This week we heard the breathtaking presentation of TV Tokenism by Doc OC and Mr. B. It was clear to me that television shows use the practice Tokenism which is the including of minority figures solely just to say they did so. I agree and believe it is very apparent in many network shows today.
I am a consistent watcher of the show Modern Family. See Links below for cast pictures so you can get an idea of who is on the show.
Cast Photo 1
Cast Photo 2
Cast Photo 3
I hope these photos have showed you how diverse the show is. For example, the show consists of a gay couple, a Hispanic woman, a seemingly retarded child, an adopted Asian child, a step father...all the minority groups you can imagine! In a sense, wouldn't it be a smart tactic for a show to use a lot of minority figures? Because if you can apply YOURSELF to the show, you probably will be more interested in watching it. Am I right? The more minority figures, the more ratings...?
Sarah-
ReplyDeleteYour idea makes complete sense. It seems that the more people the show can appeal to, the more ratings it would get. So why aren't all shows on television racially diverse? If networks want high ratings, why don't they add more main characters as minorities? And why are network dramas, filled with token characters, so popular?
Kristen and Sarah,
ReplyDeleteGreat points! Both shows that are racially diverse and those with token minorities seem to get high ratings... does that mean that the audiance is not paying attention to race? I'm not so sure. Modern Family is just that: modern. Until more shows take the same initiative to prove a diverse cast can make money and make people laugh WITH and not just AT the actors, I am sceptical as to believe there has been a change in tides. That does not mean I'm not hopeful!! Modern Family may be the first of many racially diverse success stories.
I think it's interesting that in the second cast photo they're all dressed in white...I also like the fact that you blogged about this particular show after doing the presentation on it in class. That shows that you actually care about the matter because you're taking it beyond the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI am going to take the contrarian view here, however. Is this show (which I also watch) popular BECAUSE it showcases minorities? Or because it shows minorities in *humorous* (and often stereotypical) ways?
ReplyDeleteRemember, the true test of TV Tokenism is to see if this same cast of characters could thrive on a network drama.
Think of how Modern Family always has a serious and touching moment in each episode. I would argue that that moment lasts about 30 seconds to a minute. Could the audience handle more of that with the same cast in a network *drama*?