Can ‘Hollywood’ Transform the Way We Understand Race?
Feb 19
Writing Hollywood And Race, Media Depictions Of Race, Media News, Race In The Media, Race Relations No Comments
Children ages eight to 18 spend more than seven hours a day with entertainment media, according to national survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation released last month.
The consumption of entertainment media includes listening to music, playing video games, watching TV and social networking on sites like Facebook.
Adults of course likely spend far less time consuming entertainment media, but still in enough quantities that what we see on television and in the movies influences our understanding of society.
For people of color and indigenous people, the way Hollywood presents life is often far different from what we know as reality. I’m not referring to how Jack Bauer saves the country every season on “24″ or the uber-interesting lives of the women on Desperate Housewives. It’s the world these fictional stories take place in has to somewhat mimic society as we know it.
Television shows can influence the way that viewers understand race and race relations. And a recent study has shown that nonverbal behavior displayed on shows can actually transmit racial biases.
