Racism and Media
... in many particular cases from certain burdens or liabilities,” (www.whiteprivilege.com). Peggy McIntosh describes white privilege as being like an, “…invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions…” which aids in everyday life situations. Whiteness can be conceived of as legal or cultural property; it can be seen to provide material and symbolic privilege to whites, an example of the former is better access to higher education and the latter, perceptions of beauty that are tied to whiteness, (Thompson 2003). The social and political construct of whiteness emphasizes domination, authority and perceived humanity of those that are white, (Napper 2003). The normalization of whiteness confers dominance and is protected throughout the institutional structure of society. White privilege can be studied from several different perspectives’ each highlighting the ways in which the advantages of being white operate and continue within society. Material theories- Ask questions of how “whites as a group come to enjoy privileged access to tangible goods,”(Thompson 2003) This includes access to higher education, living in good neighborhoods, and not being denied legal/medical help on basis of race, (McIntosh 1990). Material theories examine racism as patterns or systems that advantage whites. Discursive theories- analyze the ways in which language, mass media, discourses, and symbols organize meaning so that whiteness is framed as both the preferred and the normal state of being, (Thompson 2003). Whites can always see people of the same race in the media and be presented with positive perspectives of these people. Institutional theories-. These theories are concerned with systems of privilege that have clear material consequences because they are part of the organization of institutions like banks, schools, universities, and hospitals; combined with the ways in which white privilege is maintained and protected through formal and symbolic systems such as policy, etiquette or procedure. An example of this would be the prohibition of certain ‘unprofessional’ hairstyles within a work place, which include black styles not white, (Thompson 2003). Each of these perspectives on whiteness and white privilege provide an insight into the invisibility of white advantage and the ways in which white privilege is entwined into social economic and political structures. The operation of the media can be seen from these views on whiteness to be apart of the structural reinforcement of white privilege. The media has always played a role in shaping and providing attitudes towards groups according to race, class and gender. Media stories often create images of a normal ‘us’ as binary opposition to the strange ‘them or other. The notion of discourse has been increasingly used as a means of ‘reading’ or analyzing practices or expression in the media that reflect deeply held societal values or beliefs. As we will see discourse the media and race opens up the concepts of white privilege from within society through certain media structures and institutions. The media of all forms can be seen to shape and contribute to the social relations and the power balances within society; the idea of white privilege transcending through the media and continuing within everyday life, (Race for the Headlines). Media discourses convey views implicitly or explicitly about racial groups, generally minority groups, and these views shape attitudes and understanding about these collective identities for those they may or may not have personal contact with them. The media plays a key role in the reinforcement of white privilege in society through representation of both whites and minority races, and the inclusions and omissions within media content. The material advantages of being white, including better access to education, health facilities, not being discriminated against for employment opportunities, further the concept of white privilege in the media and within society itself. Despite affirmative action, white domination in positions of power within society and most industry’s continues in many Western democratic societies. As noted previously the institutionalized white privilege provides the basis for the continuation of material advantages for whites. Within the media, like many industries, the positions of power, (managers, editors, even journalists), are predominantly held by white people. “Bias within media representation of the social behaviors and situations of minorities (non-whites), stems from the lack of representation of racial minorities in the media system,” (Clarke). Material white privilege allows whites to dominate to media industry, making vital decision on representation and reportage that perpetuates the invisibility and advantages of whiteness. Discursive theories on whiteness suggest that the media promotes the idea that being white is preferred and desirable, and represents innocence and moral superiority to non-whites, (Thompson 2003). Representation of the white people in the media, especially popular television shows, is a much larger proportion than of any other race, in Australia and America. Popular television shows such as Friends and Home and Away rarely depict any people from minority races, and if so they have small sub-ordinate roles, (Burrows 2003). The domination of white people in this form of media entertainment, transcends the idea of whiteness being the norm; the roles of the black or minority races are, generally, supporting the white roles, illustrates the desirability of whiteness that is essentially white privilege. The situations and experiences of white people are seen as the norm due to the domination of these presented in popular media, whites are therefore not persuaded to question the privileges they have because it is the ‘norm’ that they see. In discussing her privilege as a white woman, Peggy McIntosh provides, “I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.” The media present wide representation of white people, of both accomplishments and problems, but white people are always seen as individual not as a representative of their race. The invisibility of whiteness provides that crimes committed by a white person will not be presented as an act of a racial identity, or given racial undertones, (Jabbour 2001). This is evident in the press surrounding the Port Arthur massacres in Tasmania Australia in 1996, whereby a white Australian man, Martin Bryant, committed, arguably a racially motivated massacre of mainly Asian tourists. The massacres by Bryant were never connected to the white Australian population, and the media didn’t provoke fear from the Asian community from this event, which would most likely have occurred, implicitly, if it was the other way round. White privilege means that a white person will be unlikely to be linked by the media, to the criminal actions of another white person. Representation of whites as not only the preferred norm in television, but as individuals acting as individuals in crime reporting and news stories allows whiteness to continue to be invisible, reinforcing white privilege. The media plays a vital role in shaping attitudes and understanding about groups, such as racial groups. The description or presentation of certain ...