Ethnic Stereotypes In The Media

The media has many times been referred to as the most powerful influence on Earth, and is known to help shape the world. It has always advertised several different types of ethnic stereotypes in multiple forms, such as on films, news broadcasts, television, and newspapers. Audiences of all ages are exposed to these stereotypes, and view them as forms of entertainment or knowledge. However, the ethnic stereotypes that are constantly advertised to audiences by the media have ultimately had a negative impact on society. This is evident through negativity in schools causing bullying and isolation, negative forms of generalization in society, and racial misunderstandings and problems created by the media.

To begin, ethnic stereotyping in the

Audiences that are exposed to media can be unintentionally influenced by it. Results from several investigations have shown that exposure to ethnic, or racial stereotypes in the media can influence real world speculations of minorities (Bryant, J., & Zillmann, D, 2002, p.333). An example of this would be the fact that Latino-Americans are regularly seen as lazy and unintelligent in popular media (Lichter, R., & Lichter, L, 2011). Moreover, survey research relating with ethnic stereotypes shows that there is an unquestionable relationship between exposure to racial content, and real world racial perceptions (Bryant, J., & Zillmann, D., 2002, p.334). These surveys prove that the media's constant display of ethnicity based stereotypes heavily influences the audience’s beliefs. This is because viewers expect the ethnic groups they see in the media to behave in the same way. This has a dreadful impact on societies around the world, because audiences are being fed false facts and stereotypes about other races. Furthermore, the media also has a habit of displaying racial stereotypes, which reinforce the existing perceptions carried by audiences. Many times, several races have certain qualities in the media, which are rarely ever true, such as African-Americans regularly being portrayed as big, mean, or loud (Srividya Ramasubramanian, 2010). An example of this is

Several television shows, movies, and news broadcasts racially abuse certain races, based on past events or occurrences. For example, after the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, the media, including news channels, television shows, and movies, portrayed Arabs and Muslims as homicidal villains. An example of this is Tarek Bishara, who is an art student that moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. He described one of his scenes as “basically some Arab dude screaming for death before blowing himself up” (Blauvelt, 2011, p.38-42). Bishara was able to land his first major film role, but only after changing his name from Tarek Bishara to Thom Bishops. Also, in recent media, shows such as “Sleeper Cell”, and “24” regularly depict Muslim Americans plotting terrorist attacks (Blauvelt, 2011, p.38-42). Actor and comedian Ahmed Ahmed stated that “Even before 9/11, I was mostly getting roles as terrorists. It got even worse when I read for a part as 'Terrorist No. 4' once” (Blauvelt, 2011, p.41). This, without question, creates racial misunderstanding and conflicts in society, regarding the Muslim and Arab community, and is a clear example of ethnic stereotypes in the media. Arabs and Muslims are frequently displayed as sadistic monsters in the modern media, which harms their society because it is an obvious form of racism. Racial