Reel Bad Stereotypes

This is part of a very interesting documentary produced by the Media Education Foundation, called "Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People". It traces how Hollywood stereotypes and degrades people of Middle Eastern descent, even to this day. I don't know what to say besides that it's spot on. Tons of films are still being churned out every year in which unidentifiable Arab villains are cruel, incompetent, and often mowed down with machine guns without eliciting any sympathy from the viewer. And there are now countless Arab-American actors who are unable to find a single role in their entire career where they aren't playing a terrorist. Where do these villain stereotypes come from? Why are they still so deeply embedded in the Hollywood tradition, as well as our culture as a whole? How do they differ from other racial images captured in the media, and how are they the same?