Essay

Devin Ingram

Mass Media

Modern Society

Nov. 21st, 2013

Ways Stereotypes Occur in the Media: Ethic Groups, Women, Gays and Lesbians

Modern media is the influence to how people live there every day life. There are all kinds of stereotypes portrayed. Ethnic groups, women, gays, and lesbians are some of the categories of stereotypes that occur in the media. When you group a race together and make a judgment without knowing them is the basic definition of stereotypes. An example of racial stereotyping is when people assume all African-Americans are good at sports. This stereotype has been used so much in media that sport casters uphold African-Americans to another scale in some sports. For ages men and women have had stereotypes place against them. Stereotypes say that men are stronger, smarter, and do all the work. A memorable timing in media history when these stereotypes were challenged was when the famous African-American basketball player Michael Jordan and Caucasian soccer player Mia Hamm filmed a commercial. Even though the commercial was to advertise Gatorade, the commercial stated much more. Anything you can do I can do better is the message the commercial sent out. Michael Jordan symbolizing the male and Mia Hamm symbolizing the female, went through a series of competitions within the commercial. Michael Jordan being the best would make you thing that Mia Hamm had no chance but Mia Hamm was up to par with Michael Jordan. Gays and Lesbians in this modern society are in the beginning stage of being accepted. There was a time in history where you were shamed to be a gay or lesbian. It has only been recently that gays and lesbians have even appeared in films, television programs, and commercials; if they did appear in the past, they were represented in negative ways as highly womanish. There are different shows where main characters are gay or lesbians such as Tom Hanks portraying a gay man fighting AIDS. (TEACHING, FILM) A popular talk show host, Ellen...