Blacks in the News: Television, Modern Racism and Cultural Change

Abstract

Local news may be one vehicle through which television helps, inadvertently, both to preserve and to transform cultural values. Content analysis on the evening news on four Chicago television stations over a lengthy period suggests local television responds to viewing tastes of black audiences. However, data on these Chicago television news programs suggest racism still may be indirectly encouraged by normal crime and political coverage that depict blacks, in crime, as more physically threatening and, in politics, as more demanding than comparable white activists or leaders. Ironically, widespread employment of black television journalists suggests to viewers that racial discrimination is no longer a significant social problem. The mix of these two views of blacks encourages modern white racism—hostility, rejection and denial toward black aspirations—the study argues.

Screens to See the World. Television Stereotypes of the Mexican Indigenous Population and the Generation of Prejudice

“…http://www.revistalatinacs.org/068/paper/978_Mexico/12_Carlos.html Página 293 Different studies show the crucial role played by the media in the creation and diffusion of images or social representations of minorities and ethnic groups (Dixon, 2000;Entman, 1992;Seiter, 1986;Tamborini et al, 2000;Gorham, 2009). It is not without cause that it has been stated that "the information that we gain from the mass media results in the production of stereotypes that help us simplify our environment" and, therefore, to "process information" (Dixon, 2000: 62).…”

“…There are studies that have found this priming effect, where individuals http://www.revistalatinacs.org/068/paper/978_Mexico/12_Carlos.html Página 294 exposed to media contents that include stereotyped contents have are more likely to use this same content to process later information than those who have not been exposed. Furthermore, it is difficult to correct the distorted evaluations later on due to the stimuli induced by means of an activation process (Brown-Givens, Monahan, 2005;Domke, 2001;Entman, 1992;Fujioka, 1999;Gorham, 2009;Oliver, Jackson, Moses and Dangerfield, 2004). In contrast to this model of priming, other perspectives assume that the media do not only activate pre-existing stereotypes but also that they can generate new cognitions, as well as changing pre-existing ones (Behm-Morawitz, Ortiz, 2013).…”

“…The studies carried out in this line show that the association of racial groups to determined stereotypes foments the use of these same stereotypes when evaluating members of those stereotyped groups. Thus, it is to be expected that when it is necessary to think about or relate to members of concrete groups, stereotypes emerge to "help" the person make his decisions (Domke, 2001;Entman, 1992;Fujioka, 1999;Lee, Bichard, Ireya, Walta, Carlsona, 2009;Oliver et al, 2004).…”

“…As is evident, one of the effects that the stereotyped television contents can have is the generation, maintenance, and/or reinforcement of certain prejudices towards minority groups (Behm-Morawitz, Ortiz, 2013;Entman, 1992;Richardson, 2003). The result is greater when the representation in negative roles is constant over time, and the members of the majority group have considerable exposure to this type of media portraits (Busselle, Crandall, 2002).…”

“…In this way, the -positive or negative-examples of minorities offered by the media can play a fundamental role in the learning process about these groups, as well as the development of more or less prejudiced and discriminating attitudes (Entman, 1992;Mastro, 2009). Although the literature on the subject is still recent and scarce (Behm-Morawitz y Ortiz, 2013), several studies validate this effect, normally carried out by an experimental approach that evaluates the effects of media consumption in the short term (Mastro, 2009).…”