Essay On African American Stereotypes

836 Words4 Pages

Something we don’t think a lot about is a matter that affects our daily lives. It’s how people are portrayed in the media, such as newspapers, TV’s, movies, etc. Although many people don’t think that media plays a big part in how we view ethnic groups, media portrayal of certain groups of people affects how the public views them, the media can reinforce stereotypes of certain races, and businesses/politicians understand the impact of the portrayal of ethnic groups by the media, leading to racial propaganda in the media.
The media has always been intertwined with politics. In the 1800’s, white people refused to hire black people. Instead, they painted their faces black and attempted to impersonate African-Americans, otherwise known as “black-face”. They would use demeaning stereotypes to portray them in an unfavorable light, in order to …show more content…

In today’s money, the movie raked in $250 million in domestic sales, and $50 million in international sales. In some countries, there were no colored people. This movie was the only exposure for them, and it portrayed …show more content…

According to statistics published by the National Institute of Health, if the perpetrator is African-American or Hispanic, there is a 60% chance the news will say what the race of the perpetrator. On the other hand, if the perpetrator is white, there is only a 30% chance the news will state the race. Furthermore, Dr. Travis L. Dixon conducted a study. He discovered that in the media, 59% of the poor are African-Americans, compared to the 27% who are actually in poverty. 37% of all violent perpetrators in media are African-American, compared to the 24% in real life. In Canada, a survey showed that more than half of all Canadians believed that African-Americans caused 65% of the crime in Canada. This survey shows how big of an impact the media has on society’s view of a certain group of