Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Various types of ties aren't being represented fairly in society

lurkette · 10-17-2003, 11:21 AM

First, nobody "requires" proper representation of (insert ethnicity here) in the media.

A better question might be "why do various minorities believe that equal and non-stereotyped representation in the media is desirable?"

Diversity itself is not sufficient - it's also HOW minorities are portrayed.

For one thing, many people look to the media - consciously or unconsciously - as a significant source of information about the world and the people around them. If all you see are stereotypes, your view of that group of people becomes skewed because of it. Even though almost everyone knows that what you see on television isn't representative of reality, it's still a very powerful medium that has an ability to shape peoples' perceptions. I can't find the references right now but there were some cognitive studies done on peoples' perceptions of teenagers that found that, although most of the people interviewed thought their own teenagers or their kids' friends (in other words, all the teenagers they knew personally) were good, moral, obedient people, the interviewees' perceptions of teenagers were much closer to that shown in the media: slackers, rebellious, troubled, etc. In other words, the media portrayal actually TRUMPED their own personal experience. Most television news is very skewed - think about how many times you see a black person arrested or on trial on your local news - and has a profound impact on peoples' perceptions of the world.

So...one, minorities want to be fairly represented to white people so white people will have a more realistic and balanced perception of individuals of other races.

Second, minorities themselves are not immune to the effects of media portrayal. And it's just nice to see people like you, people you identify with, in the media. It makes you feel less marginalized, less invisible.

Also, ties don't have feelings or thoughts or lives. Interesting how you compare minorities to inanimate objects. Ironic?

10-17-2003, 11:21 AM	#2 (permalink)
lurkette My future is coming on Moderator Emeritus Location: east of the sun and west of the moon	First, nobody "requires" proper representation of (insert ethnicity here) in the media. A better question might be "why do various minorities believe that equal and non-stereotyped representation in the media is desirable?" Diversity itself is not sufficient - it's also HOW minorities are portrayed. For one thing, many people look to the media - consciously or unconsciously - as a significant source of information about the world and the people around them. If all you see are stereotypes, your view of that group of people becomes skewed because of it. Even though almost everyone knows that what you see on television isn't representative of reality, it's still a very powerful medium that has an ability to shape peoples' perceptions. I can't find the references right now but there were some cognitive studies done on peoples' perceptions of teenagers that found that, although most of the people interviewed thought their own teenagers or their kids' friends (in other words, all the teenagers they knew personally) were good, moral, obedient people, the interviewees' perceptions of teenagers were much closer to that shown in the media: slackers, rebellious, troubled, etc. In other words, the media portrayal actually TRUMPED their own personal experience. Most television news is very skewed - think about how many times you see a black person arrested or on trial on your local news - and has a profound impact on peoples' perceptions of the world. So...one, minorities want to be fairly represented to white people so white people will have a more realistic and balanced perception of individuals of other races. Second, minorities themselves are not immune to the effects of media portrayal. And it's just nice to see people like you, people you identify with, in the media. It makes you feel less marginalized, less invisible. Also, ties don't have feelings or thoughts or lives. Interesting how you compare minorities to inanimate objects. Ironic? __________________ "If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing." - Anatole France