Bill Cosby Show Research Paper
Larry Ebron
June 20, 2013
Dr. Ebot
COMM422
Topic: The Portrayal of African American males in TV sitcoms
Introduction: The role of African American males in situational comedies, affects how society especially the white demographic views blacks. African American males have been struggling so long for equality in the TV industry. In result when black males were aired on TV it involved them in situational comedies. Some of these popular sitcoms that portrayed black males’ were shows like, “Amos and Andy” “Good Times”, “The Bill Cosby Show”, and “The Wayans Bros”. The reason why sitcoms are so eminent to the African American society was because this was the only portrayal of blacks society ever knew. It was the role that black men played …show more content…
For when the Wayans Bros aired, it honestly brought African American back to the comedic aspect instead of the severity of African American life. In this show Sean an amateur actor goes to an audition for a job but he always gets high before he is about to audition. In an Ebony magazine, it quoted “white producers are the majority behind the scenes, and it seems as though they think African Americans are not good enough for prime-time networks.” They continued stating that “in 1992 nearly one out every five characters on prime-time network entertainment programs was African Americans” (Ebony Magazine, 83). Lastly in Color Adjustment it stated that one main reason why black males are not in Caucasian shows is because there is no demand for them to integrate with them, giving executives the lack of effort to make integration.
Problem Statement: The role of African American males in situational comedies, affects how society especially the white demographic views blacks.
Methodology: The methodology used for this research paper was that of a focus group and a content analysis. In the focus group there assembles black males to view a total of four shows and from those shows analyze how they feel the portrayal has grown from then to now. Pertaining to the Content Analysis there were four shows with questions regarding the coders to identify any stereotypical or unequal role that made the character stand out.
June 20, 2013
Dr. Ebot
COMM422
Topic: The Portrayal of African American males in TV sitcoms
Introduction: The role of African American males in situational comedies, affects how society especially the white demographic views blacks. African American males have been struggling so long for equality in the TV industry. In result when black males were aired on TV it involved them in situational comedies. Some of these popular sitcoms that portrayed black males’ were shows like, “Amos and Andy” “Good Times”, “The Bill Cosby Show”, and “The Wayans Bros”. The reason why sitcoms are so eminent to the African American society was because this was the only portrayal of blacks society ever knew. It was the role that black men played …show more content…
For when the Wayans Bros aired, it honestly brought African American back to the comedic aspect instead of the severity of African American life. In this show Sean an amateur actor goes to an audition for a job but he always gets high before he is about to audition. In an Ebony magazine, it quoted “white producers are the majority behind the scenes, and it seems as though they think African Americans are not good enough for prime-time networks.” They continued stating that “in 1992 nearly one out every five characters on prime-time network entertainment programs was African Americans” (Ebony Magazine, 83). Lastly in Color Adjustment it stated that one main reason why black males are not in Caucasian shows is because there is no demand for them to integrate with them, giving executives the lack of effort to make integration.
Problem Statement: The role of African American males in situational comedies, affects how society especially the white demographic views blacks.
Methodology: The methodology used for this research paper was that of a focus group and a content analysis. In the focus group there assembles black males to view a total of four shows and from those shows analyze how they feel the portrayal has grown from then to now. Pertaining to the Content Analysis there were four shows with questions regarding the coders to identify any stereotypical or unequal role that made the character stand out.