Although the pluralist ideology and multi-ethnic thinking has evolved in the Australian way of life, the media often still blatantly portray non-white people as inferior or of less worth. “Black people are lazy, uneducated, stupid, welfare-recipients and inferior to other races.” (Costuran, R, ‘Kentucky Kernel’ 2004, pg 49) Through sensationalist reporting such as this, members of the public seek to uphold this opinion as they falsely believe that ‘the media (theoretically) can be trusted’. How can one continue to live in this supposed ‘Globalised’ and ‘accepting’ world, if the media, the very basis of one’s cultural well-being, infiltrates messages of hate and disgust towards members of the multi-ethnic community?
The professional practice of journalism is dictated by a number of tenets that drive narrow reporting of minorities. Operating under news values of timeliness, conflict, and impact, journalists and editors claim to approach ethnic issues with the same news sense as they do any issue (Loo, E 1993, pg 41). The resulting scenario, however, appears to be one where few positive stories involving ethnicity are deemed newsworthy. For example, little or no media coverage has been given to positive initiatives by the Muslim ethnic minority in Sydney to engage, understand, and placate disaffected youth in Bankstown. Conflict, on the other hand, is an obviously favoured news value. Sensationalist reports of riots and crime evoke outrage, emotion, and above all, increased newspaper circulations. The media tends to cover ethnic issues only when it impacts mainstream society, resulting in ethnic new-stories being pre-framed in an adversarial ‘Us verses Them’ manner. Comments such as that by former editor-in-chief Piers Akerman are characteristic of the media’s attitude to ethnic affairs: “A story is something that is important to readers, to the population, to the dominant culture. An issue is important to readers only if it is something they would naturally wish to discuss” (Loo, E. 1993, pg 41). Positive examples of ethnic integration, or socio-economic analyses of the living conditions of Islamic Australians, do not appear to qualify as issues that mainstream readers wish to be presented.
Through the events of September 11, the ‘Tampa’ ‘crisis’ and the general Terrorist debacle, many minority ethnic groups have been discriminated against with varying xenophobic-orientated commentary pervading the media. Such examples can be found with innocent Muslims being treated poorly in the wake of horrific terrorist activity. “The hate-graffiti appeared just after the store began running advertisements on local television that featured a Muslim woman wearing an Islamic head scarf.” (Jesson, K ‘Us Newswire’ 2004, pg 22) Hate-attacks were evident across the globe after the media portrayed a few Muslim extremists being to blame for some terrorist pursuits. The media is the device through which cultural identity’s of minorities can be formed and displayed.
Through the numerous differing languages of minorities, especially in conjunction with ethnic minorities, the media often fail to reaffirm the targeted audience with acceptance for the maintenance of these languages. Newspaper gossip, radio hypocrisy and television’s carrying agendas seek to downplay the right for language maintenance within the numerous minority groups. Statements such as: “Creole was just a "bastardized" version of French.” (Meyer, M ‘Palm Beach Post’ 2004, Pg. 1C) or “Chinese is the language for "Ching-Chong Chinamen" not white Anglo-Saxons.” (Dart, L ‘The Independent’ 2004, pg 13), provide the public with thoughts that only allow for the discrimination of such languages. People cannot be forced to contain pluralist ideology, when the very grounding for their social structure is warped by the blatant portrayals of the media.
When assessing the media’s destruction of certain minorities, one cannot pass the discrimination and general treatment posed upon the female gender. Across the history of mankind, it is evident that the female race has been viewed as being ‘inferior’ to the male, patriarchic social system. The Bible being one of the first sources of media still used today displayed many messages of inferiority towards women in society. Adam was created first and was placed in charge of all the land where Eve was merely used as almost a pleasure toy for Adam. Eve’s only role was to be a ‘house wife’ and look after the needs of Adam. This Bible ideology is ever-present in today’s 21st century media world.
With the discrimination felt long since before the Bible era, women are too often encapsulated into the ‘house wife’, ‘stay at home mother’ typecast. It is surprising to some and appalling to others that most of written history excludes women. This is not an issue of class, race, ethnicity, social status or any of the common factors in discrimination. What is not surprising is that a society built on a male-centred history has such a difficult time giving women equal status. Although times have changed and acceptance for women in education, business and general society has increased, the media remains to instil thoughts of women as being, sadly, the ‘inferior’ gender.
“Women only fit into two stereotypes in the workforce: They are either a bitch or a butch.” (Gray, L ‘Courier Mail’ 2004, pg 12). Even the modern, contemporary media ideologies still portray women as ‘inferior’. Whilst many of the traditional typecasts placed upon women have diminished, current and generally original prejudices are emerging due to the instilled way of thinking, that women are the ‘inferior’ gender. Many television advertisements, especially surrounding cleaning products, utilise the traditional stereotypes of the female housewife to boost products sales. This, therefore, depicts that these long-lived discriminatory strongholds on women are still influential in the marketplace and the general social composition.
Varying statistical estimations conclude that an average Australian views almost one and a half years of television advertising in their lifetime, not to mention the 6000 differing advertisements across all forms of media that they see each and hear each day. Advertising is one of the most effective yet blunt forms of the media’s many portrayals of stereotypes. From the cleaning wives and mothers in ‘Spray and Wipe’ advertisements, to the secretarial (not managerial) woman in the ‘not happy Jan YellowPages’ commercials, women are downplayed and stereotyped into less privileged positions of social status compared with the ‘hard working’ males, who seem to always sustain managerial positions of power. The media refuses to allow for the traditional and religious systems of thought to deplete in today’s pluralist society based on equality and justice for all.
With ‘equality for all’ at the forefront of today’s accepting societal system, one would expect the discrimination of youth to be far from dissonant. However, the media, yet again, rise to the acclimation of youth abhorrence. “Today’s youth are ignorant to the real issues, only concerning themselves with violence, drugs and sex.” (Breen, M ‘The News of the World’ 2004, pg unknown). Youth are often portrayed as being evil young tyrants obsessing over illicit substances, while engaging in illegal activities of violence, vandalism and general discourteousness. When reports such as “Canada's youth gang problem appears to be increasing and could reach the epidemic levels seen in the United States if it is not dealt with.” (Woods, A ‘National Post Canada’ June 3 2004, Section: Canada, pg A4), seep into newspapers, television and radio, people are confronted with messages that all youth are involved in gangs and violent activity. It is because of simple media print that the stereotypes surrounding youth continue to saturate social thinking.
The media culture deciphers ways through which to provide the public with desired information. This information is scarcely provided in its entirety and is often moulded into a story that satisfies and pleases the general consensus. Stories of hope, encouragement and aspiration are rarely printed by the media as people are more enticed into shock stories. Therefore, minorities such as the youth are categorised and marginalised into small groups of violence and corruption rather than the truth of the majority being displayed. Reports of a youth member rescuing an older citizen from certain death receive 15th page news in many newspapers compared with the disgust of youth vandalism on page 1.The minority groups surrounding the stereotypes of age still have a blurry future unless the media choose to follow the truth instead of twisting stories to increase the amount of sales. (Castillo, A & Hirst, M 2000, pg 52)
Stereotypes, like genre can be said to exist, even if their elements shift over time as well as within and across particular media, and even though audiences understand them in often-ambiguous ways. Media representations of social groups vary considerably. The treatment of minority groups is very different, for example, in popular newspapers to the treatment in television comedy and film. This diversity makes generalising about media representations of minority groups both difficult and hazardous because with time attitudes change. After researching several mediums within the media, such as newspapers, television and advertising it can be found that ethnic minorities are portrayed fairer than they have been in previous decades but are still not portrayed as fairly as they should be in contemporary media. Unless vast and drastic changes occur within the media, minorities will still continue to be marginalised and treated as categorised individuals under the constant threat of prejudice. Australia is a pluralist and multi-ethnic society, with aspirations of equality and harmony among all, yet the very basis for this societal structure is flawed by the expressions of the media and its stereotypes of minorities.
References
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Breen, M. 2004, ‘Terror Babes in arms’, The News of the World, 16th May, section: Investigates, Washington, pg unknown.
- Campani, G. 2001, ‘Migrants and media: the Italian case’. In King, R. & Wood, N. 2001, ‘Media and Migration’, Routledge, Britain, pp 38-52.
- Castillo, A. & Hirst, M. 2000. ‘‘Look Both Ways’: Fairfield, Cabramatta and the media’, Sydney.
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Costuran, R. 2004, ‘Race affects self-image’, The Kentucky Kernel, 25th June, Kentucky, pg 49.
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Dart, L. 2004, ‘Language difficulties’, The Independent, October 28, Britain, pg 13.
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Gray, L. 2004, ‘Women in the workforce’, Courier Mail, October 14, Brisbane, pg 12.
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Jesson, K. 2004, ‘Beaten Muslim’, US Newswire, 25th August, Washington, pg 22.
- King, R. & Wood, N. 2001, ‘Media and Migration’, Routledge, Britain.
- Loo, E. 1993, ‘It’s a Question of Impact and Interest in Reporting of Ethnic Affairs’, BIPR Bulletin, no. 10, November, Britain, pp. 40-43.
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Meyer, M. 2004, ‘Words about the Creole language’, Palm Beach Post, July 28 2004, Section: LOCAL, Florida, Pg. 1C
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Riley, M. 2004, ‘Touching the Sublime’, The Australian Newspaper, 2nd September, FEATURES; Arts, Sydney, Pg. 14
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Woods, A. 2004, ‘Youth Gang epidemic’, National Post Canada, June 3, Section: Canada, Toronto, pg A4.
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