Racism as defined by mass media Essay

Oscar H. Gandy Jr. defines racism as, the process of exercising power or pursuance to exercise power with regard to people defined by identifying them as a member of a particular race.1 Racism and race bowing from the identity one puts onto certain groups of individuals based on their glossary. The identity that one forms is acquired from a number of places including pargonnts, religion, school, government and, on todays youth, mainly intensity media such as picture and music. In this es say one will focus on the fascinate that mass media has on our identity billet of race. It is overt that either forms of print and electronic media, from give-and-take media to books, films, television, radio, and all other forms of media collectively represent our image of ourselves.2 The focus for the purpose of this essay will be on intelligence operation media, television and music, be the most influential forms of media, while focusing on the youth of today, universe the easiest to influence. raws media has great power in influencing how people identify themselves by how they are delineate on the. The stereotypes that television has shown, are viewed by some young individuals of colour, and are portraying how their race is viewed upon among society. medication has the greatest influence on young blacks, which view their idols as those shown in music videos. Mass media in a collective form, although may represent individuals of colour, influence the viewers of colour, how they should distinguish themselves.3 Mass media reflects what we think we are and influences what we think we should be.Beginning with the news from a nation wide news station to a topical anaesthetic newspaper or news program. News media has the ability to stereotype and categorize people of colour, by using words such as minority. Never are minorities not called minorities even when they take up one third of Canadas population. Along with categorizing people of colour with the use of minority, they include words like crime, mendicancy and others that stereotype people of colour.4 This is viewed by young non-whites, which make them believe that this how things are and how they should be. The media now form the capability to alter our perceptions of ourselves, and change the way we live our lives. recent African-Americans, who view the news and down how their race is being represented, may possibly alter their perceptions of their lives and view themselves as criminals, when the news relates their race to criminal acts.The rarity of scholarship a person of colour receives in the scholastic proceedings, is viewed among the youth of today. Of course there must be someone, somewhere of colour, writing or saying something that should be listened to, or producing art that should be date stampn, heard, approached with intellectual seriousness.5 This failure to recognize individuals of colour will influence youth not to pursue intellectual readings and to see educ ational subjects, which are not represented by their race.In Postmodern Blackness by Bell Hooks, its states, This discourse created the idea of the primitive and promoted the notion of an authorized experience, seeing as natural those expressions of smutty life, which conformed to a pre-existing pattern or stereotype.6 In the news when we see a person of colour committing a crime of some sort, we look at it as being a normal act and this how things are in our society. Whites and non-whites alike(predicate) look upon the news and make assumptions somewhat how they should act, what their values should be, and how they live their daily lives.The youth of today will be the first generation to come of age in a North America where racial minorities are the numeric majority. The future of diversity will depend upon a childs perception on the position of racial identities. The youth of all races will have to expand their conception of race and race relations in ways their parents never knew. Is it important for children to see people of their own race on television? Children of colour are most likely to think so. Caucasian and African-American children can say they see characters of their race on television while Latino and Asian children are much less likely to see their race represented.7 It is the way they are represented which will affect the influence television will have on children.While some television stations do show diversification in their programming such as OMNI, they are not providing a realistic viewpoint. When a Caucasian character on television is poor, lazy and unintelligent, the show is considered to be comical, such as The Simpsons or Married with Children, and not taken as realistic.Whereas, when they are successful, rich and intellectual, the show is considered to be dramatic and viewed as being realistic. African-American characters are rarely presented as being poor, lazy and unintelligent, except unceasingly rich and successful, such a s The Cosby Show and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and are always meant to be comical, but never taken seriously or realistically. Shows like these influence African-American children that their race is not taken seriously and are viewed as being humorous. This would affect a young African-Americans thinking is a sense that he is suppose to be a comedian.Many television shows give minority actors, minority roles. Taxi drives in most sitcoms are always non-white, grocery store workers and gas station attendants are always non-white, in shows such as Seinfeld. Although these sitcoms are not suppose to be taken realistic, young individuals of all races are more likely to associate positive characteristics with Caucasian characters and negative characteristics with minority characters. Sitcoms and other television shows have the ability to alter these perceptions, but continue to stereotype minorities.Still focusing upon the children of today, because they have great belief in the medias po wer and its potential to influence them. Media can teach children that people of their race are important.8 If television had shows, which evenly distributed the role of characters to all races featuring equality and diversification, they can accomplish sending a message of the importance of all races.Children look to the media for role models and imitate their favourite character. From the way they dress, talk, style their vibrissa to following the messages sent by their characters. From the haircuts of the women on Friends to the baggy fashions of the hip-hop scene, the influence of media on todays children can be seen everywhere. Beyond superficial messages about style and appearance, children are getting more formative messages from the media. The characters they admire and the news stories they watch send both subtle and explicit signals about their values, their families and their race.9 This shows the importance of the messages being sent out by mass media and the importance of different characters and the characteristics they portray. Many African-American children will look to African-American characters for idols and will portray them.In The New Cultural Politics of Difference, Cornel West states,The widespread modern European denial of the intelligence, ability, beauty, and character of people of colour puts a tremendous burden on critics and artists of colour to prove themselves in light of norms and models set by White elites whose own heritage devalued and dehumanized them. In short, in the court of check and art or any matters regarding the life of the mind people of colour are guilty (i.e., not expected to meet standards of intellectual achievement) until proven frank (i.e., acceptable to us).10The image that people of colour are guilty until proven innocent illustrates to young individuals of all colours that because of this, people of colour are not as intellectual as Caucasians.In Postmodern Blackness, Bell Hooks states,It is no acciden t that rap has usurped the primary position of rhythm and megrims music among young black folks as the most desired sound or that it began as a form of testimony for the underclass. It has enabled underclass black youth to develop a critical voice as a group of young black men told me, a common literacy. Rap projects a critical voice, explaining, demanding, urging.11To all young African-Americans, this message is saying that their only voice, their only outlet, is through entertainment in the way of music. They are not enough African-American writers to allow them to consider an outlet that is scholarly. They feel they have to portray the image that is being sent to them through rappers and musicians alike to dress, talk, walk and act the way these rappers say they do, in drinking, smoking and heading for drugs.Young African-American men that watch rap videos, sports, movies and may see many men of their race in this forms of media, but the image they represent is that if you cannot make it as a rapper, actor or athlete, youll never become wealthy and successful. Rarely are there images on news media about wealthy African-American businessmen unless its criminal rarely are business shows on television shown where black businessmen are the line drawing of the show. They may be a rarity, but should not be and ought to be discussed in business matters.Looking at music for influences, from Stanford, Kathleen OToole puts in best, medication alters and intensifies their moods, furnishes much of their slang, dominates their conversations and provides the ambiance at their social gatherings. Music styles define the crowds and cliques they run in. Music personalities provide models for how they act and dress.12This states that music alters our perception of ourselves and what we should be and how we should act. Our identity is touched and changed according to music videos. Rap videos show African-American singers as doing drinking, smoking, having naked women around t hem and treating them inappropriately and this is how African-American youth thinks they should act, instead musicians need to send an capable message out to the youth of today. Also, other races will feel that this is how African-Americans act and will treat them accordingly. Many African-American rappers have lyrics, which are against authority and this influences others alike to perceive the same thoughts.Everyone of every race has an identity theyd like to call their own. But this identity is usually not their own and influenced by many sources, especially mass media. From music to television to news media, the influence these have on the children of today is immense. Music, television and news media, collectively with other mass medium, have the ability to alter ones perceptions of oneself and the characteristics of others. ply has always been a touchy subject because of its sensitivity and although I am a person of colour, I may have made some stereotypical comments of both whites and non-whites, but I did so only with the intent of making my point. Mass media reflects what we think we are and influences what we think we should be.BibliographyColorado State University conjunct Extension. Im Looking for Me Childrens Perception of Race and Class in the Media. Family Matters Newsletter. October 2002. (20 Nov. 2003).Gandy, Jr., Oscar H. On Race and the semipolitical Economy of Communication. Art & extract An Internet Review. Issue 2, Volume 1. (23 Nov. 2003).Hall, Stuart. Cultural Identity and Diaspora. Colonial Discourse and Post-Colonial Theory. Patrick William & Laura Chrisman, eds., Pp. 392-403, (c) Columbia University, 1994.Hooks, Bell. Postmodern Blackness. Yearning Race, Gender, and Cultural Politics, Pp. 23-31, (c) among the Lines, 1990.Lauder, Matthew. News Media Perpetuation of Racism in a participatory Society. Cancon Articles. (21 Nov. 2003).OToole, Kathleen. Rock & Roll Does it Influence Teens Behavior? Stanford Report Online. 1997. (2 0 Nov. 2003).Third Way Caf. Children and Race in the Media. Racism The Public Face. Beyond the News. (21 Nov. 2003).West, Cornel. The New Cultural Politics of Difference. The Cultural Reader. 2nded. Simon during, ed., Pp. 256-267, (c) Routledge, 1999.1 Gandy, Jr., Oscar H. On Race and the Political Economy of Communication. Art & Survival An Internet Review. Issue 2, Volume 1. (23 Nov. 2003).2 Third Way Caf. Children and Race in the Media. Racism The Public Face. Beyond the News. (21 Nov. 2003).3 Colorado State University Cooperative Extension. Im Looking for Me Childrens Perception of Race and Class in the Media. Family Matters Newsletter. October 2002. (20 Nov. 2003).4 Lauder, Matthew. News Media Perpetuation of Racism in a Democratic Society. Cancon Articles. (21 Nov. 2003).5 Hooks, Bell. Postmodern Blackness. Yearning Race, Gender, and Cultural Politics, Pp. 24, (c) Between the Lines, 1990.6 Ibid. 26.7 Colorado State University Cooperative Extension. Im Looking for Me Childr ens Perception of Race and Class in the Media. Family Matters Newsletter. October 2002. (20 Nov. 2003).8 Third Way Caf.9 Ibid10 West, Cornel. The New Cultural Politics of Difference. The Cultural Reader. 2nded. Simon during, ed., Pp. 256-267, (c) Routledge, 1999.11 Hooks, Bell. 27.12 OToole, Kathleen. Rock & Roll Does it Influence Teens Behavior? Stanford Report Online. 1997. (20 Nov. 2003).