Introduction
Stereotyping is an act of generalizing gathered information. As a matter of fact, it contributes significantly to people’s belief in fictional information. Stereotyping is common and traditional for every race and plays a prominent role in generalizing information about some nations in the world. Despite racial stereotyping proving to be the spring for a good deal of satire and hilarity, it substantially contributes to the development of hurting and oppressive conditions for some races in the world. Television representations have tremendously contributed to racial stereotyping. The aim of this study is to enumerate, giving examples, ways in which television media contributes to stereotyping. This is because media mainly gather pieces of negative information about the individuals which are represented to the public.
Egyptian racial stereotype
Media contributes immensely to the rapid spread of racial stereotypes. For instance, due to the lack of ability of individuals to visit all the countries in the world, television media deliver pieces of information via movies and news reports. Without considering the authentic position of Egypt as a country, for long, the Egyptians were stereotypically known as desert residents. This is because of the misappropriation of information fed to the public via television shows and news reports. The media took a photo of some parts of the desert in the region, presenting it as the whole of Egypt. Moreover, television media generalization of illiteracy of the Egyptians contributed immensely to the underrating of its citizens by many people from other races.
Black Americans
In America, African Americans are considered as obtuse and hot-tempered. In addition, they are known as individuals who depend on welfares for survival. Depiction of these marginal individuals via media in children’s movies and announcements on television plays a crucial role in creating and enhancing rising differences among races. As a result, many white children end up growing with a negative attitude towards blacks in America. On the other hand, through announcements and shows, black children develop hatred towards the whites, hence leading to the consistency of racial segregation. (Hine, 2001).
Movie and show characters
Television shows in America enhance the gap between races played by different individuals in a given show or movie. Often, black Americans denied the chances of acting as main characters play the role of poppers or cheap merchants in a show or a movie presented via television. These roles played by the minority individuals in a show or a movie vastly affect the rational thinking of the viewers leading to the emergence of differences among races.
Stereotypes presented on television closely relate to stereotypes depicted in life due to the frequent relation of the scenes viewed on television with real-life situations by many individuals. For example, through movies and television shows, the role played by minority groups leads to the development of communication phobia within some individuals supporting the destruction of equality among races. (Hine, 2001).
Conclusion
In conclusion, despite the diversity of role models provided by television, a generalization of the gathered information by the media results in misappropriation of information among viewers, which leads to cropping of racial differences. Television shows and news reports also contribute appreciably to the differences in conduct portrayed by young children from different races. In addition, the roles played by the minority individuals in shows and movies affect the normal reasoning and understanding of the viewers about some races.
Reference
Hine. D. (2001). The Harvard Guide to African-American History. New York: Harvard University Press