Culture Diversity in Media - Essay Example

CULTURE DIVERSITY IN THE MEDIA The term ‘culture’ has often been described as a clichéd concept, with rare pragmatic meticulousness and cultural redress. Cultural diversity on the other hand, is one of the most significant terms that have succeeded in accomplishing the task of including various meanings and differing views. It is thus, frequently utilized alongside other concepts such as social forbearance, liberty of assertiveness and individuality, as well as democracy. Simultaneously it is held out as a barricade against palpable hazards from a global market place and at the same time function as rationalization for factual state action in association with the creative industry. This paper discusses the manner in which the general media – including the press, television and films report on ethnic issues how such reporting help or obstruct the effort to elevate the cause of social and cultural diversity and prevent serious issues concerning racism in such media. The media, to a considerable extent, unintentionally tend to emphasize negative images and stereotyping in the process of news reporting or in the course of collecting information relating to issues concerning the people belonging to diverse cultural or ethnic groups. According to previous research conducted in this behalf on the portrayal of issues of people belonging to different cultural and ethnic backgrounds in the British and American media, the migrants were omitted from voicing their opinions and were ignored while reporting issues regarding the problems faced by their community. Such an incident was witnessed in the year 1990 while reporting on the issue of wearing a headscarf that was debated in countries like France and Denmark. The migrants opinion was either not quoted at all or it was not given due prominence by the media while reporting on the issue. They were often misquoted or quoted in a discriminatory manner which exuded negativity and sounded superficial, aggressive and stereotypical. It is also noted that the opinion of people belonging to a minority group are often misinterpreted since a single set of representatives are interviewed over and over again which loses the credibility of their opinion and views and less importance is given on reporting of such an issue from the point of view of a diverse range of interviewees. Another significant issue that emerged during the study was that the media is highly biased towards reporting of certain important events of political nature. Consequently the everyday aspect of the minority life, for instance their education, living conditions, economic status etc is largely ignored. For instance, while reporting on issues of living conditions of the minority community more emphasis is given on the degree of their living conditions which are highly reprehensible and lamentable rather than reporting on the reasons behind their apparent economic depravity. Moreover, news and events such as emergency situations, contention, threats, and challenges which have higher viewership and news value are given preference over other relevant issues. For instance the themes that deal with the various forms of discrimination encountered by the individuals belonging to culturally diverse communities seldom find adequate and required consideration. Also it is often observed that people belonging to cultural minorities are often publicized in events which have negative connotations such as crime and violence as compared to other genres. They are more frequently portrayed and presented in stereotypical roles especially those that are related to criminal activities, as culprits, or as victims of crime. The central idea is always stereotypical and clichéd conveniently ignoring other aspects of their social and cultural lives. Also there is an intended link between the reporting of issues on minority problems and the political agenda of the respective states. Such a trend that focused on reporting of minority issues with a political association as the backdrop was observed in the press coverage of Spanish immigrants illegally crossing borders, the representation of Romanian refugees in the Austrian media, as well as the press coverage that glorified the migration of Albanians in Italy by the Italian media. All these factors further signify the role that the media plays in representing issues concerning individuals belonging to a racially diverse community. From the above discussions it could be generalized that the coverage of issues involving violence and crime, as well as stereotypical representation of people belonging to a particular race or culture which is diverse in nature and form, is routine and prosaic. It is also observed that the depiction of a certain culture or ethnicity finds stereotypical representation in the media for instance, the depiction of Nigerian women as essentially being prostitutes, as portrayed by the Italian media. Such incidences tend to typify the people and compartmentalize them as perpetrators of such a crime, thus ultimately leading to radicalization of that particular community. In countries like Germany and Denmark similar trends regarding portray of people of varied cultures has been observed whereby the media displayed obvious biases while reporting on issues of crime and violence by the majority as well as the minority population. The negative issues related to culturally diverse groups were more hyped and sensationalized as opposed to those of the other dominant community. The people belonging to culturally diverse groups were represented as anti social, having total disregard for welfare systems and as illegal immigrants. The media did not seek to probe on the motives behind such crimes committed by culturally diverse groups unlike their counterparts. The Danish media, the violence and crime by culturally diverse groups was depicted as second nature, and the crime committed by an individual was frequently judged in the backdrop of his / her cultural community rather than looking at it with an individual perspective and as an independent isolated case of crime or violence. Besides the main reasons behind the rising rate of crime amongst such people are rarely probed, thus generating misleading reports. However the trends are showing positive changes in recent years. The minorities and culturally diverse population is gaining more visibility in television programs, fiction, print media as well as films which depict more awareness and sensibility while reporting on issues concerning them and portrays them in a positive light. These issues could be tackled and the reporting of such critical events representing people of cultural minorities could be highlighted in a more positive manner by generating an awareness about the problems faced by the culturally diverse communities, giving them the desired and adequate visibility in reporting, making their voices heard which would in turn lend more credibility to the issues faced by them, and encouraging their participation in the media as prime reporters rather than as subsidiary and relatively mute spectators. More emphasis may be given to reporting on issues which are basic to them, such as the reasons behind their deprived status, and improving their status by employing them in honorable positions where their voices may be heard and their opinions valued. The journalists and others of the class, who report on such issues, either in the media, or television or through books and films must take a responsible reporting as a serious guideline in order to encourage harmony and fair treatment of people belonging to such communities. References Van Dijk, Teun A., (2000). New(s) Racism. A discourse analytical approach. In Simon Cottle: Ethnic Minorities and the Media, Pp. 33 – 49. Read More