GRSJ224/Racial Representations & Stereotyping in TV Advertisements

Introduction

The issue of racial representations and stereotypes in TV advertisements is nothing new. Since the television was invented, advertisements have overtly and subtly portrayed racial stereotypes of visible minorities (Shabbir et al, 2014) . Due to the increasingly larger role in which the mass media is playing in our everyday lives, the response to these racist advertisements is instantaneous and widespread. Advertisements which have received negative backlash from the public range from the Aunt Jemima ad in 1889 (print media) to an H&M clothing ad in 2018

Common Themes in Advertisements

In a study by Baumann and Ho (2014) , they discovered six re-occuring schemas of different ethnic groups in food and dining advertisements. These schemas were labelled “white nostalgia”, “white natural”, “white highbrow”, white nuclear family”, “black blue collar” and “asian technorat”. White people were overwhelmingly present in advertisements, more so than any other ethnic group . Additionally, they were the only group linked to wholesome/organic foods and food items depicted as “high-end” . The white nuclear family was commonly used in a range of ads. The portrayal of white people is misleading because it suggests that all members of this group are affluent, that they define the traditional family (i.e., dad, mom, son, and daughter), and that they are the only population able to afford more expensive products. In another study, Henderson and Baldasty (2003) found that luxurious car ads, such as BMW, only hired white actors to represent their products .

Historical Use of Racial Stereotypes in TV Advertising

One of the significant differences between racial representations in earlier ads versus current ads, is that the ads in the mid 1900’s used overt racism compared to the subtle racism used today (Fuller, 2001) . One of the most well-known examples of overt racism in advertising is the Aunt Jemima brand of food products. Although the Aunt Jemima brand was first presented in print media, it went on to be advertised on television once that medium became mainstream. The Aunt Jemima character was an African-American female who was heavy set, poorly dressed and did not look put together. The mannerisms and speech of African-Americans were exaggerated in the ads as well. The main reason this brand received lots of negative responses was due to the bandanna that Aunt Jemima wore, which was said to represent slavery . In 1989, the company rebranded Aunt Jemima to look less stereotypical of an African-American female and got rid of the bandanna. The new Aunt Jemima looked thinner, professional and wore pearl earrings. In other early TV ads and commercials, African-American women were only portrayed in gender stereotypical roles such as cleaning, cooking and care-taking (Fuller, 2001) . In a study by Coltrane and Messineo (2000), white people throughout the 1990’s were twice as likely as African-Americans to assume authoritative roles in commercials . In addition, African-Americans were commonly portrayed as aggressive in ads, depicting a stereotypical “thug” character .

Recent/Current Use of Racial Stereotypes in TV Advertising

Recent use of racial stereotypes in advertising includes more covert racism. Covert racism can be defined as "a form of racial discrimination that is disguised and subtle, rather than public or obvious" . Shabbir et al (2014), discovered that an astonishing 68.3% of the 622 ads they studied, illustrated covert or subtle racism .

In a children’s advertisement study, Maher et al (2008) found that Caucasians and Asians are predominantly in ads demonstrating more “sophisticated” products such as toys, electronics and magazines, whereas African-Americans and Hispanics are predominantly in ads for “less sophisticated” products, such as food brands thus, providing the latter with “less important” roles . Another common occurence, is that in ads incorporating both African-Americans and Caucasians, the Caucasian person almost always assumes the dominant role whereas the African-American individual is often given a minor or invisible role (commonly in the background) .

Companies Accused of Using Racial Stereotypes

Child from H & M ad

H&M

In January 2018, An H&M ad of a black child wearing a hoodie bearing the slogan “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle”, went viral. People all over the world were commenting on this racist ad, most expressing their frustration and utter disgust. Consequently, the celebrity singer the Weeknd cut all ties with H&M and stated on social media that he was “deeply offended” and “shocked and embarrassed” . Other celebrities, such as NBA star LeBron James and Soccer Player Romelu Lukaku, were vocal on their stance regarding the controversial ad . Due to the negative backlash, H&M apologized and stated that “this image has now been removed from all H&M channels and we apologize to anyone this may have offended” . However, many remain upset by this inappropriate advertisement.

Dove Ad

Dove

In October 2017, Dove released an ad on Facebook which illustrated a black woman taking off her dark top and seconds after, a white woman appearing in a light top. This 3 second video caused a public out lash as the racial representation in the ad was shocking and appalling . For many, the visual of a black woman shifting to a white woman implied “a dirty black person cleansed into whiteness” . Soon after, Dove apologized and explained that the ad “was intended to convey that Dove Body Wash is for every woman and be a celebration of diversity, but we got it wrong and, as a result, offended many people” . Many remain disappointed with Dove’s insensitivity, especially since it's not the first time they have been accused of including racial representations in their ads .

Implications

Advertising companies use common stereotypes and reproduce them in their ads for the sole purpose of sales and profit, often failing to acknowledge the negative consequences and serious harm that they can invoke. Henry and Tator (2009) state that “Media discourse plays a large role in reproducing the collective belief system of the dominant White society and the core values of this society”, thus, enhancing cultural racism and white hegemony in society . The effects of racial representations in TV advertisements is quite serious as it can harm one’s self-concept and can result in the public creating inaccurate schemas of certain ethnic groups which can perpetuate these thoughts and attitudes towards them . Furthermore, it maintains the social hierarchy present in society .