Diversity In The TV Show 'Grown-Ish'

The traditional idea of American friendship has evolved drastically over time. In this age, no longer do you see the close group of friends chatting at the ‘Central Perk Café’ or engaging in many misadventures in the basement of Foreman’s house, such as they did in ‘That 70’s Show’. The aged image of a group of friends and their wise, perceptive teacher, Mr. Feeney, happily standing in the halls of John Quincy Adams middle school is fading out. This overused 1970’s-1990’s idea of friendship no longer applies to most American friendships today because our culture has swayed into a more modern viewpoint, due to the

Although there has been a lot of progress made over the past years, there are currently many various problematic issues in this world that are contributed to by discriminatory behaviour and belief systems. Back in 2015, MTV’s White People had the goal of bringing notice to that. The writer of the film, Jose Antonio Vargas, wanted to show caucasians that race was not just an issue for those of color; it affects everyone. The idea for the documentary was  excellent, but feel short when delivered. Part of that could come from poor editing, MTV’s documentary history, or even just the lack of variation in those interviewed. This film could’ve been a really good conversation starter, but the entire thing just felt rushed and left me feeling disappointed.

Years ago, the father worked and provided whereas the mother usually with the service of a housekeeper cooked, maintained and cared for the children. Consequently, the norms of the era made roles clearly identifiable amongst men and women. Because of these arrangements, men and women knew what character roles to depict. I can relate to this; my father was the head of the home, he was the financial provider, in contrast, my mother cared for myself a younger and older brother with the assistance of a housekeeper. My mom would cook when not otherwise occupied with other responsibilities, and the housekeeper would cook and clean. I often felt I was living an installment of The Brady Bunch. Fast forward to the 1990’s, times are different.

Zunshine’s theory of embodied transparency allows the audience to understand the perspectives of a character. She describes the moment in which the character’s body language involuntarily react to a stimulus. In “Freaks and Geeks” the concept of embodied transparency reveals the emotional complexity of Sam, Lindsay and Nick. Embodied transparency allows the audience to be engaged in the show because it provides a detailed characteristic of the character unseen by the audience. Restrain and transparency are wordless techniques that are solely based on the body language of the reviewers. The momentaneous demonstration of transparency and restrain provide a different point of view unavailable to the viewers that might subconsciously affect the perspective of the audience.

Over the years television has been known to be one of the major educating and socializing institution in America. Television in today’s society is able to play a powerful key through which individuals can be informed, hold forums, and voice their opinion‘s. Television is also important because it offers us glimpses into minority life and minority figures. When sociologists examine minorities in television they document how minorities are portrayed and how those portrayals have changed over the years. Through time, minorities in television have been able to make moderate gains whether they are in front of or behind cameras. However, they continue to remain significantly underrepresented as leading actors in films, as writers, and as TV show creators. Even though minorities are significantly underrepresented in today’s society the TV industry has been pushing to give an opportunity to many minority groups in succeeding in the media. Several TV shows and commercials have succeeded in the TV industry to try and change how minorities are underrepresented, however, there are also shows that reinforce stereotypes and are prejudice towards minorities.

What really is considered too white? Why doesn't tv show more of a color diversity? Should television even be used to demonstrate equality between whites and people of color? Although it may be true, there are statically more white's than black's in the U.S. ranging from 75.1% to 12.3% according to the Demographic Statistics. However as the years continue on, equality between African Americans and whites are still being battled throughout the U.S. as African Americans are still being slandered for the color of their skin. So as a fellow African American citizen myself, television wouldn't be a bad start to show how people of color and whites can actually get along on the big screen.

Black-ish strategically intertwines the multiple perspectives of its three generational cast to show that ideas linked to race are not finite and that they can change over time. Blackish attempts to address the ways in which society views the African-American race in a light hearted, comedic manner. The ABC sitcom is centered around a modern African-American family living in suburban California. The cast is comprised of two parents, four children, and a grandfather. Each character plays a vital role in portraying the different viewpoints and opinions within black culture. Black-ish employs its multigenerational characters to present contrasting perceptions of what being "black" means, which challenges the common belief that racial conceptions are finite. Black-ish strategically intertwines the multiple perspectives of its three generational cast to show that ideas linked to race are not finite and that they can change over time. Blackish attempts to address the ways in which society views the African-American race in a light hearted, comedic manner. The ABC sitcom is centered around a modern African-American family living in suburban California. The cast is comprised of two parents, four children, and a grandfather. Each character plays a vital role in portraying the different viewpoints and opinions within black culture. Black-ish employs its multigenerational characters to present contrasting perceptions of what being "black" means, which challenges the common belief

Since its start, the television industry has been criticized for perpetuating myths and stereotypes about African-Americans through characterizations, story lines, and plots. The situation comedy has been the area that has seemed to draw the most criticism, analysis, and disapproval for stereotyping. From Sanford and Son and The Jefferson’s in the 1970s to The Cosby Show (1984) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the 1990s, sitcoms featuring black casts and characters have always been controversial. However, their significance upon our American culture cannot be disregarded. During the 1950s and 1960s, 97% of the families were Caucasian. In the first five years of the

The television show Black-ish has caused many controversial discussion and opinions. The sitcom features three generations of an African American family, the Johnsons, which includes a successful executive Andre; his wife Rainbow, who is a doctor; their four kids: Andre Jr., Zoey, Jack, Diane, and Andre’s parents Pops and Ruby living in a predominantly white suburban neighborhood in Los Angeles. The theme centers around how Andre came from a poor black neighborhood and his kids don’t seem to realize their culture. With this being the basis of the show, it has caused an uproar, with just its name alone being said to perpetrate racial stereotypes, leaving some with feelings that the show should be canceled (Peyser). The sitcom has even received tweets from Presidential candidate Donald Trump about being racist. This is as far from the truth as possible. Black-ish is not only non-racist it, but it is also a great show, providing laughs, life lessons, and diversity. Therefore, Black-ish is a good family sitcom and meets several aspects to be judged as one.

Throughout the movie, being an adult is portrayed as ideal. Thirteen-year-old Jenna repeatedly wishes she was thirty, flirty, and thriving. Being an adult seems so ideal because Jenna is struggling with being a teenager. According to Steinberg (2015), adolescent well-being has

To illustrate, shows like Black-ish and Empire, with their predominantly African-American casts, would not be able to tell the unique stories being told with a cast of all Caucasian actors. Another excellent show that uses diversity correctly is Master of None, a Netflix original series. Master of None is a relationship comedy that takes place in New York City; Aziz Ansari, an Indian-American comedian, plays the lead, Dev. What makes this show noteworthy, however, is the fact that unlike most television series, Dev is not an exaggerated stereotype. Lavanya Ramanathan, a reporter for the Washington Post, said it best when she stated, “What’s extraordinary about Master of None is that its protagonist is a person of color who’s simply, normal” (Ramanathan). He is able to provide a new perspective, but at the same time he does not make himself seem unrelatable; furthermore, the show addresses this topic by reminding the audience that viewers are able to relate to anthropomorphic animals; thus, the audience surely can relate to people of

Some examples that prove the article include the academy awards. The 2015 award show revived major backlash for clearly lacking diversity. #Oscarssowhite trended on twitter, many public figures and members of the film industry spoke out and did not attend and promised to boycott the award show until there was change. The following year tied with the 2007 award show, for being the most diverse. That outrage and the way people across the United States spoke up, made that change and altered an industry that they felt they were discriminated in. An example that refutes aspects of the article would be shows like insecure. Although, I haven’t watched too much of the show, I know from what I’ve seen that the way blackness is portrayed on the show

Orange is The New Black provides insight as to how a prison sentence can affect the relationships had before entering the prison culture as well as the effect that can be had on your significant others. The following essay will discuss the process that women may experience when entering and adjusting to the prison life,

college student pursuing her baccalaureate, and she comes from a religious background. She was a leader in her church ministry, and her family come from a very humble family upbringing. She is attending a college in the South; furthermore, her roommate is an outspoken agnostic girl named Jen. Jen is more open, and Angela can accept Jen due to her religious views; furthermore, Angela finds Jen immoral. Angela develops an infection that keeps her bedridden and unable to attend classes. Jen brings her assignments, meals, and does her laundry; in addition, Jen’s boyfriend takes care of Angela. Angela is extremely confused that Jen can be so caring; nevertheless Jen is not religious. According to Broderick and Blewitt, (2014), primary adulthood is a time of boundless education, whether in college or on the job, young individuals are confronted with being the apprentices, the unaccustomed or the inexperienced when they enter the domain of adults, and they devote a great deal of time constructing their information base and becoming authorities in in particular areas of knowledge, such as computers, science, philosophy, or mechanics. Angela is entering the adult world; therefore, she will begin to see diversity in people, and Angela has lived a sheltered life within her own community. There are seven stages in adult’s intellectual functioning; furthermore, the problems the individual must solve, such as how to maintain good health, what career path to choose, whom to vote for, or

Orange is the New Black by Jenji Kohan has been streaming on Netflix since July 2013 by the production company Lionsgate Television. The television show is about the main character Piper Chapman who just got in jail. She is serving time at Litchfield Penitentiary, a federal prison for women in upstate New York, for drug smuggling with her ex-girlfriend (Alex) a couple of years ago. When Chapman goes to prison she is reunited with Alex, even though their relationship goes through ups and downs as the time goes by. The main focus of the television show is to present a public discourse about the criminal justice system, particularly incarceration in the United States. Through the social cognitive theory and the agenda setting theory one is able to see how Orange is the New Black draws attention to different issues within our incarceration system, specially imprisonment of women. From the social cognitive theory aspect,the filmmaker has communicated an acceptance towards distinctive identities by having a variety of characters in the show. Apart from this, agenda setting theory comes into play when particular issues within imprisonment are presented, like solitary confinement was throughout many episodes. These can be further examined and analyzed looking at all the elements Jenji Kohan implements in her scripts to open up a public discussions about social issues.