Anthony Navarro

Massey
ENC1101
17 December 2015
Race and the Media that Influences it

The media Influences people in many ways. What is shown to people effects how
ethnic groups are viewed in society? Views and ideologies on race can be changed based
on what is shown to viewers. And thats why the portrayal of race is something to should
be taken seriously. Many racist and ignorant ideas can stem from false information
perpetuated by media.

The media can influence how people view different racial and ethnic groups. The
media always tries to include the racial features of a person of interest when reporting an
event. Yasmin explains in this quote: Primary among these mechanisms, is the
identification of racial background when these are simply not warranted. Take for
instance, the statement "The suspect was a black male..... Or, "the suspect is a Chinese
man." Alternatively, if the racial identity is absent, the cultural background tends to be
mentioned, as for example, "The body of the baby found in the ravine revealed her to be
of South Asian origin." This association of cultural identity with a crime indicates that the
cultural heritage is to blame for the way in which the person acted.(Jiwani, Racism and
the Media) This quote is implying that media is always trying to associate crime with
minorities and their cultures as if the crux of the problem was the culture in itself. This

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ignorance ignores all the social factors that would have gotten that person involved in the
crime. The media just chooses to use these descriptors to create easily digestible issues.

Racism is still a
prevalent Issue in society and
how the public reacts to race in
culture is a huge factor. When
The First trailer for the new Star
Wars film was unveiled the first
shot opens to John Boyegas
character Finn jumping into
frame and introducing his
character to millions of fans throughout the internet. While many were glad to see a
Stormtrooper character that was showcasing a black person in a more important role than
in previous films. There was also a large backlash towards this character due to his race.
Some complained due to supposed story inconsistency, but for the most part it was
actually stemming from the idea that the character was played by Boyega was included
just for so called political correctness in some ridiculous conspiratorial thinking. This is
not the first time that Boyegas race has faced a negative reaction from individuals online
due to his involvement in the franchise. Numerous faceless critics on the internet took to
posting racist comments and jokes on the debut of the films initial trailer. One comment
in particular mentioned that Boyegas appearance in the video made the poster double
check to make sure that his wallet had not been stolen. Boyega would go on to mention to

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V Magazine that these comments dont deter him. He said, Im in the movie, what are
you going to do about it? You either enjoy it or you dont. Im not saying get used to the
future, but what is already happening. People of color and women are increasingly being
shown on-screen. For things to be whitewashed just doesnt make sense. All the films
Ive done have had a secret commentary on stereotypical mentalities. Its about getting
people to drop a prejudiced state of mind and realizewere just watching normal
people.(Anesett, The Elm RSS) This quote basically sums up the whole debacle and its
indicative that racism has not gone away no matter what people want to believe. It is
necessary to understand and do what is best to move forward for progress.
The media has played a large role in racial self-image, a lot of black characters
portrayed in media are either shown as gangsters or drug dealers. Hispanics are
portrayed in the lot of media that they are criminals that sell drugs and involve
themselves in violence. Brophy explained it succinctly Another way in which the selffulfilling prophecy can hurt ethnic and racial minorities is through the reaction by those
in power to the stereotype. Dominant groups will emphasize the false stereotypical
image. They will attempt to foster that image in the minority group by denying them
opportunities that do not fit the stereotype. For example, the stereotypical image of black
athletic superiority can affect African American negatively in at least two ways. First,
repeated exposure to this stereotype may prevent African Americans themselves from
developing intellectual skills in favor of athletics. Second, African Americans may be
denied opportunities by dominant groups, such as entrance into advanced learning
programs.(Brophy, Journal of Educational Psychology 75) What this quote is saying
essentially is that the image that media imprint into young minorities can infect theyre

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view on their own race and try to fit in into what they perceive to be the correct image. It
becomes a paradox as the media imprints a false stereotype and eventually help to
influence people to become that false stereotype thus proving them right.

Now this Problem cant be solved by just including more minorities in media, But
by also including them into the creative process. The Film industry has had a lot of black
directors in the recent decades that have surged in popularity and have used their position
to talk about important issues. Spike lee is a classic example, Saval, Malina explains has
explained before why someone like Lee is important: "Spike's genre of movies speaks to
race relations in America, both at its worst and at its best," says NAACP chair Roslyn M.
Brock. "(His films) have a cultural sensitivity that meets us at every level and causes us
to confront these issues.", "African-Americans and people of color watch all genres of
TV and movies and can appreciate the artistic value that each of them brings (Saval,
Spike Lee as a Black film director has constantly created provocative and black focused
films that dont just touch on issues of race but fully embraces them into his work And
now in 2010s there is a resurgence of black directors coming into the mainstream. Steve
McQueen and Ava DuVernay have both created critically acclaimed films and show far
society has come and how much it needs to go further on. The more experiences Minority
creators bring to media the better for culture as a whole.

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The media has a large influence on everyone and it can lead massive impacts on
society as a whole. It can lead to people profiling others based on media reporting. It
leads to people defining themselves by preconceived notions and lies about an ethnic
group. It has been shown time and time again that racism is still alive in media and it will
continue if society allows it. But there is always a chance for change by including
everyone in the creation process.