Yesterday we ran a story about how Ben Affleck had yet to respond to the controversy over the fact that he had requested that the PBS show, Finding Your Roots, remove footage revealing that he had an ancestor who was a slave owner. We knew this because emails from host Louis Gates Jr. were revealed as part of the Sony hack. In the emails, Gates expressed concern over the fact that a celebrity guest was trying to influence the show. We read, in Gates’s own words, that the show had “never had anyone ever try to censor or edit what we found” and that to remove the material “would be a violation of PBS rules.” Affleck’s lack of a statement at that point was kind of glaring after Gates and PBS had both issued statements on Friday explaining the change as one of editorial choice, not undue influence.

Well Affleck issued a statement last night, and unlike Gates’s kind of brief, well-stated response, Affleck tried to explain his position more thoroughly. That’s understandable, considering that the story grew so much in the interim, but I think he could have nipped it in the bud with a shorter statement earlier. The longer he avoided it, the more this story grew. Affleck wrote that he asked that parts be included and excluded from his segment, similar to the movie-making process where he makes his preferences known to a director. He’s a director too, so it makes sense to me that he wanted that level of control. Then he talked about how he felt embarrassed for his family and that it was hard to be vulnerable or something and he lost me there.

After an exhaustive search of my ancestry for “Finding Your Roots,” it was discovered that one of my distant relatives was an owner of slaves.

I didn’t want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves. I was embarrassed. The very thought left a bad taste in my mouth.

Skip decided what went into the show. I lobbied him the same way I lobby directors about what takes of mine I think they should use. This is the collaborative creative process. Skip agreed with me on the slave owner but made other choices I disagreed with. In the end, it’s his show and I knew that going in. I’m proud to be his friend and proud to have participated.

It’s important to remember that this isn’t a news program. Finding Your Roots is a show where you voluntarily provide a great deal of information about your family, making you quite vulnerable. The assumption is that they will never be dishonest but they will respect your willingness to participate and not look to include things you think would embarrass your family.

I regret my initial thoughts that the issue of slavery not be included in the story. We deserve neither credit nor blame for our ancestors and the degree of interest in this story suggests that we are, as a nation, still grappling with the terrible legacy of slavery. It is an examination well worth continuing. I am glad that my story, however indirectly, will contribute to that discussion. While I don’t like that the guy is an ancestor, I am happy that aspect of our country’s history is being talked about.

[From Facebook]

E! notes that PBS has also launched an internal investigation into what happened in this instance. Outlets were questioning whether PBS had compromised their integrity by caving to Batfleck’s request and PBS took it seriously. They’re not making reality shows, they’re trying to show history good and bad.

NPR had some excellent coverage of this story during Morning Edition today. (You can hear it here.) Commentator Gene Demby pointed out that the omission of Affleck’s slave owning ancestor is very glaring “if you watch the episode in context.” Affleck’s episode focused on the fact that he had a fore-bearer who fought in the Revolutionary war alongside Washington and that his mother was active in the Civil Rights movement. So Affleck’s episode was about freedom, but he refused to include the negative parts of his genealogy along with the positive parts.

At least Affleck addressed this and admits that he should have included the issue of slavery in his story. However, I do find his statement too self-focused and defensive. This sentence in particular bothers me “The assumption is that they will never be dishonest but they will respect your willingness to participate and not look to include things you think would embarrass your family.” Did he not read the emails? He doesn’t even address the editorial integrity of PBS and he’s assuming the “collaborative creative process” applies to what is supposed to be a documentary-type show. He’s still acting as if it was his right to ask them to whitewash his ancestry when the issue was so serious that Gates sought advice on it and PBS is launching an internal investigation.

A Canadian reader sent us a tip that Ben was spotted in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia last Thursday. Reader Steph emailed me that Affleck “was seen near a Buddhist monastery in Cape Breton… He may be on a retreat there and if so, may not even be aware of all the fuss about his ancestor and his attempt to censor the story.” They have video of Affleck and everything so it’s known that he was there. It’s possible that he was on a retreat without electronics, but Affleck was photographed at the Farmer’s Market in LA on Sunday Morning, and again out with his wife yesterday. He must have learned about this story over the weekend at the latest.

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