SC1 Candidate Turner: Tim Scott 'Is Not Like Us'
GOP candidate says he has a hard time talking and relating to black students.
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A video showing South Carolina First Congressional District GOP candidate and media mogul's son Teddy Turner talking about the state's black senator has raised some eyebrows.
NOTE: The video has since been taken down by the user associated with the YouTube account that originally posted it.
Shot like the infamous video that captured GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney's 47-percent comment, the video appears to have racial undertones.
The excerpted video, which shows no context of the speech, has Turner discussing U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, who vacated the seat Turner has set his sights on, along with 15 other GOP candidates.
"The reason it became so important to me meeting Tim was Tim is not like a lot of us. Tim is black. I have black students that I work with all the time, and I try to talk to them and relate to them and it's very hard for me to do," Turner said.
Turner is a part-time teacher at a private school in the Charleston area.
Michael Smith, the campaign manager for Turner told Patch, "Teddy has known Tim Scott for many years. When Tim first ran for Congress, Teddy gave him maximum contribution as public records indicate. It's very unfortunate that someone would release a portion of a video to try and make their relationship seem to be something that it is not."
The video was taken during the monthly meeting of the Sea Island Republicans at Ryan's Steakhouse in the end of January. SC Political Editor Shawn Drury was in attendance and witnessed the comments.
According to Drury, Turner was talking about the need for the Republican Party to expand its base and how Scott helps the party do that. Turner was explaining that as a part-time teacher he understood how difficult it can be to bridge cultural differences as many of the students at the school where he works are underprivileged and from the inner city.
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Dan Poirier
12:04 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Why has this video been removed? Both links say "removed by user".
william johnson
12:10 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Why is the patch publishing a non story? There's video, there's only speculation from the journalist POV. What's your motive for publishing something with no informational value?
Ginger Sottile
12:25 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Who was he addressing when he said this? That's as important.
JoSCh
12:26 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
White people.
Nan Hahn
2:18 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
REPUBLICAN white people.
stanley seigler
12:58 pm on Tuesday, February 19, 2013
nut wing, GOP, rich, white, folks...just my guess...
ohand 'pandering' more descriptive than 'addressing'...ie
'Who was he 'pandering to' when he said this?' that said
i like teddy turner...like is daddy better...maybe his daddy will take him to the wood shed if he is elected (fat chance)
JoSCh
12:25 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Saying he can't relate to some black students isn't really notable, although I assume it's a cultural issue and not racially motivated. Some times I can't relate to rich people, or Cajuns, or the religious. It's cultural.
Still, probably a pretty poor choice of wording regardless of the context. Tim Scott is not like us, he's black!
Ambassador
2:49 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
I agree
stanley seigler
1:20 pm on Tuesday, February 19, 2013
re: Some times I [josch] can't relate to rich people, or Cajuns, or the religious. It's cultural.
point taken...but maybe some day, in God's lifetime, we will see all people (except for cajuns :)) as equals...rich folks, homeless folks, black folks, white folks, latinos, etc...
labels will be meaningless...except as pleasant, nostalgic, conversations...eg, the way some black on black use the N-word...
Ginger Sottile
12:26 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
At least publish a decent photo of the speaker -- with so many running on the Republican ticket, we'd like to recognize some of them.
Jeannie Monson
12:26 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Whay has the video been removed and who removed it? Jeannie Monson
Jay Bennett
12:29 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
By the way; he is correct; it is sometimes very hard to relate to a black student with their background, their music and their supposed fashion. Most blacks, having grown up in a different environment than white's, don't look at issues the way white's do plus many of them have been indoctrinated from birth that the white man is bad. Just sayin.
JoSCh
1:06 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Their supposed fashion? Calling others indoctrinated from birth is hilarious coming from you.
Why is it people who say stuff they KNOW is wrong think that "just sayin" excuses it?
maizenbluedoc
1:25 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
I would guess that there is an inverse to that subject.
JoSCh
2:03 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
People who think bigots are inexcusable?
Nan Hahn
2:22 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
"South Pacific" had a song that fits Jay Bennett perfectly: "You've got to be taught to hate all the people your relatives hate". Sounds like Jay has been taught well. Sad.
Tammy
12:35 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
"The reason it became so important to me meeting Tim was Tim is not like a lot of us. Tim is black. I have black students that I work with all the time, and I try to talk to them and relate to them and it's very hard for me to do," Turner said.
Seems to me that he was merely explaining his need to meet with Tim Scott, reaching out to try and have him help to understand the needs of a certain constituency. Do not see the "breaking news" urgency here........unless there is some hidden agenda on the part of the journalist?
Greg Adams
1:47 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Teddy knows that Tim Scott is a special kind of man, who I believe can transcend race. He can explain conservatism in it's simplest terms and make common bonds with everyone he meets.
Please note, you will always get the liberal side of a story from Lindsey and Shawn. Don't be surprised when you come to The Patch, that is what it was designed for.
JoSCh
2:46 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
I'd love to see a transcript or video of Senator Scott explaining conservatism. Being a conservative I'm not sure what it means to the modern GOP other than opposition to Democrats in general and the president specifically.
That fact that he has to "transcend race" is another spot where the modern GOP and my brand of conservatism differ.
Lindsay Street
5:37 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
I'm confident the story is represented in a balanced manner — the video is described as incomplete and the campaign is given a chance to respond. We didn't shoot or post the video, only reported that it was raising eyebrows.
By the way, there are quite a few Democrats/liberals in South Carolina who will disagree with you, Greg. It's a point of pride that I get complaints from both sides (and not just the folks who get featured in arrest reports, mugshots etc.).
If you have more questions on my alleged bias, please contact me any time. I'm happy to discuss any editorial decision: lindsay.street@patch.com or 843-695-9845.
Jeff Davis
7:04 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
@Lindsay Street / PATCH / Shawn Drury ... True, if you dig in and actually read the article it does "explain" Turners comment in more detail, but in today's headline only reading society, don't you think the HEADLINE is a bit misleading ... and the big orange bar across the top of all my Patch articles "Breaking: SC1 Candidate Turner: Tim Scott 'Is Not Like Us'" is a bit overkill? The headline might get people to click and read (it did for me), but the headline is not reflective of the true content of the story. Thoughts?
sandy
4:00 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Teddy Turner taught my son. I can assure all of you this man is not a racist. Sounds to me like all these remarks were taken out of context to what he was saying. I will vote for Teddy Turner just as I voted for Tim Scott.
Shawn Drury
4:40 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Readers,
As was stated at the bottom of the story...I was in attendance when the remarks were made by Turner. It is my opinion that they were in no way meant to slight Tim Scott or be malicious. Turner was speaking about the need for the Republican Party to expand its base--as the party itself has said on numerous occasions since the November elections-- and that Scott was one of the best of examples of how the party can do just that. Turner was also explaining that his time working with people of color had shown him how difficult this can be, which he believes makes him the best person succeed Scott.
Final note: This explanation should not be construed as an endorsement of Turner or any candidate in any race that I am covering.
-SD
C. Renard Volpe
2:01 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Hmmm... Well, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for now.
You know, that's the delightful thing about the South Carolina Republican Party. The children of slaveowners and slaves can come together there at the table of brotherhood to fight for an authentic American conservatism. That's why I don't have a problem with all the former segregationists, at least in principle. We're all Americans, we're all conservatives, we're all free men fighting for a free country. But jeez, can't we keep this kind of stuff tamped down? You just know the liberal media will jump on us if we say anything remotely thoughtful about hot-button issues. It's all too easy to take things out of context in our world of 5-second soundbites. Besides, it's South Carolina. We don't exactly have the best history on things like this.
Nan Hahn
3:10 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
"We're all conservatives"??? No room for differing opinions? No surprise in this too red state!!
JoSCh
12:11 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
I'm curious what percentage of the SCGOP are descendants of slaves. I bet it's a 'delightfully' low number, and the segregationists you don't have a problem with know that having a token black guy or three (as long as they toe the line) is politically expedient in today's progressive America. Your comment exemplifies why SC doesn't have a good history with race issues.
Lindsay Street
8:02 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Jeff, great questions. I think political news should be breaking on the rarest occasions. However, given our reader base — which is very interested in politics — the editorial decision was made to make this breaking.
I can only speak to the two sites I directly manage (Summerville and Goose Creek). Both do not have the orange banner across the top for breaking news on this item, but those newsletter subscribers did get a breaking news alert. I made the editorial decision to not use that banner across the top of my sites because I felt like once it was out in newsletters and on social media, that was sufficient for awareness for a political story.
Since I wrote the headline, I will tell you why it was used: because that was the focus in the excerpted video and it's a sentence that can be read multiple ways. I chose to use Turner's words and chose to use the story to provide as much context as possible. Was it the best possible headline? No headline is perfect (ask any journalist, we agonize over every word in a headline and lead) but I believe it was the correct decision.
Jeff Davis
8:32 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Thanks Lindsay ... your ability/willingness to respond to readers is why I like PATCH. I understand the difficulty of making the editorial decision of "breaking news" as well as your difficulty in selecting a headline. All decisions (in all walks of life), in the microcosm of analyzing that single decision, I hope and trust are made in good faith. The issue I believe (as we can see from the comments to the article) is that most people only read the headline, insert their own personal bias (pro or con) and start spouting off comments (pro or con). It further divides us as a people ... not to mention the "damage control" the Turner folks are probably working on now for something we both know (and the article reflects) was an honest comment and should not portray Turner in a false light. I know you have to make decisions and you can't please everyone, but there must be a better way to convey the heart of the story - someone posting a 30 second clip, out of context, meant to cast Turner as a racist. If a candidate is a racist - please slam him/her - but if they aren't (or don't appear so) as your article appears to clarify for those of us that actually read it, its unfair to the readers as well as to Turner who regardless of his politics is putting himself out there. Just my humble thoughts ;-)
Curtis B
8:04 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Teddy Turner needs to drop out of the race. We don't need people like this in the republican party.
Curtis B
8:47 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
The more I think about it, the more this bothers me. I saw the video when Drury tweeted it yesterday. The most bothersome part, to me, is when Turner says "Tim is not like a lot of us", which is followed by a long awkward pause, and then Turner steps toward the crowd and says "Tim is BLACK". It sounds very racist to me.
Tom Utley
9:52 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
This is unfortunate. I think Mr. Turner was just trying to make a point to Republican white voters to start thinking outside of their little zone of comfort and reach out to the black community. However, as the comments have already shown, the point he was trying to make is absolutely irrelevant because people who stand to gain from accusations of "racism" will simply crucify him for the way he said this.
Race baiters, leftists, statists, etc are never going to let racism die. They need it.
JoSCh
12:00 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
Not to mention the racists.
From the comments most people support Teddy Turners comments. Quit being such a victim. And realize that MOST OF THE TIME when somebody accuses someone of racism it's because the accused is a racist. Quit trying so hard to portray yourself as a victim.
Nan Hahn
11:15 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
I don't know about anyone else, but I'm VERY tired of the obstructionism and the refusal to "work across the aisle". Just because an opinion is different doesn't make it wrong. It just makes it different.
William J. Hamilton
5:32 am on Saturday, February 16, 2013
Teddy Turner spoke to a lot of African American voters during our Mafch 7 candidates bus ride. One Obama supporter was very critical of him but he kept talking to her until they shook hands. Www.busec.org I am not a conservative.
JoSCh
12:24 pm on Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Are you trying to say that a politician may have acted differently in public than when in (assumed) private William? GASP!