The Effects of American Stereotypes on Foreign Cultures.

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The Effects of American Stereotypes on Foreign Cultures.
America is a nation known for its stereotypes. These stereotypes can have both positive and negative effects on other regions in the world. Stereotypes Stereotypes can help sell a product or make people believe in a cause. But they also have a broader purpose; they can change cultures, ruin the reputation of a country, and ruin peoples lives.
Fiji is a prime example of this idea. Fijian women were once admired for being obese.
This meant that they were wealthy enough to be full and well fed. “‘Going Thin’ was considered to be a sign of some social problem, a worrisome indication the person wasn't getting enough to eat”(Goodman 609). This all changed when the people of Fiji were introduced to American television in 1995. They started watching shows such as “Dawson’s Creek” and “Melrose
Place”. These shows brought the American connotation that thin was popular. They brought the ideas with them that to be happy you have to be thin and fit in. “It is as though a mirror was held up to these girls in which they saw themselves as poor and overweight” (Becker 615).
Americans viewed these large women as grotesque and unhealthy. Although this completely went against societal views in Fiji this obsession with getting thin spread and Fijian women starved themselves to fit this American image.
Americans not only create stereotypes that affect other cultures but unwittingly create stereotypes about themselves that affect how other cultures view them. They are viewed by
Europeans as being fat and stupid because of their own media. Shows such as “The Biggest
Loser” and “Honey Boo Boo” teach people that Americans are nothing but lazy, fat, and dumb.
Americans view these shows as entertaining because of how ridiculous they are, are viewed by

others as shows about the average American. American popular culture viewed in stable nations is less able to change the way people of that nation but more easily changes the way that people think about America. These stereotypes only get stronger as time goes on, and as more shows like ‘Cops’ and ‘Honey Boo Boo’ reach across the pond.
How does this happen? The media focuses on the best and worst of a nation when choosing what it shows to people. That is how generalizations work. The media shows things that people want to see. They bring with them the things that they think will entertain people
They pick good things to uplift the people like showcasing the fun and happy teenagers in
Dawson’s Creek. The pick bad things to entertain people like the rednecks of ‘Duck Dynasty’ and ‘Honey Boo Boo’. It is rare today that any majority can rule the focus of a T.V. show. As any major producer would tell you, weird sells television. The purpose of television is to keep people entertained. With so many different stations and channels, shows have to stand out from the pack. They try to achieve this by showing things that are different then people are used to. People in cities and suburbs like watching shows like ‘Honey Boo Boo’ about redneck people in rural areas. People in rural areas like watching shows like cops about people in urban areas getting arrested. These extreme ideas of American culture are how stereotypes are created.
The only way to solve stereotypes in popular culture is to get rid of popular culture.
Stereotypes are so ingrained in all of the media that we consume today that it is not possible to get rid of them. In today’s world we have to accept the stereotypes that are presented in the news and on T.V. not as fact but as the way that others look at different types of people. Popular culture is not going away, so neither are stereotypes. We must work to make these things less prevalent. We must take the ‘popular’ out of the stereotypes that are negative. Stop watching

shows like ‘Cops’ and ‘Honey Boo Boo’; these shows bring with them the stereotypes that go against the American way. Shows like these convince people in other countries to associate democracy with laziness and being overweight.
The world we live in today is full of stereotypes. All with good and bad connotations.
These stereotypes effect different regions of the world in very different ways. In nations with more stable cultures it changes the view of American lifestyles and culture. Stereotypes are all around us. From the Uncle Ben’s rice that we eat that stereotypes African Americans, to sororities kicking sisters out of their chapter because they did not fit an unrealistic stereotype of what a member was supposed to be. They can change the way a people is viewed or even change the way people act and change an entire culture. Stereotypes are a strong force that can sell a product or make people believe in a cause. Stereotypes a strong and can ruin the reputation of a country. Taking a country one revered as being powerful and innovative to one that many would consider dumb and lazy.

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