Crabcakes and national media attention, that's what Maryland does. Last night, Larry Wilmore checked in on Baltimore in a new segment he called "Whattup Baltimore," complete with clip art of a cartoon crab and police shield.
Addressing the recent homicide spike – 43 killings in May, the deadliest month in more than 40 years – the "Nightly Show" host critiqued Fox News' "stereotypically racist" coverage. With the mention of absent fathers, gangs and drug activity, he joked, the network almost landed the "black crime cliché bingo."
Wilmore also touched on the "Fox-splained" explanation for the violence: a coordinated police work slowdown.
"Hey, police, we didn't say 'stop stopping murders,' " he said. "We said 'stop committing murders.' "
Later, he moderated a panel that discussed what Wilmore called Baltimore's "blue versus black" climate. Jamilah Lemieux, digital editor of Ebony magazine, cited the more than $6 million paid out by the city in police brutality cases, before the panel suggested the solution to the rising murder rate is a "Wire 2."
"That'll solve the problem. That's what Baltimore is yearning for," Wilmore joked. "Another bleak depiction of their lifestyles!"