Television and Diversity
Quickwrite #3
• Make a brief list of your favorite television
shows or films. How diverse are these pop
culture products in terms of race, age, culture,
religion, sexual orientation, etc? How are
characters who are from minority groups
treated/characterized? Does this issue ever
affect your decision to watch (or continue
watching) a film/show?
What do we mean when we talk about
“diversity” in the media?
• It might mean a discussion of how closely
media products as a group reflect the diversity
of the society that is producing them.
• It might mean a discussion of how a specific
media product deals with the question of
diversity. Are minority groups represented? If
so, are they represented fairly, or as
stereotypes?
Terms that are Relevant to the
Discussion
• Diversity: the condition of having or being
composed of differing elements : variety;
especially : the inclusion of different types of
people (as people of different races or
cultures) in a group or organization (Meriam
Webster Online Dictionary)
– When the word is used to talk about different
types of people, there is also a connotation of
acceptance of and respect for those differences.
Terms that are Relevant to the
Discussion
• Tokenism: the practice of doing something
(such as hiring a person who belongs to a
minority group) only to prevent criticism and
give the appearance that people are being
treated fairly (Meriam Webster Learner’s
Dictionary)
• Marginalize: to relegate to an unimportant or
powerless position within a society or group
(Meriam Webster Online Dictionary)
A few more words to know:
• Portray: verb (Noun form is “portrayal”)
–
–
–
–
1 to make a picture of : depict
2 a : to describe in words
b : to play the role of
Miss Spitler’s note: This word often has the connotation of a fictional,
not necessarily true representation.
• Depict: verb (Noun form is “depiction”)
– 1: to represent by or as if by a picture
– Miss Spitler’s Note: depict/depiction and portray/portrayal are often
used interchangeably because they are synonyms.
• Problematic:
– a : posing a problem : difficult to solve or decide
– b : not definite or settled : uncertain <their future remains
problematic>
– c : open to question or debate : questionable
Let’s use all of these words in a
sentence:
• Too often, Latinos are depicted as criminals,
gardeners, or maids, and little else. This
portrayal is problematic because there are
many Latinos who do not fit these
stereotypes. Producers and writers should
make an effort to write characters and
storylines that will put forward a more
complex portrayal of the people in this
community.
“TV Diversity: Whose Job is it
Anyway?”
• What larger conversation is this article responding to?
What specific show/event is the article responding to?
• In the first section of the essay, the author, Aydrea
Walden, uses a strategy described in They Say, I Say. She
lists common objections to further inclusion of minority
characters (that’s the “they say” part), and then, she
offers a counter-argument about why each of those
objections doesn’t make sense. (That’s her “I say” part.)
• What did you think of the “they say” objections she
cites? What did you think of her counter-arguments?
Was she convincing?
The Effects of a Lack of Diversity
• In “TV Diversity: Whose Job is it Anyway,” Aydrea
Walden claims the following:
• “The shortest possible answer to ‘does diversity on
TV matter?’ is ‘yes.’ Repeatedly showing people
images absolutely has an affect on the way they live
their lives. It’s the basis for the advertising industry.
By regularly marginalizing people of color on screen,
it makes it easier for people to marginalize those
same populations in real life.”
• What does she mean by this? What do you think of
this criticism?
Group Discussion (if we have time)
• Share some of your responses from your
quickwrite with a group of three or four peers. (In
case you forgot, the quickwrite said, “Make a
brief list of your favorite television shows or films.
How diverse are these pop culture products?
How are characters who are from minority
groups treated/characterized? Does this issue
ever affect your decision to watch a film/show?”)
• Discuss each others’ responses respectfully and
be ready to report back on your discussion to the
class.
Questions from They Say, I Say
Chapter 2
1. What is the purpose of summarizing others’
material in your own writing?
2. How can you avoid a “list” summary? (And
why do you need to avoid it?)
Questions from They Say, I Say
1. What is the purpose of summarizing others’
material in your own writing?
– Fairly represent what an author says.
– Prepare for your own response (focus on points that
will be important for you).
2. How can you avoid a “list” summary? (And why
do you need to do this?)
1. Summarize with regard to your own interests.
2. Avoid “says” or “discusses” to describe your sources
points, using more interesting and accurate words
instead.
Summarizing In Essay #1
• In your first essay, you may find yourself summarizing
an entire essay we read in class or a whole source you
found yourself in a few lines. Make sure that after you
summarize, you give credit.
Example:
According to the article “TV Diversity: Whose Job is it
Anyway?” The people involved in making movies offer
many reasons that there are fewer African Americans
than one would expect being cast in mainstream roles.
Many of these reasons, though, do not hold up to
scrutiny (Walden). These weak excuses suggest that
while we have made many advances towards racial
equality, there is still work to be done.
How do I write about this issue?
• First of all, you’ve got to decide what you think
about the big questions.
– What do you think about how diverse the media
being produced right now is?
– Do you think that it’s enough to simply include
actors/characters from minority groups in shows/,
films, etc? If not, what else should be done?
– Are there certain groups that you notice being
portrayed
How do I write about this issue?
• Start paying attention. I know not all of us
watch a lot of TV, but if you do, start noticing
how diverse the characters you see are, or
how diverse the musicians you listen to are,
etc.
• Start doing some reading. It’s very difficult to
know what you think about this issue until you
know what the big debates are.
Where do I do this reading?
• In this case, google is your friend. A lot of the most current
writing about this issue hasn’t made it into the school
databases yet.
• Searches that have been productive for me:
– Diversity and the media
– TV and diversity (or television and diversity)
– If you wish to research a certain group, play around with
combinations of the group name, and the words “diversity,”
“media,” and “television” (or whatever medium you are
researching.
– If you wish to research a certain piece of pop culture, type in the
name of the film/show/genre and “diversity” and see what you
come up with.
• These same searches work with the school databases.