Racial Stereotyping And Racism In The Cosby Show

1178 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Media effects on stereotypes

Many people in America like to think that racial stereotyping and racism is a thing of the past, but racial stereotyping is still prominent in America. Although racial stereotyping and racism significantly slowed down, it still remains a major factor in American society. In “The End of Post-Identity Television,” Aymar Jean Christian argues the fact that race is not a major factor in casting characters in a television series or a movie, he reveals that race is not relevant anymore. In Michael Omi’s “In Living Color: Race and American Culture,” he argues how racial stereotyping and racism still exist in America. The Cosby Show seeked to change racial stereotyping in television by portraying an upper-middle class African American family. The Cosby Show attempted to break barriers for African Americans in television and did so by paving the way for other major African American based sitcoms. “The End of Post-Identity …show more content…

It showed an African-American upper-middle class family with the father of the show, Cliff Huxtable, as a doctor and the mother, Clair Huxtable, as a lawyer. The network, NBC finally ordered only six episodes of the show, but soon that changed as The Cosby Show outdid every regular show on television at the time. The Cosby Show reformed the perceptions of African Americans on television and paved the way for other African American based sitcoms. African Americans were often portrayed as maids, butlers, custodians and clowns on television until The Cosby Show was introduced to television. As a result of The Cosby Show breaking barriers for Blacks, the negative views of Blacks were altered. The show features the Huxtable family consisting of Cliff and Clair Huxtable, and their five children; Sondra, Denise, Theo, Vanessa and Rudy. The Cosby Show displayed universal values that many people from different ethnic backgrounds could relate

Show More
Related

  • Socially Constructed Stereotypes in All in the Family, The Jefferson’s and The Cosby Show.

    1311 Words  | 3 Pages

    Norman Lear, a political and social activist, teamed up with Bud Yorkin and formed Tandem Productions which developed and produced the sitcoms All in the Family and The Jefferson’s, among others. All in the Family (1971 to 1979) and The Jefferson’s (1975-1985), a spin-off and ‘black cast’ version of the predominately ‘white cast’ All in the Family, aired on CBS television network after being declined by ABC network. Lear’s bigoted father provided the basis for script dialog. (Winzenburg 2004)(NormanLear.com). The Cosby Show (1984 – 1992), created by Bill Cosby, based on his life-story, aired on NBC after being rejected from ABC. Though the main cast of The Jefferson’s and The Cosby Show are ‘black’, critics claim these shows instill ‘white’ elements and are not representative of black struggles (Class Dismissed, film).

    Read More

  • The Impact of African-American Sitcoms on America's Culture

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since its start, the television industry has been criticized for perpetuating myths and stereotypes about African-Americans through characterizations, story lines, and plots. The situation comedy has been the area that has seemed to draw the most criticism, analysis, and disapproval for stereotyping. From Sanford and Son and The Jefferson’s in the 1970s to The Cosby Show (1984) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the 1990s, sitcoms featuring black casts and characters have always been controversial. However, their significance upon our American culture cannot be disregarded. During the 1950s and 1960s, 97% of the families were Caucasian. In the first five years of the 1990s, nearly 14% of the television families were African-American (Bryant 2001). These statistics obviously show the substantial impact our American culture has had on African-American television families.

    Read More

  • Racial Stereotypes In Michael Scott's The Office

    1061 Words  | 3 Pages

    Racial stereotypes, the automatic and mental pictures that people hold about members of a certain race. Stereotypes can be found for any race or ethnicity and are typically generalized to a whole group of people, rather than to one individual and their differences. Although racism itself is not as common in today’s world, racial stereotypes do exist and are very common. The popular sitcom, The Office, addresses the serious issue of racial stereotypes by Michael Scott to its audience with different races of characters.

    Read More

  • Video Analysis of Color Adjustment

    1952 Words  | 4 Pages

    Marlon T. Riggs’ video, Color Adjustment, offers the viewer an exciting trip though the history of television, focusing on the representation, or lack thereof, of African-Americans. A perfectly chosen combination of television producers, actors, sociologists, and cultural critics join forces to offer insight and professional opinion about the status of African-Americans in television since the inception of television itself. As Color Adjustment traces the history of television shows from Amos n’ Andy and Julia to "ghetto sitcoms" and The Cosby Show, the cast of television professionals and cultural critics discuss the impacts those representations have on both the African-American community and our society as a whole. Color Adjustment continually asks the question: "Are these images positive?" This video raises the viewer’s awareness about issues of positive images for African-Americans on television.

    Read More

  • African Americans role of Television

    2271 Words  | 5 Pages

    portraying two comedic black men. When the show was transferred to television, two African American men were cast in the roles, acting as buffoons. The popularity of the show was overwhelming. This was the initial image of African Americans in television, which reached mainstreams Caucasian America and was the foundation for which future stereotypes were created. A new image of African American families was presented in the eighty’s with the Cosby Show. The Huxtable’s were a successful African American family with a life similar to the accepted and established Caucasian mainstream. This show was not accepted fully because it failed to represent the full cultural scope of African Americans. The current...

    Read More

  • The Negative Impact of the Depiction of Black Male Stereotypes in Media

    3152 Words  | 7 Pages

    Besides, in cultivation theory, George Gerbner proposes that heavy users of media treat the content of media as a primary source to perceive the world and assert what they see in media is very similar to the reality (Bryant, Thompson and Finklea, 2013), so there is a high possibility that audience will bring the perception of stereotyped portrayals of African-American from media into the real world. Based on the above unhealthy situations, this paper is going to illustrate how the racial stereotypes in media negatively affect people’s perception, attitude and behavior toward African American in the reality....

    Read More

  • The Influence of the Media on American Culture

    1179 Words  | 3 Pages

    Henderson, Jennifer Jacobs; Baldasty, Gerald J. 2003 “Race, advertising, and prime-time television” Howard Journal of Communications 2(14): 97-112.

    Read More

  • Racial Stereotyping

    1169 Words  | 3 Pages

    As a graduate student at the University of Chicago, Brent Staples never realized before the strong stereotype against black men has he had the one late night walk. When on a late night walk, Staples, a young black man realized the stereotype that most Americans have of the young black male. As a young white woman was walking that night in front of him and caught a glimpse of Staples approaching her. She became uncomfortable in the situation and responded by running away from Staples. Not until this incident did Staples realize the negative impact of the young black male on other people, often resulting in being intimidated. He was not seen as a young bright adult with a prominent future, rather he was seen as a mugger, or worse yet a rapist. He did not ask to be seen as a misconception of what others may believe him to be. People were often quick to judge him based solely on the color of his skin and nothing else. He was a twenty-two year old black male that stood over six feet with a broad frame. Brent had experienced many instances where people would see him as a person he is not. For example, one time he walked into a jewelry store and instantly the cashier assumed he was about to rob the store. She replied to her false premonition by going to the back of the store and coming out with a Doberman Pincher to chase him away. It is instances like this that can scar an individual and make him doubt oneself, but Brent did not and he found that he could fix the situation. His solution to the problem was whistling. He found that when he would whistle people saw him as less threatening, even thought most low-lifes did not know Beethoven or Mozart. Still, he found ways to deal with his problems and so can everyone else who is judged only on their physical appearance. Similarly to

    Read More

  • Racial Stereotypes on Television

    1870 Words  | 4 Pages

    Woll, Allen L and Randall M Miller. Ethnic and Racial Images in American Film and Television: Historical Essays and Bibliography. n.d. Print.

    Read More

  • Stereotypes Of African Americans In The Film Industry

    2612 Words  | 6 Pages

    Not all African Americans are thugs and people that do not work. A lot of them have successful careers and have put in the time and effort to have good work ethic and be good people. African Americans have had a difficult history in the American film industry. During the early 20th century of filmmaking, blacks were stereotyped as not worthy of being in films, and they were only certain types of characters such as servants, mammies, and butlers. From several decades of filmmaking, African Americans have been sought out to be trouble makers, incapables, intellectually limited, and also lazy. Although blacks have won Academy Awards for acting, screenwriting, and music production they still find trouble in getting quality roles within the film industry. (Common Black Stereotypes)

    Read More

  • Blacks and the Media

    1274 Words  | 3 Pages

    Racism and discrimination continue to be a prevalent problem in American society. Although minorities have made significant strides toward autonomy and equality, the images in media, specifically television, continue to misrepresent and manipulate the public opinion of blacks. It is no longer a blatant practice upheld by the law and celebrated with hangings and beatings, but instead it is a subtle practice that is perceived in the entertainment and media industries. Whether it’s appearing in disparaging roles or being negatively portrayed in newscasts, blacks continue to be the victims of an industry that relies on old ideas to appeal to the majority. The viscous cycle that is the unconscious racism of the media continues to not only be detrimental to the white consumers, who base what they know about blacks by what is represented in television, but also the black consumers, who grow up with a false sense of identity.

    Read More

  • Bill Cosby: A Black Perspective on Black Society Today

    585 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ghettos, low-riders, hip-hop, rap, drugs and crime, it has got to be a Black man right? Saggy pants, unintelligible language, lazy, and the lists continue to both stereotype and describe Blacks. Do Black Americans perpetuate their own discrimination? Are Black Americans creating their own low status in society? Black people around the world have been hypnotized into believing all their failures in life are due to discrimination, but are they correct? Blacks are often their own worst enemies, often the cause of their own disasters, and many don’t see that until it’s too late, if ever. Discrimination and prejudice are imposed upon Blacks, often because the culture they live in is not “acceptable” to the dominant society. On the other hand, an understandable reason for Blacks actions is often due to unattainable opportunities towards the American Dream.

    Read More

  • Racial Stereotypes in Television

    1767 Words  | 4 Pages

    helping. Television is making the shows out to seem like one race is better than another. For

    Read More

  • Racial Diversity In Pop Culture

    720 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although we have taken monumental strides in the past fifty years towards racial equality and diversity, it is still commonly argued that popular culture lacks some sort of racial representation. In the United States, the people who live here are vastly diverse when it comes to race and culture, yet in the media people of color get marginalized and stereotyped everyday in film, music, and etc.

    Read More

  • Cultural and Racial Stereotyping

    1434 Words  | 3 Pages

    Most people find stereotypes to be obnoxious, especially when they have to do with sensitive subjects like gender or race. “Stereotyping is a generalization about a group or category of people that can have a powerful influence on how we perceive others and their communication behaviors” (Floyd, 61). Because they underestimate the differences among individuals in a group, stereotyping can lead to inaccurate and offensive perceptions of other people. Although stereotypes are prevalent in almost every society, becoming aware of our perceptions of others, as well as differentiating between both positive and negative stereotypes can help us overcome those stereotypes.

    Read More

More about Racial Stereotyping And Racism In The Cosby Show

Open Document