How the media shapes the way we view the world - BBC REEL

all over the world in every country and every culture storytelling has significant power the stories that we are told via books our screens and advertising build identities determine behaviors and forge our dreams american researchers found that stories repeated in our minds actually interact with our biology our brains need shortcuts to simplify and organize information and data constantly coming at us they impact how we view the world and make meaning from what we perceive the narrative we tell and are told has the potential to create and continue prejudice beliefs by those few who dominate the storytelling

sphere so what dangerous ways has this materialized itself in the media and advertising the british film institute found that between 2006 and 2016 of around 45 000 roles credited to actors in the uk only 0.5 were played by black british actors not seeing yourself represented often leads to self-imposed limitations on what you can achieve and allows for negative perceptions to go unchallenged and when black people are represented there are many reoccurring racialized tropes most of which can be traced back to colonialism historic anti-blackness and the legacy of slavery 64 of uk crime films has featured

roles for black actors and 15 of all films featuring black actors between 2006 and 2016 focused on crime narratives you've probably come across a few other stereotypes within a range of film tv shows and adverts the mummy the jezebel the angry sassy black woman the stoic the gangster the angry black man and the black best friend these notions of who black people are were created by white storytellers throughout history carefully crafted to dehumanize and erase the multiplicity of black people's existence take for example one of the most historical tropes the mummy academy award winning hattie

mcdaniel famously played this role in gone with the wind in 1939. her performance as a loyal subservient caregiver have been created by white american storytellers to distance themselves from the harsh reality of race relations in a post-slavery society in light of the 2020 black lives matter protests the streaming platform hbo max removed the film due to the racist depictions later republishing it with disclaimers about the historical context and warnings about racial stereotypes in the film in current pop culture we are often shown racist caricatures the angry black women we see on reality tv and the

hyper violent black man in gritty documentaries these depictions are in part in formed by colorism a phrase coined by the author and activist alice walker which means the prejudice treatment of those within the black community who have darker skin in on-screen storytelling there is an easy way to tick the boxes of so-called diversity without having to critically engage with anti-black bias often this is done by the use of mixed grace or light skin characters usually a character's proximity to whiteness whether that be through them having fairer skin a white parent partner or friend often increases

their social standing presumed likability and success further constructing and upholding racist perceptions as of 2018 the average american spends over 11 hours a day watching listening reading and interacting with media therefore mass media has the power to challenge and change perceptions the next time you see an ad watch a film or a tv show ask yourself whose voice is telling this story and who is it trying to represent and for the storytellers amongst you strive to give the same platform and voice for people to tell their own stories and shape their own identities so that

in the future we can show endless possibilities of who black people can be and what we can [Music] dream you