Ethnic stereotypes in American media

Ethnic stereotypes in American media are oversimplified depictions of various ethnic groups in the United States. As art is often a reflection of any given society, these stereotypes can be said to represent some or much of the American society's dominant view of different ethnic groups. Early media portrayals of Africans, Asians, Native Americans, the Irish, Italians and others tended to be overtly racist. As media technology advanced and the broadcasting age emerged, the American media became national in scope, and as such the nature of ethnic stereotypes became shifted to reflect a "melting pot" ideology. Thus, while overtly racist media portrayals were largely marginalized in the early 20th century, perceptions and claims of more subtly racist portrayals continue to the present. One criticism of stereotype theory, however, is that if virtually any portrayal can be said to fall into innumerable, often contradictory, stereotypes, this begs the question of whether criticism of "stereotypes in the media" is not based on circular logic, or can be manipulated for any political agenda. Also, once an individual has discovered a stereotype they believe exists, they will perceive it as such, even with evidence to the contrary.

Asians

Main article: Stereotypes of Asians

Asian Americans and Asians are often portrayed as side characters in American media. In movies, they often occupy supporting roles to White protagonists, or serve as the evil archnemesis of the White protagonist, but are rarely given the role of the main character. Asians are sometimes a source of comedy, speaking English with thick accents and acting inappropriately. Examples of this include Long Duk Dong from the movie Sixteen Candles, Mr. Yunioshi in Breakfast at Tiffany's, or the Asian street violinist in Spider Man 2. Asians are also portrayed as martial arts experts, as in Jackie Chan and Jet Li action movies. There is also the stereotype of the mystical Asian sage thought to possess ancient Asian wisdom, like Pai Mei in the Kill Bill series. Since Asians are stereotyped as being overachieving and good at math and science, they are given roles as nerds, geeks, scientists, and engineers. Furthermore, despite their successes, many (especially Asian males) are given roles of people living in poverty.

Asian men are portrayed as either lacking a love interest, oppressing Asian women, or desiring unattainable White women. Asian women, on the other hand, tend to be hypersexualized, either as a submissive China Doll, or as a seductive Dragon Lady vixen, such as the roles of Lucy Liu in Ally McBeal and Charlie's Angels. In either stereotype of Asian female sexuality, she is sexually available to White men and an acceptable partner to White men, although she is often illegitimate and endangers the White man's relationship with his legitimate partner.

There are also many ethnic-specific occupations attributed to Asians including the Japanese businessman or the Chinese news anchorwoman. Cultural identity issues of Asian American youth are also seen in the media; some examples include Lane Kim of television series Gilmore Girls, and the various characters in the movie The Joy Luck Club.

Arabs and Muslims

Main article: Stereotypes of Arabs and Muslims

The American media stereotypes Arab Americans and Muslims as billionaires, belly dancers, bombers, and terrorists with little regard for human life, especially in the post-9/11 world. Many movies feature Arab terrorist villains threatening to blow things up, including Black Sunday and Wanted: Dead or Alive. The stereotypical appearance of such Arabs include beards and keffiyehs. The stereotype of the Arab billionaire could have arisen from the 1973 oil crisis. Arab women are usually portrayed as exotic harem belly dancers who are mute, subservient, and repressed. A number of American movies picture the U.S. military killing Arabs, such as Rules of Engagement, Iron Eagle, and Executive Decision.

Africans/Blacks

Main article: Stereotypes of Africans/Blacks

African Americans as a group have been primarily stereotyped as animalistic brutes in American culture: physically rather than intellectually oriented, hedonistic, criminal-minded, violent, and willing to rape. They are more likely to be portrayed as unrestrained, hot-tempered, and profane than Whites or others in movies and television shows.

The counterpoint to the young male image is the female "Mammy archetype"; often this mature woman is portrayed as grossly overweight, poorly made up and dressed in gaudy clothing, but genial, churchgoing and spiritual to the point of delusion, and passive in the face of White authority. Aunt Jemima and the Hattie McDaniel character from the film Gone With The Wind are standard portrayals of this stereotype. "Lord Have Mercy" is a phrase often associated with this character, in contrast to the ghetto dialect, profanity, and general disrespect of young males.

Young African American females are often stereotyped as promiscuous, generally ill-kept with the exception of hair extensions and fake nails, verbally loud, greedy and self-serving. They are considered "Welfare Queens" and baby machines incapable of experiencing love. As a result, the stereotype can be physically and sexually abused without the guilt which normally would accompany the act.

Mature African American males have a rich history of negative stereotypes including Uncle Tom and "house nigger", the subservient Pullman Porter and loyal butler, or the Uncle Remus character, always willing to tell a story to the master's children, while berating or neglecting his own offspring. An example of a positive stereotype of the mature male, the "magical negro" is often portrayed as a mystical guide or thought catalyst for White protagonists. Examples of the "magical negro" in modern films include John Coffey in The Green Mile, and Moses the Clock Man in The Hudsucker Proxy.

African Americans are generally portrayed as intellectually, economically, and culturally inadequate, and soliciting or in constant need of assistance from White Americans and others. The stereotype of the dedicated non-African American teacher, social worker, or mentor providing what African American family, culture, and wealth cannot is well established in films, TV shows, and televised charity appeals.

Black men are often portrayed as having large genitalia. For example, in the film Full Metal Jacket a Vietnamese prostitute refuses sex because she thinks the black character's penis is too large.

American Indians and Alaskan Natives

Main article: Stereotypes of American Indians

File:Dying Indian man Drums Across the River 1954 film.JPG

Wise American Indian chief from the movie
Drums Across the River

American Indians and Alaskan Natives have been pigeonholed into the following recognizable portrayals: the wise elder or chief, the aggressive drunk, the Indian princess, and the loyal sidekick. In the media, portrayals of and references to American Indians are generally in the context of the past and historical times rather than American Indians in modern American society. Some characteristics stereotypically attributed to Native Americans include primitivism, childlike obedience, and savage violence, especially in the context of interactions with Whites in times of colonization and the Wild West.

Italians and Italian Americans

Italian Americans have been stereotyped as being gangsters having large extended families, and mainly limited to lower class professions. Mafia stereotypes are perpetuated by shows such as The Sopranos, even though the vast majority of Italian Americans do not have Mafia ties and are not engaged in organized crime. Italians are usually portrayed as dark-complexioned, black-haired Catholics, young Italian women as seductively voluptuous virgins with overprotective older male relatives, and Italian matrons as rotund, overly loving and critical mothers with excellent cooking. Another stereotype is that Italians are very hot-blooded and passionately over-emotional.

Latinos

Main article: Stereotypes of Latinos

Latino men are portrayed as "Latin Lovers" and "greasers"; and Latina women are cast as sensually deviant temptresses, and are often sexually promiscuous. Latino families are seen as being dependent, unintelligent, and unable to speak English properly. As fictional characters, Latinos are often portrayed as drug dealers, maids, lawn-care, janitors, landscapers, and crime-perpetrators.

Europeans/Whites

Main article: Stereotypes of Europeans/Whites

Whites are the dominant figures in American media, often playing roles of the protagonist. They appear in a broad spectrum of characters of varying complexity, and are not generally limited in scope due to their race. Instead, they tend to be stereotyped with regards to gender, nationality, class and other factors.

"Good" whites tend to be more fair in appearance, while "evil" whites tend to have darker hair, eyes, or skin. (The "evil albino" is an exception to both stereotypes). White women often represent safety, the familiar, and home, and sometimes act as a "civilizing center" by privilege of their whiteness, but only in the absence of their male partner.

WASPs

White Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASPs) are the most commonly portrayed white group in American Media. These people are often represented as white-collar suburbanites, usually of middle class or richer. While they are overwhelmingly depicted as "good", certain negative stereotypes have also been associated with them, including the Jock" and the "Valley girl". These characters are attractive, rich and popular, but also emotionally and physically abusive to those they consider inferior, as well as vapid, sexually promiscuous, manipulative, and dishonest. Teen shows like The O.C. and Beverly Hills 90210 often contain many such WASP stereotypes.

Adult WASPs possess similar negative traits. WASP men are often ally high-powered professionals who use manipulation and lies to close shady business deals without regard to how it will affect others. They are usually neglectful to their wives and children and often have secrets like mistresses or drug addictions. The Desperate Housewives stereotype is common to WASP women. They are portrayed as greedy, materialistic, sex-craved homebodies who often have illicit affairs with lower class minorities in their employ, such as a pool boy or gardener.

English

The English people are stereotyped as being extremely proper, prudish, and stiff with bad teeth. Characters in historical movies often have English accents even when the setting has nothing to do with England. Upper-class characters are also often given English accents. In more recent times, many movie villains including Jafar from Aladdin, Scar from The Lion King, Hans Gruber from Die Hard, and Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs have all been portrayed by British actors or given English accents.

Notably in Disney films from the 1990s onward, English accents are generally divided to serve one of two purposes: either slapstick comedy, or evil genius. Examples include Aladdin (The Sultan and Jafar respectively), The Lion King (Zazu and Scar respectively), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Victor the Gargoyle and Frollo respectively), and Pocahontas (Wiggins and Ratcliffe respectively, both of whom coincidentally played by the same American actor, David Ogden Stiers).

These two stereotypes are compounded in a scene in Pocahontas, where Ratcliffe menacingly mentions giving the savages a "proper English greeting", in response to which Wiggins holds up two gift baskets.

See also

• Ethnic stereotypes in popular culture
• Stereotype threat

External Links

• Africa: Myth and Reality
• SEPARATING the GOLD from the DROSS: a guide to multicultural literature
• Italian American Stereotypes in U.S. Advertising