Race and media.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWhhPWyWCv0

When reading Cassen’s text the idea that certain African- American figures were omitted from television broadcasts, or more commonly their broadcasts were covered over by a fault sign, really struck me. I had not heard of this omission before and I guess it really shows how oral history can play a big part in reclaiming and emphasizing aspects of history that may be left untouched by historians. I thought this clip from the (rubbish) film entitled ‘Not Another Teen Movie’ was an interesting representation of race in America in contemporary culture. The clip clearly satirizes the minimal role of the ‘token’ black man in Hollywood; however, having read about the experience of such African- Americans’ in Jackson who actually experienced this exclusion it can be judged in a different light. I see the role of this character as a negative stereotype and the inclusion in a modern film, which is mocking stereotypes from other teenage genre films, can be seen as worrying as this role is still evident in culture today. I also thought the distinction between the elimination of African- Americans from TV that Classen discusses and instead the movement to Film here shows how although time has changed there are still certain aspects that are stuck in the past.
I was wondering if people see this as a far fetched representation, it just struck when I was thinking about the omission of African- Americans’ from television and media. What do people think of the inclusion of a ‘token’ black character in the twenty first century? Do people see this as reinforcing the segregation from the past which we see vocalized in Classen’s interviews?


*Sorry I'm not sure how to include the video only the link to it...