The Media's Negative Portrayal of African American Males Essay

The stereotypical misrepresentations of African-American women and men in popular culture have influenced societal views of Blacks for centuries. The typical stereotypes about Black women range from the smiling, a sexual and often obese Mammy to the promiscuous Jezebel who lures men with her sexual charms. However, the loud, smart mouthed, neck-rolling Black welfare mother is the popular image on reality television. These images portrayed in media and popular culture create powerful ideology about race and gender, which affects daily experiences of Black women in America. With few healthy relationships portrayed in the media, Black women are left to make decisions based on the options

As I sit here and think about what it is to be Black in America. I realize how there are so many factors that affect African American people daily. One of the most damaging forces tearing at young black people in America today is the popular culture's image of what an "authentic" black person is supposed to look like and how that person is supposed to act. People assume all black males where raised in a single parent home. People assume that if you are a black male, that you sale drugs or you are really great in some type of sport. If you are a black female, they assume you will have kids by different men, referred to as “baby daddy” or they may not even know who the fathers of their children are. This same society expects African

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.

Now a day African Americans have a growing culture in our community so they play a big roll in society. This cuases them to be on the media more often. That said they are shown both in good and bad ways. Some ways they are shown is undermining to some people and other ways show them in a brighter light. It could go from showing them in gang violence or showing them in a political aspect.

Another point I wanted to address is that young black men aren 't the ones to be stereotyped in society. Thought the years young black women have been made out to be ghetto and project staying women. Black Women have been pushed around for decades. There disrespected on a day-to-day basis. There often called out of their name and put down for how many kids they 've had out of wedlock. Of course there are some poor black women on the welfare system. But clearly most of them don 't want to be. The media on the other hand exploits black women to where they have to expose body parts while useless men watch and throw money. But what I can 't understand is why do we still find our selves listening to the exploitative music. We would go out and buy most of the CDs and play it in our cars and jam to it in the clubs. Are we telling the world that that 's who we are? These women listen to the music and purchase the CDs, but wouldn 't want to take a guy approaching them talking in such a manner.

The way entertainment in the media portrays us has greatly affected how others identify us. Movies and shows like; Madea’s family Reunion, Bringing down the House, Love and Hip Hop, and Basketball Wives all portray us in a degrading way. People sometimes find it comical of course, but the fact that it is comical does not justify it being debasing. This image of us has evolved from things in the media, and its’ power to shape people’s idea of us. We as a race must stop living up to our stereotypes. As soon as we take action in not succumbing to our own stereotype, people will not think we are “Ghetto” or any other undignified term they think of us; therefore in the media we won’t be perceived in that way. As Colin Powell once said, “Fit no stereotypes. Don't chase the latest management fads. The situation dictates which approach best accomplishes the team's mission.” Although African American stereotyping is prevalent in the media now because of its’ entertaining quality; it perpetuates a cycle of harmful stereotypes. As long as this cycle continues, our culture will always be illustrated negatively.

The media sets the tone for the morals, values, and images of our culture. Many people in this country, some of whom have never encountered black people, believe that the degrading stereotypes of blacks are based on reality and not fiction. Everything they believe about blacks is determined by what they see on television. After over a century of movie making, these horrible stereotypes continue to plague us today, and until negative images of blacks are extinguished from the media, blacks will be regarded as second-class

“The sensitivity around stereotypes and distortions largely arises, then, form the powerlessness of historically marginalized groups to control their own representation.” Since Black people are the minority, they have no control over how they are represented in the media. As Shothat had mentioned in his article, “In the media there is a tendency to represent Black males as potential delinquents.” The misrepresentation of most Black males, affects them significantly; therefore, since they

The article “Television, Black Americans, and the American Dream” explained how Black Americans have been represented in the media and television. The media has shifted our understanding of racial inequality away from a structured process. This makes it seem as though racial inequality is “natural and universal rather than as result of social and political struggles over power” (Gray, p. 431). This is illustrated in the CBS News documentary The Vanishing Family: Crisis in Black America by following the lives of underclass, single parents. It highlights drugs, riots, and teenage pregnancy to show that

News channels distribute the information of the world to Americans on a mass scale, but what is shown is dependent on the station. In the Columbia Journalism Review, May/June 1987 found that normal Boston news stations had an 85% negative enforce for black communities compared to news stations owned by a black person’s 43% of the same communities. The vast difference between the stations demonstrates the disconnect of certain channels along with how it exaggerates situations. Large companies such as Fox News or CNN choose to misrepresent people of color, whether it is deliberately or not, is damaging to this community as well as their fight for civil rights.

There have been countless shows on television that have had a focus on black culture and issues within the community. The Television shows Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Black-ish bring to light and successfully decode the 20th to 21st century race issues, specifically black male issues that have not been adequately dealt with in the mainstream media. Mainstream television has had black characters and have covered black issues, but they often have characters that fit and fuel stereotypes about the black male. These characters are sometimes portrayed similar to what is seen in public or in the news such as gangsters and absent fathers.

The portrayal of Black people in the media combined with colorism creates stereotypes that allow for inequality to continue. “It is common saying nowadays that racism is a plague of humanity. But we must not content ourselves with such a phrase. We must tirelessly look for the repercussions of racism at all levels of sociability” (Fanon 36). The quote explains that racism continues to be a poison to our society. However we must not live with the thought that racism will stay there forever. For example, racism occurs in classrooms where lectures only portray white men as heroes ignoring the many Black heroes in U.S history. The media shaped how blacks are seen from a white perspective, showing that they are criminals. It is fueled by colorism

A stereotype is a way to easily categorize a group of people. For example, the media portraying black people as gangsters and thugs. When the media portrays certain groups of people as unrealistic stereotypes in an abundance people will train their brain to think that way. A stereotype is something was taught to people, we weren't inherently born to think that different groups of people act a certain type of way without some form of influence. Stereotyping usually happens with minority groups especially in the media that's being constantly shoved down our throats.

The media appears to shed a negative light on African Americans in the media. A story that comes to mind was a Caucasian couple who resided in the suburbs and had average jobs. The media describes them so eloquently as a family who just made a wrong decision. The article described them as “- In their hometown of Trinity, Alabama, MaryAnn and Wesley Landers were seen as doting parents of two girls, a couple with a very strong faith” (www.whnt.com).

Over the years we have seen more representation of people of color as a whole and sexualities as well. This is especially true with black representation. There has been a lot of shows and movies that are being shown in mainstream media such as Girls Trip. There is even the fact that you are seeing more black dolls now then I have when I was a little girl. While yes there have been many black characters and even shows with an all-black cast what I am talking about is seeing black representation in the mainstream media that has been dominated for years by those who are white.