Role of Television in Stereotyping - Essay Example

Journalism, Mass Media and Communication Of all audiovisual devices available, television is one of the most powerful in terms of relaying information, thus influencing not only our thinking, but the perception of daily life. Television has the power to make a good behavior, bad, and a bad behavior acceptable. One of the most dominant roles that television bears to this day, however, is cultural stereotyping. The main stereotyping portrayed on television includes gender parity and racism. It is sufficient to conclude from the continued offerings on television that rather than dissolve the cultural stereotyping, television furthers them, as the following discussion supports. One of the key reasons why television bears the blame is that women’s role and portrayal on television has remained constant although a few insignificant changes have been made. The reason for this is that one, the woman is depicted as an overly feminine object only capable of executing “female” roles in films, advertisements, and programs. For instance, men still play the hero roles in most films, mostly protecting, saving, or tormenting women. Additionally, advertisements portray women as attractive objects used to market things by use of their sexual appeal. The final evidence regarding preservation of cultural stereotyping is racial segregation in films. There is still white domination in most films, with the people of color playing mostly secondary roles, or being portrayed as inferior, unintelligent, criminals, or slaves. In short, an above average of television broadcasts places the white man above the black, or the black playing secondary to the white. One of the key examples is the film The Gods Must Be Crazy which portrayed a black man as being overly primitive. The 21st century has brought with it digitalization which has in turn given birth to digital networks and communities. Unlike in real-life communities where contact, communication, conflicts and all other aspects of life are done face to face, the same are virtually executed on these digital communities. This therefore presents a twofold scenario when it comes to socializing; it can either foster of degrade it. Again, there is a danger in that owing to its virtual nature, digital networking is easy to manipulate thus give rise to virtual creations which may not exist in reality. What this means is that digital communities allow people to “write” themselves, meaning they can create multiple personalities of who they are not. The idea of people writing themselves into being might be a conscious or unconscious process usually sparked by trends which rule the social networking (media), which makes up the biggest chunk of digital communities. What this implies is that the said digital communities set standards or trends which everyone living in them is required to adhere to, or risk falling out with the other members. These trends may range from language (slang), to fashion, and type of music. In application, these are observed in that celebrities for instance, have been in the recent past forced to upload photos of themselves so that fans may give them “likes” on Facebook, or “follow” them on Twitter. The problem with the uploaded pictures is that they tend to differ from the real celebrities because they undergo photo processing using enhancing software such as Photoshop. This means that the people we see on such communities may be different from who we would meet in reality. The same extends to other members (not celebrities) who take up fashion make up, music preferences, or new slang just so they fit in but on the ground, are totally different personalities. The issue of cultural stereotyping continues to affect women or the female gender in a big way. This is particularly when it comes to advertising. This issue has been a source of controversy since the times in memorial with some being for, or against it. The main cause of debate is that it is the sexual allure of women, which is needed by promoters and advertisers. In most of the commercials on televisions, posters, billboards and even on the radio will always have a catchy part of a woman involved. These may range from voice to eyes, lips, shape, size, breasts, thighs, or even the nude. The idea is to get the attention of potential clients, then offer the products later. The problem with this is that it affects how society perceives women. The women themselves have been brainwashed that they should be attractive objects meant to catch the eyes of especially men. As such, they take up the trends offered in advertisements and when they find that they are not attractive, they develop feelings of denial or low self-esteem. Men on the other hand, perceive of women as objects meant for their enjoyment. They therefore transform their judgment of women to be based on their looks, and how close or distant they are from what they see on advertisements. Additionally, women are usually given the roles of the homemaker as they are seen advertising soaps, kitchens, baby products, and house-related offerings. What this implies is that a woman’s space is in household chores. The men on the other hand are used in commanding environments such as automobile advertisements, banks advertisements, alcoholic drinks, and outdoor activities such as sports. This is demeaning to the women because a perception of them as being weak and tied to the house is usually their role in advertising (Hollows 21). In reporting, the resulting information can be grouped as either news or propaganda, depending on the perspective applied in the report. In the light of this, there exist two forms of reporting; subjective and objective. Subjective reporting is based on a viewpoint which is biased intentionally so that whatever is reported influences the audience in a certain direction. In short, it is reporting that is biased, and expresses one’s viewpoint rather than solid facts. On the other hand, objective reporting is that reporting based on solid facts, and is unbiased. In short, it is the whole truth and leaves the interpretation or reaction to the audience. It is therefore important to tell the difference between the two in that from telling them a, one can tell between biased or unbiased text and from that know what to believe in. To the journalist, it is important in that they can create texts meant for particular audiences by adhering to the type of reporting that they use. Works Cited Hollows, Joane. Feminism, Femininity, and Popular Culture. Manchester Univ. Press; New York, 1999. Print. Read More