Sesame Street, a popularized children’s television series, has taken a huge step towards diversifying the mainstream media by including Julia, a girl diagnosed with autism. This inclusion is part of a new era in the media marked by a greater effort to represent diverse groups, including race, gender, and sexual orientation. As the world slowly becomes more accepting of different groups, the media has begun to reflect the diversity, but often not at the extent and speed that is expected.
Since the rise of the media, white males have dominated screens, radios, and prints. In data collected from movie castings in 2013, 76.3 percent of all speaking roles were white and 62.9 percent of all leading roles were male. 88.9 percent of leads were also heterosexual, while bisexual or homosexual leads were rarely represented. However, there has been improvement in including diverse characters in media. Recently, the number of strong female roles played by A-list actresses has risen, and minority groups, occupying almost 40 percent of United States population, have also seen a gradual rise in representation on screen. While racial or ethnic stereotypes have reportedly been muted in the shows examined, LGBT characters remained relegated to lower-credited actors or actresses.
However slow the progress, the media is increasingly moving towards an era of greater acceptance and inclusion. An example of this is the children’s show The Legend of Korra, which features Korra, a woman of color, as the main character. The depiction of Korra as an independent woman, who does not rely on a male character to defend her, defies the typical portrayal of a female, whose role is most commonly to seduce the male or to be saved.
Perhaps the most progressive aspect of the show was in the closing scene of the last season, aired in 2014, where Korra and another female protagonist, Asami, are shown holding hands. The depiction of a homosexual relationship was a milestone for a children’s program at the time, as up until 2015, gay marriage was not yet legal in America. Responding to outcries by parents, Bryan Konietzko, the co-founder of The Legend of Korra, stated in a press release, “It is long overdue that our media stops treating non-heterosexual people as nonexistent, or as something merely to be mocked.”
Such representation remains important, as children are influenced by the media. Sophomore Emily Peter says, “From a young age on, if children are exposed to diversity, then they will be more accepting of it as they grow older.”
As media moves toward a more diverse set of characters, public and personal acceptance are set to change as well. By increasing screen time for minorities that are typically not represented or commonly touched upon, the media can affect more individuals personally. Sophomore Karena Zhang says, “It gives confidence to the people who can relate to the characters and helps them stay true to themselves.”
Many have criticized Hollywood for “whitewashing” characters and not accurately representing the correct ethnical background of a character. For instance, after its release date on Jan. 23, the movie Aloha, which was supposed to feature Allison Ng, an Asian-American woman, was caught in the middle of a controversy because Emma Stone, an American actress with western European background, was cast as Allison Ng. Although the director, Russell Crowe, later apologized for the “misguided casting choice,” this incident stands as only a small portion of Hollywood’s misrepresentation of ethnic groups.
Because the mainstream media remains highly influential, accurate representation has become increasingly important. Regarding the potential of accurate portrayals, senior Nicholas Tong says, “[It could] help eliminate stereotypes … People come up with an image according to what they are exposed to, so they grow with what they hear.”
As such, the new era of the media, defined by greater diversification and cultural portrayals, will need time to develop, but its great potential will be one to watch for.
