Some news headlines conveying information about black individuals have become common some years. The news can be dismissed by scrolling across television screens. Still, the list is endless, with names representing African-American persons who have been killed by police or security guards around the country. Such information is evidence of a culture that devalues the lives of the black community. The loss of black people’s lives has awakened protesters around the world, as witnessed lately in the case of George Floyd. While politicians continue to advocate for gun reforms, communities, on the other hand, demand accountability, and citizens cry out against the military system of the local police force. Besides these moves, there is another significant issue that is under looked-the representation of African Americans. The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of how African Americans are portrayed in the media.
Analytical Background
At a glance, it may seem quite challenging to see the relationship between police brutality and the representation of people. Nevertheless, studies have revealed a substantial connection between people’s attitudes and media portrayals. Gerbner-a communication researcher led a team in carrying out studies to analyze the effects of television display of violence on the audience. The study paved the way to cultivation theory, which asserts that as people spend more time on the television world, they are more likely to believe what is depicted as a social reality. At the end of the research project, it was obtained that people understand television as a central part of American culture. Television indeed has become more dominant in American culture and around the world. Over 250 million people watch television in a year, and about 96% of households in the US have at least a TV set. Such facts are problematic when coupled with studies about the portrayal of black Americans on television. A particular study found that black people were depicted negatively compared to other racial groups on prime-time TV. According to cultivation theory, which asserts that TV portrayals have significant effects on individuals’ perception of the world, and the studies showing African Americans portrayed negatively, then results are adverse.
Cultivation theory posits that television (TV) occupied a primary role in the American culture, and compared to other forms of media, TV is more influential. According to this theory, TV shape people’s beliefs, attitude, and directly impact their behaviors. Cultivation theory is grounded on both qualitative and quantitative content and point further that heavy viewers are more impacted compared to those who watch TV less. Another factor cited by this theory is people’s surroundings. Individuals living in more life-threatening neighborhoods are susceptible to be portrayed as violent acts. Gender, too, plays a role when women are perceived as victims. Age is another factor such that young individuals who are not able to comprehend what is shown in the media are less likely to be subject to cultivation.
Portrayal in Depth
The idea of representation is not new since even Aristotle and Plato believed that a distinctive way of humankind is the ability to create representation. During those times, the understanding of representation was rooted in literature as well as language. In the concept of media, representation refers to how media channels portray some groups or individuals, experiences, communities, topics, and ideas from a specific value. For example, the film, American Sniper of 2014, depicts the conflict between the American army and foreign soldiers. The film received a lot of criticism for the lousy representation of foreigners as a result of humanized American forces acting in the majority of films killing people without allowing redemption for oppositions.
Representation in the media is a product of society, and content created under one culture bears values of that particular culture. For representation to have negative ramifications, it thus must occur in two different ways; underrepresentation or misrepresentation. In the latter, a group of people, communities, or ideas are wrongly positioned and communicated. On the other hand, the systematic exclusion of some groups or communities from representation, then media underrepresentation occurs. Most minority groups, like African Americans, suffer from these problems and the black community taking a unique history or representation.
African American Portrayal
African Americans have a connection with American history that no minority group cannot replicate. The reality of slavery and the period of Jim Crow positioned the black community to misrepresentation in the US culture mainstream. Such happened along ago before the modern era of media. For some years now, black Americans have been depicted negatively in the famous media, for instance, black men being portrayed as violent with impulsivity. Black Americans have not only been painted negatively in the reality TV programs but also featured in the news outlets. More consistent, African Americans are shown as inferior and restrained by authority figures. Despite the inaccuracies involved in these depictions, prolonged exposure to stereotypes creates an environment of perpetuations. For instance, in events of crimes and violence, black people are perceived to be more likely offenders than any other racial group.
Anyone who knows something about black families is because of what the national news outlets have revealed. As such, the type of communication conveyed is likely to make a person think that black persons are overwhelmingly poor, welfare dependents, criminal and absentee fathers. Major media outlet gives a distorted picture of African Americans by painting them as dysfunctional. On the contrary, white counterparts are depicted as sources of social stability based on reports from racial justice organizations. Such portrayal leaves people with a perception that black persons are plagued with self-imposed dysfunction that causes instability in families and causes all their challenges. Stereotypes of sort fuel rhetoric and inform some public policies. For example, as a result of black people being perceived as violent, Congress considers social safety net programs, some policies like stricter work requirements as well as drug testing.
African Americans are more likely to be depicted as welfare dependents compared to whites. Representation of poor black families in the media accounts for about 59%, but only about 27% accounts for Americans in poverty. About 37% of blacks are criminals, as revealed in the news, but only 26% of African American is arrested on criminal charges. In contrast, while FBI reports confirm that white 77% of crime suspects are whites, new media show 28% of whites are criminals. Misrepresentation of such kind takes place in media outlets like broadcast r cable networks as well as in newspapers.
Media portrayal of African Americans cut across gender and age. Youths are depicted similarly as adults; for example, in the educational aspect, the performance of black students is depicted poor due to societal outcomes compared to that of white peers. Youths are perceived as contenders based on the notion that African Americans are drug dealers and gang members involved in criminal justice issues. The perception of black people as dependents has been within the media mainstream for a while, even though this notion seems to be changing given the current social movements. Current systems in the US have been unfair to black individuals, and this causes poor outcomes, for instance, to students. Recently, media has paid a lot of attention to social movements like Black Lives Matters occurring across the states and around the globe. Individuals are standing together to condemn failing systems that are accountable for adverse outcomes of African Americans. Such type of action or push back is powerful to challenge societal responsibility. Typically, there are dreadful ramifications for black individuals, when outlandish perceptions come out.
Implications of African American Portray in Media
Media representation of the black community can induce adverse consequences for consumers. Studies consistently point out that the unfavorable media portrayal of African Americans has detrimental impacts on attitudes and support for social movements. Distorted depiction of black people causes antagonism in American society, especially towards male African Americans who are perceived as a threat. Additionally, there is a lack of identity, sympathy, and exaggerated reviews in relation to violence, and police force escalates. Other racial communities like the whites live with fear when they see unfamiliar black persons. Research has indicated that in the vent of harsh laws, citizens give more support if the regulations or policies are designed to punish African Americans. Negative effects that result from media portrayal translates into institutional consequences.
Due to adverse media portrayal of African Americans, some institutions such as healthcare facilities give less attention to black patients, and in the criminal justice system, harsh sentences are awarded. In the employment sectors, there are low chances that a black person will be hired compared to the white counterpart. The rate of admission to schools for black students is compromised as well due to the prevailing perception created by information from media outlets. Other institutional consequence includes lower chances to get loans, high opportunities, or being shot by police and reduced life expectancy. Negative portrayals cause individuals to lower self-esteem, have low expectations for themselves, and stir an implicit bias against people of their own community. Also, studies have pointed out that negative perception causes most African Americans to underachieve their goals and increases the rate of domestic violence as well as the abuse rate of black women.
When the media portray the black community negatively, the effect is felt in an extreme aspect. What is required is shaping the American culture by paying attention to the notion that America has people, not types. All media should choose words, news, and images that give a full or more nuanced narrative of the black community. Steps to take for changes include hiring staff members in the media channel who represent African American culture. Diversity should not be a buzz word, but an approach to give full participation and appreciation of people of color.
In conclusion, this paper has provided an analysis of African American representation in the media. Studies show there is continuing progress in media to shape representations; however, the effort is uneven across various media. A more stereotypical depiction persists, and this triggers the urge for serious change. The negative portrayal of African-Americans has consequences for viewers, and messages impact the relationship built within a society.