Presentation: Misrepresentation and Under-representation of African-American's in television

I've grabbed two clips from two different shows that reflect the misrepresentation of African-Americans in the television industry.

- My first example is of a clip from the ABC family sitcom, Black-ish.

• As seen in the clip, it is clearly expressed from the father that the head nod is the "internationally accepted, yet unspoken sign of acknowledgement of Black folks around the world".
• By saying this, he's identifying to the stereotype given to us that every black person uses and understands what "the nod" is and signifies.
• The grandpa then adds on to say that this is "basic stuff", that every black person should be aware of and do.
• The issue with this, is that not everyone uses the head nod as a means of acknowledging or identifying to their race and by saying that they do, that's giving truth to the stereotype, making it acceptable for people to assume or think that.
• It's also encouraging the kid to identify with people according to color, and thats where the issue of race begins to surface.

- The second example is a clip from the show, "How to Get Away With Murder".

• This clip shows actress Viola Davis removing all of her makeup and exposing her natural self
• This scene reveals her most vulnerable side, emotionally and physically
• Taking off her wig and makeup symbolizes her slowly "de-whiting" herself before she goes to bed.
• As an African-American woman, it's rare they are given a platform to reveal their true form and beauty on television

Blog 6: Propaganda Techniques

This video clip uses the propaganda technique Euphemism by using many examples of how certain words we used can have more than one meaning and the irony in it. I actually laughed watching this because it's very true. 

I'm not sure what technique this video would go under, but for some reason this commercial came directly to mind. It's interesting how they use celebrities to make an effect and impact on certain social issues that are currently popular in the media. I guess this could go under the "bandwagon" and "beautiful people" propaganda techniques. 

Blog 9

It's funny because I wasn't sure what to expect when I enrolled in this class. I had no idea that journalism encompassed so much, even though I've made it my major. Honestly, my only intention on adding this class was because it counted towards my major. I had no expectations of actually enjoying, understanding, and applying the curriculum. However, I am pleasantly surprised. I've learned so much about the media, how it operates, what it entails, and who it all involves. There's so many aspects that go into media and it's grown my interest in journalism to the point where I feel like I might actually consider becoming a journalist, which I always said I would NEVER do. I learned that journalism is based a lot more on opinion than facts, leaving a lot of room for healthy debate which I thoroughly enjoyed doing in this class. My favorite aspect of taking this class was being able to debate and share opinions with others because it not only allowed me to express my own view points, but expanded my mind to consider other peoples opinions as well. In regards to the first amendment, I actually learned a lot because truth be told, I didn't know much about it to begin with. I didn't know that there were so many different levels and aspects of the first amendment, and a lot of technicalities that go along with it.

Here's a link to a video that speaks on the first amendment in a humorous way, touching on the many contradictions and hypocrisies of the amendment.

Blog 8: Media Law

My example is of a popular libel case that ensued after David Beckham was allegedly accused of having an affair with a prostitute, which he claimed to be untrue and sued for 25 million dollars, but the judge denied his claim because they said he is a public figure, and any information about an affair would be of interest to the public, therefore not proving that the source of the rumor, In Touch Magazine, was guilty of slander or libel because his lawyers couldn't provide any concrete evidence against them. www.theguardian.com/football/2011/feb/15/david-beckham-magazine-libel-judge

Blog 7: Annotated Bibliography

X.O, Isabella. (May 6, 2014). Misrepresentation of People of color in the Media. 

Retrieved from https://youthradio.org/classroom/article/misrepresentation-of-people-of-color-in-the-media/

This topic pertains specifically to what I plan to discuss in my paper. It talks about not only the underrepresentation of minorities in media, but also the misrepresentation. In particular, it touches on the typical stereotypes that go along with representing these minority races on television and how this influences personal opinions. The media portrays races in a certain way, thus affecting the opinions of minorities in the audience, and also having an impact on the people of color themselves.

Collman, Ashley. (January 9, 2014). Saturday Night Live hires two black comediennes to add balance to the white-dominated writer's room. 

Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2536190/Saturday-Night-Live-hires-two-black-comediennes-white-male-dominated-writers-room-following-criticism-lacks-diversity.html

This article discusses the criticism that the creator of Saturday Night Live, Lorne Michaeal's receives due to his lack of diversity in his cast members, on and off the screen. In response to the criticism he receives, he went ahead to hire Sasheer Zamata, the first black female cast member in 6 years, and in addition to, LaKendra Tookes and Leslie Jones, who were hired to join the white male-dominated writer's room. It also discusses the lack of African American co-hosts, and the inability to represent some of the most influential black women in the world in their shows due to their lack of diversity in the cast. 

Zinoman, Jason. (October 23, 2013). For 'SNL' cast, Being Diverse May Be Better than Being 'Ready'.

Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/30/arts/television/for-snl-cast-being-diverse-may-be-better-than-being-ready.html?_r=0&adxnnl=1&pagewanted=all&adxnnlx=1416297062-NfIyN4/MrOJriflpvlvyBA

In this article, it touches on other issues that the popular show, SNL faces. For instance, one of SNL's own cast members, Keenan Thompson, who is a African-American male speaks out about how he feels  that certain black comedians should be hired onto the show, but he believes they aren't simply because they are black. He also speaks about his own acting career and experiences and the issues he's faced along the way. One in particular being that he feels as a black comedian, the media slights his acting and tries to constrict his creative ways by always assigning him roles that require him to dress up like a woman. In response to his many roles of playing black women, he finally refused to stop performing in drag because not only is it emasculating, but gives them creative control over their art. 

Blog 5: Research Paper Topic

The research topic I have chosen is similar to what we discussed in class last week, "Is there a misrepresentation of women of color in the media, in particular, television? And is this an issue and how.

I will gather examples that I have found on television today, mostly in TV shows, and discuss how women of color are being misrepresented, why I think they're being misrepresented, and how and why I feel this is a problem. I also want to discuss the inevitable stereotypes and racism that is used as a means of comedy in TV shows and why I feel its more important to accurately reenact the lives of families of color, as opposed to making fun of them and exposing and subjecting them to be ridiculed, stereotyped, and judged even more. One show in particular that I will be using as an example in my paper is the new ABC show called "Blackish", which I also brought up in discussion last week in class. I think this show is a perfect example of how the media will only give big roles or sitcoms to people of color contingent upon their depiction of the race, rather than hiring people of color to gain knowledge on how they might REALLY act, and not just what people think they act like. 

Blog 4: Movies

My favorite movie from 2013-2014 would probably be Captain America 2. 

1. because I can't think back to 2013 well enough to recall whether there was a movie I saw that year better than any I've seen this year, and 2. It's the first movie that came to mind considering I haven't seen too many new movies this year. But aside from that, it was actually a pretty good movie. Considerably better than the first one and of course, I take pride in the fact that it was shot in downtown Cleveland, (my hometown). Also, I enjoyed this movie because I'm a fan of all Marvel movies. I love superhero movies just as much as a 10 year old boy does, so it was quite enjoyable. I saw this movie in theaters I believe it was this past summer.

My all-time favorite movie is Brown Sugar. This movie has inspired me for YEARS. It's a perfect depiction of my love and admiration for writing and hip-hop. The main character is someone who've I've always looked up to. She's a hip-hop journalist for a magazine and her best friend, who's also another main character, is a hip-hop producer. Together they make a perfect balance of two of my favorite things in this world - writing and music. But it's not just about their careers, it's about finding love and following your heart. Overall, this movie fulfills my every interest and every time I watch it, it fills me with motivation, and it also has some of my favorite African-American actors in it, Sanaa Lathan and Taye Diggs.  It's the one movie I never get sick of watching. I watch this movie whenever I see it on HBO, otherwise, I have it on DVD and it's available for free onDemand.