If Howard students recall, late this past spring semester-when the weather just reached that point where you could chill on the yard for hours comfortably- the sun was out and so were throngs of students soaking up the much-needed sun. There was also a big black van on campus...a CNN Black in America van, visiting HBCUs and spreading the word about their upcoming documentary series.

The first installment aired tonight titled "Black Woman & Family" and many students still in DC and even home for the summer (thanks Facebook) were glued to their televisions. This highly anticipated show left many students with differing opinions. Some thought the installment was insightful, exploring health issues in the black community and the gap in education among other things, while others felt the series didn't show the full perspective of being Black in America and left them wanting more.

I actually watched the show in a room with 5 other HU students, and only two felt CNN taught them something new or fully represented or exposed the true struggles of Blacks. The others felt the series did a good job of telling a story, but it was not the entire or even a large part of the hardships faced daily by African Americans.

Personally, to have CNN, "The Most Trusted Source in News", telling any part of our story makes me happy- regardless of who its aiming at or catering to. The multi-media event is supposed to investigate the biggest issues affecting the African American community. As CNN puts it, its "the story of our success, struggle, pain and pride".

You can catch the second installment, "The Black Man" tomorrow, July 24, at 9 pm eastern time. You can also post your feedback on the series and get more information at: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/black.in.america/ .