Black Women in the Media
Sackeya Pete
3 March 2012
Senior Project
Ms. Pokorak
Portrayal of Black Women in Media
To be African-American has its struggles, a long lasting history of oppression and degradation and a fight to be recognized as an equal entity in society. Throughout the course of history, African-Americans have tried to overcome prejudice and prove that they too have the right to use the media as an outlet for showcasing their talents, voicing their opinions, and letting the world that African-Americans are indeed a presence. Similarly, being female comes with dealing with prejudices and the need to prove oneself against males. One can only imagine the trials being black and female come with. ...
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to the media's misguided, stereotypical attacks. Stereotype in this sense means "is an imitation, a copy of something of someone that is, by means of the media machinery, held up first as THE symbol or symbols to the exclusion to others; and then repeatedly channeled out to viewers so often that in time it becomes a `common' representation of something or someone in the minds of viewers" (Blackwood).
Dr. Ivory Toldson, a psychology Professor at Howard University and research analyst at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation discusses how black women seem to me the most lacking in health, values, and overall self-esteem, if one solely relies on the media. Most importantly, the issues that the media deems "African-American women problems" are in reality universal, not in any way reserved to African-American women. At the same time, black women should recognize that they have fellow women of color to stand by during adversities, which is hard to see when media portrays black ...
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also cites how the media coverage of landmark cases is a tactic used in effort to display institutionalized racism (Rodney King trials) as well as to exploit the black community (O.J Simpson trials).
One of the roles given to the black woman by the media is the role of the promiscuous, sexual relief of a film or television show. It is quite ironic how black women are shown in this light, when history tells a whole other story. Dr. Gail Wyatt, author of Stolen Women: Reclaiming Our Sexuality, Taking Back Our Lives, tells the story of the African-American female not flaunting body parts but being ashamed of them. In the book she writes: "Stripped naked, standing in full view of anyone, ...
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"Black Women in the Media." Essayworld.com. March 5, 2012. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Black-Women-in-the-Media/100393.
"Black Women in the Media." Essayworld.com. March 5, 2012. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Black-Women-in-the-Media/100393.
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