‘Black Twitter’ docuseries to premiere on Hulu, Black Twitter reacts
"Black Twitter: A People's History" premieres in May on the streaming service.
A “Black Twitter” docuseries is coming to Hulu. From director Prentice Penny, “Black Twitter: A People’s History” will take a deep dive into one of the most influential and powerful spaces in social media.
The upcoming series is based on Jason Parham’s 2021 Wired cover story, “A People’s History of Black Twitter.” Per the official press release, the three-part series “charts the rise, movements, voices and memes that made Black Twitter an influential and dominant force in nearly every aspect of American political and cultural life.”
The series includes some popular Twitter users over the years, including Roxane Gay, Jemele Hill, Sam Jay, Amanda Seales, Kid Fury, April Reign, Raquel Willis and more. Upon the release of the trailer, Black Twitter immediately fired off on X (formerly known as Twitter) with opinions on the docuseries, and varied reactions flooded the timeline over the weekend.
Many users seemed to question the purpose of the documentary as well as the talent selected to participate, with one writing, “The real meat and potatoes of Black Twitter is everyday people. Not B-list Black celebrities and pseudo intellectual Talking Heads.”
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Another user called out the meta nature of the Black Twitter debate over the “Black Twitter” documentary, writing, “Black Twitter arguing over whether that Black Twitter documentary is gonna include all the right people and topics, is the most Black Twitter thing ever.”
Penny took to X to address the concerns, joining in on the conversation directly. “I’d like to think after 20 years of holding the culture down, y’all would trust I got #blacktwitterhulu best interest in mind,” the director wrote. “But lowkey, I also love black Twitter mad hesitant and petty ‘bout it, too! LOL!”
The docuseries premieres Thursday, May 9, on Hulu.
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