Race in Media

Something that stood out to me several times during this week’s reading was the significance of race in media. The disproportionate representation of racial groups in media has tangible effects on societal views and personal sense of worth, but I found it interesting to focus this time more on why these disparities in representation happen, as opposed to what their implications are. For example, in the Production section of the Keywords reading, the motivations of media production, especially money, were discussed. The “purse stings” give the decision-making power to people (not typically a very diverse “people”, I may add) in distribution, as opposed to those more closely associated to the production of the content, and definitely not the consumers. However, the quote I selected resonated with me, as it reminded me that the consumer actually does have a great deal of power. History has shown us that when large groups of people, all of different races and backgrounds, unite for a common cause, things get done. I felt that a photo of a civil rights march with a fist superimposed on top conveyed the sentiment that we have achieved change for the better in the past, and we should continue to strive for that today and in the future.