Wynter, L. (2002) p.144

Hamilton Cloud, a film and television executive who was executive producer of the NAACP Image Awards show from 1987 to 2000, has seen growth in the number, quality, and range of performances by black actors nominated for the Image Awards during those years.

“I think what we're seeing is that the drama producers have figured out that black characters are inherently interesting. You have all the basic human stuff going on, and then there is the racial tension to play with. Say you have a cop who is a cynic-that's interesting, but we've seen it before. But if he's a black cynic, it's more. And if he's a serious Catholic-well, that's something, too. But if he's a black Catholic and a cynic, it's a wow. Because we've never seen it before.”