Saturday Night Live Research Paper
If straight, white males make up around 20 percent of the population in America, how is it that they are the face of American television, on and off screen? Minorities, such as women and African Americans, are under-represented in media, especially television. The lack of diversity is evident, and unfair to minorities, and it is necessary to introduce variety in television.
The amount of shows with only all white cast members, or mostly white, is abundant. Although this issue is slightly better than what it was a decade ago, it is still a concern today. A popular show, Saturday Night Live, has only had four black women on its show since its debut in 1975, according to the Huffington Post. Four black women, out of 137 people hired over the …show more content…
Not being able to identify with any of the characters on the screen can lead to self-hatred and anger. In the article, “Why Does Media Representation Matter?” Tate Shephard states, “Everyone should have characters or images they can relate to. It’s part of how we understand ourselves.” Children are in the process of trying to figure themselves out, and without role models or icons who look like them, they can begin to sort themselves out as different or an outcast. The article also mentions Simone Ritchie, a biracial female, who states she never remembers seeing characters on television who “looked like her.” She also states that if movies and television shows casted females who had looked like her, she might have been able to embrace herself at a younger age. Media influences the way we think and perceive things, in a good or bad way. Without proper representation, it can be devastating to the self-esteem of people of color, and can influence majority children and adults to act discriminative and racist towards the minorities. The article, “Why is a lack of diversity on television an issue for society?’ states (that a lack of representation) “It tells children from ethnic minorities that they should not aspire to be doctors or lawyers or business executives, because they have never seen such a person on TV who looked like them.” This, again, can affect their self-esteem by
The amount of shows with only all white cast members, or mostly white, is abundant. Although this issue is slightly better than what it was a decade ago, it is still a concern today. A popular show, Saturday Night Live, has only had four black women on its show since its debut in 1975, according to the Huffington Post. Four black women, out of 137 people hired over the …show more content…
Not being able to identify with any of the characters on the screen can lead to self-hatred and anger. In the article, “Why Does Media Representation Matter?” Tate Shephard states, “Everyone should have characters or images they can relate to. It’s part of how we understand ourselves.” Children are in the process of trying to figure themselves out, and without role models or icons who look like them, they can begin to sort themselves out as different or an outcast. The article also mentions Simone Ritchie, a biracial female, who states she never remembers seeing characters on television who “looked like her.” She also states that if movies and television shows casted females who had looked like her, she might have been able to embrace herself at a younger age. Media influences the way we think and perceive things, in a good or bad way. Without proper representation, it can be devastating to the self-esteem of people of color, and can influence majority children and adults to act discriminative and racist towards the minorities. The article, “Why is a lack of diversity on television an issue for society?’ states (that a lack of representation) “It tells children from ethnic minorities that they should not aspire to be doctors or lawyers or business executives, because they have never seen such a person on TV who looked like them.” This, again, can affect their self-esteem by