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Watching how black characters are treated on television can affect attitudes about race both consciously and unconsciously, new findings suggest. In a two-part study, researchers at Tufts University examined nonverbal behavior toward characters of different races on television shows, then tested how clips from these shows affected viewers’ prejudices.
First, the team found clips of mixed-race scenes from 11 popular TV shows with prominent black and white characters. In each clip, they blocked out one character to hide his or her race, turned off the sound, then asked volunteers whether the blocked-out character was seen by the other characters in a positive or negative light. The researchers found that in nine of the 11 shows—Friday Night Lights, CSI, House, CSI: Miami, Scrubs, Greek, Heroes, Reno 911! and Grey’s Anatomy—viewers thought the actors’ body language and facial expressions were less favorable when they were responding to someone who was black. The only two shows without this bias were Bones and Rob and Big.
Then the researchers showed clips from all the shows, with the images restored to normal, to a new group of viewers who had no idea the study was about race. After watching clips in which black characters were treated less favorably than whites, the viewers’ conscious attitudes about race did not change. But they were faster to associate white people with positive words such as “laughter” and black people with negative words such as “failure”—a sign that this implicit bias had found its way from the TV screen into people’s behavior, the researchers say. After watching clips in which black characters were treated better than whites, however, viewers not only displayed less implicit bias toward blacks, they also showed improved conscious attitudes toward blacks as measured by a questionnaire.
Because these TV shows’ bias in either direction is unintentional, suggests Tufts psychologist Nalini Ambady, one of the researchers working on the study, simply being aware of it might help actors and directors to counteract it or use it to a positive end.
This article was originally published with the title Color TV.
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16 Comments
Add CommentIt's sad that it takes this long to get a study on something that seems pretty obvious from this perspective... But maybe that's just melanin speaking.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisNow to get a study going about subtle perpetuation of sterotypes in reality programming. I roll my eyes every time a black person fails to swim at a critical moment. Double eye roll at obvious scripting when they balk because of getting hair wet.
...Seriously? Not getting your hair wet for a million dollars? The contract you signed that makes you say that must pay a pretty penny to have bought your soul.
On some shows, a negative reaction to a black character can be intentionally part of the plot. Friday Night Lights, for example, has knowingly included instances of racism. Is the study saying that such behaviors--which are not being condoned by the writers--should never be explored?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisone of the first things I noticed when I began watching Bones, was the fact that it was very clear that black actors were give roles of intelligence, respect and equality and in nearly equal numbers to the various other races on the show. As I watched longer, it became even more clear. I applaud the use of positive role models on Bones. As the show is set in DC, and DC has a large black population that is educated, intelligent and successful, I think that it is very realistic and goes a long way in promoting positive views. One of the reasons I love this show, is that it shows nearly all angles of the variety of opinions, genders, religios viepoints, scientific accuracy, tollerance, and acceptance of individuality. It may ruffle feathers occassionally through the use of various characters voicing their own points of view, but it doles out the viewpoints in a very broad and fair way. Bravo Bones!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBeing less favourable with body language and facial expressions towards a black person is, the last time I checked, a sign of the person in question being a racist at heart. How can this psychologist miss that vital part out and claim it's unintentional?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBeing less favourable with body language and facial expressions towards a black person is, the last time I checked, a sign of the person in question being a racist at heart. How can this psychologist miss that vital part out and claim it's unintentional?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThis is something I believe is purposely instituted. Can it be coincidence when it happens so frequently? Even the concept that black people it seems must die on shows like House and 24 delves into a more sickening truth.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhat's that guys name in the 7-11? Apu? DOH!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhy do we think it's unidirectional? White characters are also pictured in a negative light (greedy? uncool?) in shows aimed at a black audience, but only not so veiled. Remember Rush Hour's statement that behind every crime there is an old white man? (paraphrased). Imagine the outrage if that was reversed.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWe need to stop this and look beyond people's color. However this will not happen until so called minority leaders such as Jesse Jackson make money out of creating strife and friction. These are 'leaders' who'd have to get a real job if there was no racism.
So in my opinion, to get rid of racism, we need to get rid of all these people of all colors who make money out of reminding us at every step that we are different.
Racism and sexism sells.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisLook at commercials. Whenever a commercial has a cast of more than one person, it goes something like this:
If it's a couple out buying stuff, the man is an idiot and the woman has all the right answers. If it's a mixed racial couple, the white person is usually a dork, greedy, or otherwise unlikable.
It is so formulaic these days that you don't really have to watch commercials all the way through, just look at the first two seconds, see which actor is representing which issue, and you know how it will end.
Now back to racism, we have minority leaders with conflicts of interest. These are people who advocate end of racism, but it is racism that elevates them to positions of importance -- otherwise they would need to get real jobs and dwell in obscurity. It is in their interest that people are reminded all the time that they are different. They are like cult leaders in a way, "Come to me, I will fight for you against those people who don't look like you."
Racism will not end until we accept that we are all alike and have the same goals and desires in life. That also means getting rid of leaders that segregate us, and balancing racism in the media.
Sure, we talk about the examples in the article, but what about the fact that in a show aimed at a black audience, the white character is usually viewed in a negative light? How about overt racism? Rush Hour's "at the end of every crime is an old white man."?
In Rush Hour and many if not all similar movies, the character saying things such as " behind every crime there is an old white man," most often is a modern day black minstrel. If anything, they try to patronize white audiences to get a chuckle. Better to be portrayed as an uncool neurosurgeon than be portrayed as an addlebrained, lazy miscreant. These are not instances of reverse racism but further instances of racial stereotyping.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI don't claim that "reverse racism" can't exist but that the claim is often overreaching.
Exhortations to "look beyond people's color" are noble and sincere but a wish is no substitute for a plan. It is important to recognize unintentional racial bias and correct it if we are to have any hope of looking beyond color.
Getting rid of racism by getting rid of all those who make money out of reminding us that we are different("first kill all the lawyers?"), if done without great care, would be like trying to eradicate war by asking everyone to throw down their arms. Who will be the first and who will be the last to do so?
I do agree with you that far too many people engage in race baiting, but it's easier to deal with overt racism than it is to deal with covert forms of it. Overall I believe that your head and heart are in the right place on this issue. Thanks.
It is almost a waste of time to comment on this study.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIt is pretty much a joke... its methods ridiculously flawed.u
it gets so old seeing fake-studies where the result was predetermined and the "study" invented to support a prejudice.
It is obvious the authors of this study wanted to "prove" a viewpoint they already held.
There is zero science in this study.. it is political propaganda in the guise of science.
This study fails miserably in everything but posturing political correctness. I would be interested in seeing how blacks responded to the same tests. I would also be interested in seeing how a range of cultural body languages are perceived by a range of different cultures.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSkin color has nothing to do with it, yet the researchers decide that by removing s kin color they're controlling for skin color? Ridiculous.
The absence of racism does not necessarily imply absolute cultural relativity, that too would be ridiculous.
This is the kind of pseudo Scientific trash that belongs on Oprah's site not a legitimate serious site like this/
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thiskrisneville, maybe the character in question was a negative character. Oh right, blacks must always be the righteous intelligent ones on TV, so unlike reality.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWas watching the Fox Chammel last friday afternoon 7/2/10;
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisat the five o'clock hour. One of the last segments, was a request from a woman in the audience; asking a panel member to relate a true story of a young black women purchased out of slavery and adopted by a white family in Boston during the late 1700's/early 1800's and her successes.
It was interesting to watch the host's face during that discussion.
On the first experiment scenes were used where all the characters were friends or equals, what the experiment showed was that some white actors displayed body language that was more favorable towards other whites and less favorable towards blacks. Independent of the relationship of the characters. This may be unconscious behaviour on the actors part.
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