report and the host asked him: “Are you guys still all excited about this first black president thing, or have you gotten over that?” Mr. Coates says he is uninspired by the emails he receives telling him how his writing has helped someone win an argument. “That ain’t my burden. I don’t write to help others with their racism, and I’m not here to educate you,” he said. “I’m here to be insanely curious.” Coates talked with Fresh Air in 2009 about his memoir The Beautiful Struggle. Listen here. Image of Coates via the Brooklyn Book Festival/Flickr
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nprfreshair:

A profile of Ta-Nehisi Coates over at The New York Observer — “Fear of A Black Pundit” — makes clear the point that “the man has arrived.” Coates writes for the Atlantic about race, the Civil War, America, music and a host of other subjects:

For Mr. Coates, the job of the writer, even the pundit, is not to persuade. “The job of the writer should be one of humility, I think, one of being ignorant and learning—not to stand up and pretend to know everything,” he said. “I’m not a consultant or a race expert.”

Indeed, Mr. Coates is particularly anxious about being seen as some kind of black spokesman. And even Stephen Colbert poked fun at this idea when, in January, Mr. Coates appeared on The Colbert Report and the host asked him: “Are you guys still all excited about this first black president thing, or have you gotten over that?”

Mr. Coates says he is uninspired by the emails he receives telling him how his writing has helped someone win an argument. “That ain’t my burden. I don’t write to help others with their racism, and I’m not here to educate you,” he said. “I’m here to be insanely curious.”

Coates talked with Fresh Air in 2009 about his memoir The Beautiful Struggle. Listen here.

Image of Coates via the Brooklyn Book Festival/Flickr