Racial/Ethnic Stereotypes in t

The commercials during the first break in the program did little to affect one way or another the stereotyping of African Americans. It will be demonstrated, however, that such is not the case, and rather, the majority of program-based advertising in this analysis did little to improve the stereotypical depictions of a minority, if not in fact, increasing them. The vacation ad, however, was somewhat suspect in itself, in that the family was trying to be economical, and would have easily perpetuated a negative economic stereotype if the family had been African American.

The final group of commercials seemed to gather momentum in the economic stereotyping of African Americans by demonstrating their further absence in affluent culture. A bread commercial with a white woman talking about grains did little to advance or hinder any group, and an acid reflux commercial seemed to imply that the same disease can affect all people regardless of ethnicity or credo.

It has become apparent then, that instead of using the stereotypical portrayal of African Americans directly, the omission of such a group in lieu of the stereotypically affluent white majority was no better in creating an atmosphere of equality. The commercial described a mother trying to feed her family on a “tight” budget using an inexpensive baking product, but this could just as easily be seen as a prudent mother looking for a good meal. These two commercials seemed to entrench the stereotype of African Americans having economic troubles, as well as a reliance upon a government agency. A cereal commercial had only one African American individual amongst five white people, which somewhat accurately represents the 12. The network seemed to use a higher percentage of African American individuals (24%) than what would accurately represent the American population, due to some ethnic targeting of the commercials during a minority program. Furthermore, luxury commercials involving a trip to Disney Land and a state-of-the-art steam cleaner involved only white individuals. Therefore, a careful dissection of the advertising associated with a program directed towards a minority group should reveal aspects contrary to stereotypical assumptions. It was noted at this time, however, that advertising involving luxury items, such as an expensive new truck, omitted African Americans altogether. Richard Schaefer defines the stereotyping of minorities as, “Unreliable generalizations that do not take into account individual differences of a subordinate group whose members have significantly less control or power over their lives than that held by…the majority” (Schaefer, 506-507).