Race and Representation in the Media

Race and Representation in the Media

The Media is a constraining and liberating factor on how we conceive of race and ethnicity. This is especially evident on how the media represent different races in the media.

According to the article “Distorted Reality: Hispanic Characters in TV Entertainment,” At one time TV’s roster of Hispanic stereotypes solely included the grinning bandito criss-crossed with ammunition belts. Additionally, Hispanic characters were much more likely to be driven by greed than other characters. This was back in 1965 when virtually all characters on TV were white and of Northern European descent. Even more recently in the 1990’s, Mexicans were often shown on shows such as Cops as the criminals being arrested by white officers.

While the negative images of Hispanics have not disappeared, today there are many instances on TV where Hispanics play the roles of characters that who contribute positively to society, such as the children’s cartoon Dora the Explorer. According to Media Life Magazine, Dora the Explorer is the top rated show on TV for children ages two to five years old. This is important because this TV show’s main character, Dora, is Latina. She translates Spanish word to English, and vice-versa, and the show also includes some elements of Hispanic culture. The positive exposure to Hispanics at an early age is critical for children to form positive images about Hispanics, which will lead to less negative stereotyping in the media when they grow up and are in control of society.

There are many other shows on TV that positively portray Hispanic actors such as: CSI: Miami, NYPD Blue, Scrubs, That '70s Show, and Ugly Betty to name a few.

The George Lopez Show is another TV show that shows an overall positive image if Hispanics. George’s character is a manager at an airplane parts factory, which shows the audience that the stereotype that Hispanics don’t work hard, or that they only can get blue collar jobs. The Lopez family is very closely knit and loving, and they go through many obstacles that families of any race must endure. However, the show does show that Hispanics are not perfect (just like Whites, Blacks, Asians, etc. are not perfect). George’s character is abandoned by his father at an early age and raised by an alcoholic mother. As a result of the show being a comedy, it does poke fun at some aspects of Hispanics. Many of the characters on the show speak in a Mexican dialect that uses slang, which people often associate with Hispanics.

Hispanic actors now account for 11% of their prime-time totals, up from 3% and 4%, respectively, just two years ago. But that figure is still below the 13% of the population that Hispanics now represent.

One of the most racially oppressed people on TV today are Arabs and Muslims of Arab descent. The main driving force for this oppression is the highjackings that occurred on September 11, 2001, when planes crashed into the World Trade Centers as well as the Pentagon. All 19 of the highjackers were Muslim. However, these negative sentiments were around before September 11. Movies such as Wanted: Dead or Alive (1987) and True Lies (1994) both show Arabs as antagonists, with white protagonists. One movie that many remember, but never pay too much attention to regarding stereotyping is Aladdin (1992). Many criticized the characters' Westernized features and accents, in contrast to the other characters in the film, which are dark-skinned, have Arab accents and ugly facial features, and appear villainous or greedy.

Many TV shows today portray Arabs as terrorists plotting to detonate a bomb. Fox’s 24 has had several seasons in which the antagonists were Arabs trying to detonate bombs in L.A. Jack Bauer, the main protagonist, is quick to use torture techniques on Arabs who are detained because of their association with other Arabs in America who are terrorists. The show conveys the image that even if an Arab is not a terrorist, they are either aware of terrorist activities, or know where a cell may be. Many times the Arab terrorists have their hideouts in Masques. This conveys the image that the religion that Arabs believe in is at the root of their violent behaviors.

Representations of different races in TV heavily influence and are in turn influenced by popular culture. These representations may be false, but they are held to have some truth by viewers because they have the mindset that, if other people believe this “stuff” it must have some sort of validity. Additionally, simply being bombarded with stereotypes all day will lead to familiarity with stereotypes, and often the unfortunate event that some people come to believe and even act out in a manner confirms stereotypes.