A Speech on the Presentation of the Film Reel Bad Arabs

Good evening ladies and gentleman. I have to say it is an honor to be here today in Los Angeles. I am naturally thrilled that so many of you decided to come out today for the premiere, I’m thrilled to find that many of you support the film. I know there are plenty of box-office movie s you could have seen, but that you chose to watch my documentary, it truly means a lot to me.

You know, films are such wonderful creation. I have absolutely loved going to the movies ever since I was a little boy, growing up in Pittsburg. I remember going to the theatre every Saturday with my wonderful grandmother. My mother used to work as a cashier there, so it was a good excuse to take in as many movies as possible. I must have seen hundreds of movies as a child. That probably explains my somewhat obsessive passion and interest for film and television and my fascination with the power media has to shape reality.

When I was a little boy I would catch cartoons on television. But back then I was only 5 or 6 years old, so obviously I didn’t realize the negative stereotyping of Arabs was so common throughout cartoons just for the sake of humor. It wasn’t until I was in my early thirties that I really noticed. At the time my children were watching their daily cartoon shows and they basically said: “Daddy, why are there bad Arabs on TV”. It’s quite sad actually, that is took me that long to notice the trend, but that just shows how harmful racial and ethnical stereotyping can be. The film and television industry has been doing this for so long, even back in the times of silent films; people have become accustomed to it.

They believe that what they see in the screen is a realistic portrayal of Arabs and the Arab world. When I started developing “Reel Bad...

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...ng degraded in the media. Whether this is a good or bad thing, I’m not sure of. However, the overall act of stereotyping a certain group. Not just in films, but in all forms of mass media. There is no appreciation for these people, be they Arabs, African Americans or Asians. Of course, this is not an easy task. But what I want to ask of you, who have come today, is to really think about what you see in the documentary. The first step in eliminating this stereotype is to be informed and educated about the ethnicity being targeted. Only then can we spot and identify bias, stereotyping and inaccurate portrayals of people in the media. IF this film can give you a better understanding of the stereotypes used, and can show you all the harm it has and can cause. Then I say that I have achieved my goal.

Thank you again for coming and I hope you enjoy the film.