Media Stereotypes

MASS MEDIA AND RACISM

Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People

According to the video, we can see that Arabian people are treated as second-class beings. And once again, the media hasn't helped, bombarding us with images in so many movies and on television of the cliche Arab arms dealer or terrorist hijacker. I sympathize with Arab-Americans, and indeed Arabs all over this planet today in a very personal way. Stereotypes are as old as human culture itself. They reflect ideas that groups of people hold about others who are different from them.

A stereotype can be embedded in single word or phrase (such as, "jock" or "nerd"), an image, or a combination of words and images. The image evoked is easily recognized and understood by others who share the same views.

Stereotypes can be either positive ("black men are good at basketball") or negative ("women are bad drivers"). But most stereotypes tend to make us feel superior in some way to the person or group being stereotyped. Stereotypes ignore the uniqueness of individuals by painting all members of a group with the same brush.

Stereotypes can appear in the media because of the biases of writers, directors, producers, reporters and editors. But stereotypes can also be useful to the media because they provide a quick identity for a person or group that is easily recognized by an audience. When deadlines loom, it's sometimes faster and easier to use a stereotype to characterize a person or situation, than it is to provide a more complex explanation.

As a small but significant part of the solution, we must change the way that we are viewed in the media and be mature about the way that we portray ourselves in our daily lives in hopes of reprogramming some of the less than encouraging mind states that still exist about our race. We must also be vigilant in policing our law enforcement system. Whenever there is a disparity, whether real or misconstrued, it must be brought to the attention of not only the superior officers, but the lawmakers and even the media, to ensure that the issue is sufficiently spotlighted and fairly debated. We must hold those accountable who claim no accountability. After all, we are only victims when we allow ourselves to be.