Racialism and the Media: A Documentary

Session Submission Type: Media Session

Abstract

The purpose of this documentary, Racialism and the Media, is to examine how the media constructs, controls, and manipulates racial ideology in our society. Based on 25 years, my research on racialism involves four specific areas: stereotypes, biased frames, historical myths, and traditional racism concerning African American culture. The documentary presents exemplars of how racialism operates within society in relation to specific mediated products and practices.

Racial ideology has changed in our society. Yes, there are still ugly racists who push uglier racism, but there are also popular constructions of race routinely woven into mediated images and messages. The media normalizes these constructions. It is not a good thing, but it also may not be a racist thing.
This documentary is based on my book Racialism and the Media (Peter Lang, 2022). I argue, in the twenty-first century we need a more nuanced understanding of racial constructions. The goal is to move away from using the term racism to define everything because that term has extreme historical and emotional ties that push us into a deep abyss of negativity, fear, and hatred. Too often, when we focus on the extreme, we miss the important, but subtle elements of racialism that are just as powerful and problematic.
We live in a society filled with racial situations, messages, practices, and images. Racialism is a move beyond traditional racism to examine images and messages that are produced, distributed, and consumed repetitively and intertextually. Eventually they are normalized through the media, ultimately shaping and influencing societal ideology and behavior.

Sub Unit

• Humanities & Cultural Research

Chair

• Venise Berry, University of Iowa