Research Essay writing
LastName 1
FirstName LastName
Professor Sarah Lynn Kleeb
ACMB01
10 August 2019
Topic: Representation of “minority” communities in popular mass media and the representation of blackness in news media
Annotated Bibliography
Anderson, Lauren C., and Arthur A. Raney. “Exploring the Relationship Between Sports Fandom and the Black Criminal Stereotype.” Communication & Sport, vol. 6, no. 3, 2017, pp. 263–282. DOI:10.1177/2167479517713152.
News media’s over-representation of black men as violent criminals has seriously affected the ways black athletes are perceived by sports fans. Anderson and Raney conducted research to determine how black criminal stereotypes are perceived by sports fans and the extent to which such stereotypes are accepted by the general populous (Anderson and Raney 263). Findings suggest that, when exposed to a news story related to crime, with the race of the suspect unknown to viewers, study participants usually assumed that the accused criminal was black (Anderson and Raney 275). Among the participants, sports fans were seen to be more likely than non-fans to categorize the suspected criminal as a black person (Anderson and Raney 276). The authors suggest that the reason for such categorization is the constant portrayal of black players as criminals by sports and news media (Anderson and Raney 277). An unexpected finding from this study was the particularities of attitudes of sports fans (particularly combative sports like boxing or MMA) with regard to certain kinds of crime and violence. For example, participants who identified themselves as more dedicated fans of such sports were more supportive of athletes charged with domestic abuse (Anderson and Raney 280). The authors demonstrate how news media manipulates and shapes the ideologies of the mass population in categorizing and stereotyping individuals based on their race, but also demonstrates other factors that impact public perception.
Atuel, Hazel, et al. “Media Representations of Majority and Minority Groups.” European Journal of Social Psychology, vol. 37, no. 3, 2006, pp. 561–572. DOI:10.1002/ejsp.377.
In this article, Hazel Atuel, et al., conducted two research studies across the UK, exploring news articles from North and South Dakota and from California, to see how journalistic pieces from different US states depicted minority communities. Using content analysis techniques, they found that the ‘majority’ is often associated with political issues and identity adjectives in news headlines, whereas ‘minorities’ are framed as more relevant in headlines about social issues and ethnicity-based adjectives (Atuel, et al. 569). The study also found that articles about non-minorities tend to be longer than the articles about minorities (Atuel, et al. 566). While the study was conducted in different locations with different varieties of cultural diversity, it is quite evident that minority communities are generally more associated with racial adjectives than non-minorities.
Bleich, Erik, et al. “Migrants, Minorities and the Media: Information, Representations and Participation in the Public Sphere.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, vol. 41, no. 6, Sept. 2015, pp. 857–873. DOI:10.1080/1369183x.2014.1002197.
Bleich, et al., review existing research in the field of media representation of minority and immigrant populations, analyzing the ways such representation impacts the views of ordinary citizens and their relations with such communities (Bleich, et al. 857). Their research prioritizes an evaluation of negative media depictions of racial and ethnic minorities, depictions that ultimately shape public attitudes towards these groups and individuals (Bleich, et al. 866). The authors also explore the idea of media framing of minorities, and the frequent association of minorities with criminality and other negative attributes, which depict them as threats to society (Bleich, et al. 868). This article highlights the place of minority groups in contemporary society, describing the ways their experience of inclusion or exclusion, acceptance or marginalization, is shaped by their representation in media (Bleich, et al. 870).
Ferrucci, Patrick, et al. “A Black and White Game: Racial Stereotypes in Baseball.” Howard Journal of Communications, vol. 24, no. 3, 2013, pp. 309–325. DOI:10.1080/10646175.2013.805971.
Patrick Ferrucci, et al., conducted a study to test stereotypes of baseball athletes and their perceived credibility in the public sphere. Based on stereotypes showcased by mainstream media, such as physical strength, sportsmanship, and ability, participants were asked to rate white and black baseball players (Ferrucci, et al. 311). Results showed that black players were consistently perceived as physically stronger and more naturally able than white athletes (Ferrucci, et al. 317). It is important to keep in mind that the participants were mostly white individuals and, since they were exposed to photos of black players in the course of the study, they had already activated the “other” stereotypes in their minds (Ferrucci, et al. 313). Hence, in the latter part of the study, when the participants encountered stereotypically-consistent newspaper excerpts (that is, articles in news media that recycled old and problematic stereotypes about black players), they tended to be more vigilant, and frequently concluded that the author of the news article lacked responsibility for the stereotypical attributes conveyed about black individuals (Ferrucci, et al. 322). The study demonstrated the extensive and widespread cognitive dissonance that allowed study participants to consistently (and negatively) stereotype black athletes (and not white ones), while still rating media reporters with stereotypical articles about black men as not credible (Ferrucci, et al. 323).
Hinkson, Kamila. “Finding the Sweet Spot: A Black Boy’s Big Baseball Dreams.” Doris McCarthy Gallery, UTSC, 24 September 2019, https://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/~dmg/downloads/publications/Hinkson_9Bats.pdf.
Black characters have always been represented in a very limited way in mass media, often cast in supporting roles alongside a main protagonist. As Kamila Hinkson discusses, this representation count further decreases upon investigation of media narratives revolving around black baseball players, particularly those in Canada (Hinkson 1). Statistics show that out of the 882 players in the Major League Baseball roster for the year 2019, only 68 were black – a mere 7.7% of the total player count (Hinkson 2). Hinkson argues that the evident minority of black individuals in baseball has shifted the focus of young black kids to other sports, like football and basketball. In his exhibition, 9 Bats, Toronto artist Jalani Morgan wants to change this, opening the world of baseball to black youths as a viable sporting option. He believes that creating works that narrate stories about black baseball players will facilitate the imagination of young black kids, lighting a candle of belief in their hearts that allows them bring their baseball dreams to life (Hinkson 2). In this essay, Hinkson provides a comprehensive overview of Morgan’s intentions in creating this exhibit and points out to the critical topic of the representation of minorities/non-white players in mass media. This essay provides a solid framework for exploring and interpreting Morgan’s 9 Bats exhibition, while supporting the reader’s interrogation of the issue of representation of minorities in mass media, both within the world of baseball and beyond.
hooks, bell. “Reconstructing Black Masculinity.” Black Looks: Race and Representation, Routledge, 2014, pp. 87-113.
Feminist scholar bell hooks draws on her own personal experience of growing up in the company of black men, her father and brother, to demonstrate the widespread patriarchal portrayal of black men in media (hooks 87-89). Such patriarchal views have historically been formed and perpetuated within literature and news media, creating stereotypical images of black masculinity that manipulate the mass population’s perceptions and generalizes black men as violent criminals and losers, devoid of feeling, sensitivity, or egalitarian impulses with regard to the treatment of women (hooks 90-93). She points out that, although many black men do not subscribe to patriarchal beliefs, this aspect of their lives is rarely documented in media, as it opposes the dominant white culture’s evaluation of black people, and particularly black men (hooks 95). Hence, hooks helps us realize the ways much mainstream media consistently demonstrate only one side of the black experience, and one formed in the imaginative space of false stereotypes, which ultimately creates false representations in the audience’s mind (hooks 96).
Mastro, Dana. “Virtual Theme Collection: Immigrants as Minorities in the Media.” Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, vol. 96, no. 1, Nov. 2019, pp. 31–36. DOI:10.1177/1077699018824402.
The topic of immigration in the modern world largely falls into a steep and insidious insider-outsider binary, with news media frequently portraying immigrants as a threat to the welfare of the host country or (sometimes) mere recipients of sympathy (Mastro 31). Dana Mastro’s essay explores the cause and effect of such stereotypical news media coverage of immigrants and non-white minorities in modern society. Mastro demonstrates the news media’s practice of constant misrepresentation and underrepresentation of racial minorities and illustrates how that shapes their identities on both the individual and social levels (35).
Newman, Leonard S., et al. “Prejudice in Major League Baseball.” Journal of Sport and Social Issues, vol. 40, no. 4, 2015, pp. 329–337. DOI:10.1177/0193723515594211.
Leonard Newman, et al., provide empirical support for the claim that black baseball players must be better, stronger, and faster than white players to be accepted into the major leagues in America (330-333). The overall player value, or “Win Above Replacement” (WAR), for athletes in this sport was significantly higher for black players than white ones until the mid-1970s (Newman et al. 333). The study suggests that, while black players do not consistently perform better than white players, in order to break into the major leagues they had to live up to the highest standards set for them, which often exceed standards set for white players (Newman et al. 335). While this bias has faded to some extent in modern times, or – at least – has become less visible, that does not erase the fact that racial stereotyping still exists in the world of sports (Newman et al. 336).
Sontag, Susan. “In Plato’s Cave.” On Photography, Allan Lane, 1978, pp. 3-24.
In her renowned essay, “In Plato’s Cave”, Susan Sontag compares our image-based media world to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, claiming that photographic images appear to give us the opportunity to hold the world in our hand, and in doing so, this molds our sense of reality (7). Furthermore, pointing specifically at the power of photographs, she argues that although we understand that the photographed image is distorted and only tells a part of the story, it still paints an image and an assumption of what the event might have looked like (Sontag 12). Photography is also a way of expressing consent and in a sense encouraging the act of what is being photographed. Pointing at the example of the photos shot during the Civil War which encouraged more citizens to participate in it, Sontag claims that photographs are a very powerful medium to reinforce moral positions and can even help establish a new one (18). This is further evident in the representation of minorities and especially black individuals in the news and other forms of mass media which promotes racial stereotypes by using carefully crafted photographs that reinforce such false ideologies.
Tyree, Tia Cm, et al. “Representations of (New) Black Masculinity: A News-Making Case Study.” Journalism: Theory, Practice & Criticism, vol. 13, no. 4, 2011, pp. 467–482. DOI:10.1177/1464884911421695.
Black men are usually portrayed negatively in the news media, which some might attribute to the bias of the news agencies which are mostly run by white individuals and comprises mostly of white journalists and reporters (Tyree et al. 467). Tyree, et al., thus conducted a study, wherein a series of news reports about black men was carried out by a team of black journalist, with the goal of determining whether black masculinity would be represented in a positive light, if the source of news was curated by those in the U.S. black community (Tyree et al. 469). This study offered the opportunity to view black (male) stories from a black (male) perspective. It also showed that more than half of these reports represented black men in unconventional ways – that is, ways quite different from the reports of traditional, mainstream news outlets – as they were able to present stories with more details and accuracy (Tyree et al. 477). However, some articles still succumbed to the stereotypical, racialized, patriarchal viewpoints (Tyree et al. 478). This experiment further demonstrates the difficulties faced by journalists who attempt to break out of stereotypical reporting tendencies.
Ungerleider, Charles S. "Media, Minorities and Misconceptions: The Portrayal by and Representation of Minorities in Canadian News Media." Canadian Ethnic Studies/Etudes Ethniques Au Canada, vol. 23, no. 3, 1991, pp. 158-164. ProQuest, http://myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/docview/1293139740?accountid=14771.
This scholarly article explores the mechanisms used by news media to employ a certain image of “minorities” and why they continue perpetuating such depictions (Ungerleider 158). Ungerleider investigates Canadian journalism practices and their dependence on government and corporations as news sources (159). He also explores the use of narration in news-making, which creates binary oppositions like “heroes” and “villains”, asking for the audience to take sides (Ungerleider 160). Usually, and unsurprisingly, when minorities are presented in news media they are put under the category of a villain or a victim (Ungerleider 161). Ungerleider also claims that media plays an important role in hindering social diversity and that media companies are currently solely organize around the profit motive, and thus they cater to the audience who share the same ideals (162). Media companies create such under and misrepresentation of minorities to promote inequality so the rich and powerful can maintain their privileged positions (Ungerlieder 163).
Welch, Kelly. “Black Criminal Stereotypes and Racial Profiling.” Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, vol. 23, no. 3, 2007, pp. 276–288. DOI:10.1177/1043986207306870.