Ethnic Identity Analysis

Shameless is a Golden-Globe nominated show with a white dominated cast. One of the siblings on the show is black, but is identified as a White male contrary to the character’s skin tone. “When it comes to representations of Blacks on television, the 1980s can be seen as a decade of elevated inclusion both in terms of the quantity and quality of roles -- which remains the norm today. (Tukachinsky, Mastro, & Yarchi, 2015). Over the years, we will see more shows gearing their audiences to the black community. Producers add in a few social issues to reel viewers in, but the fact remains the same that a prime time heavy hitting shows, will most likely have less than 20% of their cast of African descent. In consonance with researchers, blacks currently constitute between 14-17 percent of the prime-time population. (Tukachinsky, Mastro, & Yarchi, 2015). The lack of representation in the media can lead to some interpreting that the Caucasian race is the superior race, and in retrospect, can influence the attitudes and beliefs of viewers. Prior research has shown that exposure to counter stereotypic exemplars in the media can have a positive effect on inter-group relations. (Scharrer, & Ramasubramanian, 2015) In order to reduce the misrepresentation from taking over the media, we must depict a positive image on the lives of minorities and portray them as successful, thriving human beings. By

In today’s world, the exchange of information between individuals is largely based on the media alone. Conversations are held through social media sites, the news channels become the deliverers of new waves of specifically chosen stories, and the rest of the media effects the subconscious of the society. Movies, television shows, and “general” knowledge contribute to the rest of the mass media that affects the minds of people. The subconscious of the people can form the characteristics of the young and solidify ideas within the older population. The problem of the current society is that the subconscious ideas transferred to the media is particularly in the favor of Caucasians. This excludes people of African descent, Latinos, Asians, and other recognizably new minorities such as transgender. The overall effect of this subconscious problem is not very measurably but it can have disastrous consequences within each respective culture. Among all the minorities listed, African Americans and people of African descent have a tendency to be the most often misrepresented.

The media in our lives has the strongest impact on our everyday conversations, actions, judgments and perception on society as a whole. Without our modern day technology the world would result to judgments based on their own personal beliefs, not being so easily persuaded by others. The contemporary media portrays Black and Hispanic Americans in numerous positive ways, but more so in a negative light. The stereotypes that these minorities have been given not only affect the community as a whole, but the personal lives of each individual. Although the media can be used for good, the captivating movies, news stories, and documentaries seem to have a negative outcome. The medias focus on Black and Hispanic Americans has not always been bad, but the stereotypes that have developed over the decades shed a negative light on these two racial and ethnic groups.

When you look at the amount of African American stars on television, it is easy to tell that stereotypes of African Americans are being portrayed negatively. Since the 1960s, black television has thrived in many different ways. From “Different Matters” to “Insecure”, African Americans have tried to get rid of this stigma. African Americans are constantly shown as. However, with the increase of representation comes an increase in misrepresentation. The amount of discrimination has risen exponentially in the United States. This is due to the increased hatred and miscommunication of black struggle and black problems in the world, causing an inhumane belief and standard of regular African Americans in the world.

     Identity is one of the main questions throughout all of our readings, because it is hard for people to accept who they are in society. Accepting their identity as a minority with little if any freedoms

Dr. John Holland created a theory and inventory to help describe personality types that can be used to identify occupations that are best suited for a particular personality type, or “Holland Code.”

This paper will identify the ethnic identifications within individuals. Ethnicity is part of everyone’s identity development. Individuals may have one ethnicity or multiple, depending on their current location, homelands, generations, religion, environment, language/dialect, physical appearance, and more. A cultural individual is considered ethnic either by being first, second, or third generation. According to Phinney (1989), there are four stages of ethnic identity development: diffuse, foreclosed, moratorium, and achieved. They describe when an individual explores or does not explore their own ethnicity, and accepting clarification and understanding of ethnicity. An individual can be placed within these stages throughout their developing lives. It is important to recognize these stages within an individual to better apprehend their identity and where they perceive their own identity in their position.

The mass medium I have chosen to critique is a new television show called This Is Us and it airs on the NBC channel. This Is Us is a show about a family with triplets and they show how they handle all the different parts of their lives. This particular mass medium addresses many of the different current issues going on in today’s society including; race, diversity, education, religion, and politics. This Is Us addresses diversity in today’s society and portrays many different types of people within this one television show. To prove that this mass medium portrays diversity I will look into how this show illustrates race, different social stances, and different educational backgrounds both positively and negatively. Also, to better the credibility

    Although the African American image has become increasingly recognizable on modern-day television, that image is not always a positive one. Whether this was intentional or not, research has been conducted that highlights the effects of this denigration on the

We live in a label obsessed society, from the brand of clothes we wear to questioning the gender identity of someone we encounter, labeling is a part of our everyday life. Unfortunately, this culture of hyper-awareness and stereotyping has perpetuated cycles of inequality and discrimination as well as left lasting negative effects on our society. This paper will examine Omi and Winant’s “Racial Formation in the U.S. From the 1960s to 1990,” Water’s “Black Identities,” Oliver and Shapiro’s “Black Wealth/White Wealth," and Lorber’s “The Social Construction of Gender,” as a guide to further understand the inequality created, specifically racial and gender inequality, by our hyper-aware and quick to stereotype society.

Throughout the piece, Zia mentions several instances where the idea of Asian American identity is still emerging yet nonexistent in society. An example of this is when Zia retells a childhood memory in which she is asked by her two friends to decide if she is either black or white. She is unable to self identify with either due to not knowing her own identity at all. She then says, “...Asian Americans began to break through the shadows. By then we had already named ourselves ‘Asian American’ and we were having raging debates and fantastic visions of an America we fit into” (Zia 5). At first, she lacks a sense of the Asian American identity as it is conceptually nonexistent to her at the time. She then comments about the emergence of Asian

I read through online news as I drank my coffee in morning, as is my ritual. Having just read an article on the horrifying mass graves of IS fighters rotting in shallow graves in the deserts of Iraq I peered at the comments section to see how this would be tied to former president Barack Obama, and how great Trump is. Without surprise I found many claiming the ills of this conflict hoisted on our former “muslim” President. One stuck out at me- while the rhetoric in the body of the comment didn’t diverge from the standard trolling, and hate, the name stuck with me, ASHAMEDTOBEBLACK, with the picture of Barak Obama as the icon. It is painfully clear in media, public forums, as well as in this show that a long and arduous debate about identity in America is a festering wound that has never healed, and may never find any closure. I think this debate is tied directly to the inability for America to write and understand a comprehensive history of itself, or to even to acknowledge that the American narrative is complex and nuanced.

Many circumstances oblige people to move from their native country to a foreign one. From this movement of migration have emerged many ethnic groups. An ethnic group is a restraint number of persons living in a larger society and sharing the same distinct cultural heritage. Some people tend to bury their habits and accommodate to the new way of life. However others hold on to their identity and try to identify their race and maintain it. This enriches societies and makes them multi-racial. Therefore, every ethnic group is essential to complete the mosaic. Although they are sometimes threatened, minorities must fight to preserve their principles. Why must they fight? Because racial identification has many positive impacts on the members.

In recent years, identity has been open to discussion and reflection. One's identity has now been subject to change. There are still major cultural categories of identity, for example:

1. Identity is people's concepts of who they are, of what sort of people they are, and how