Stereotypes in the Media

After reading the article, "Not a Hater, Just Keepin' It Real" by David J. Leonard, I was very surprised to see how people of different races and genders are depicted in video games. I have always noticed how people of different are races and genders are shown in advertisements, magazines, movies, etc... but never a video game.

This article pointed out that as most video games are a space about and for males, it is equally a White- centered space. More than 50% of player-controlled characters are white males; less than 40% of game characters are Black, of which the majority appear as athletic competitors. I really never noticed this until thinking about if I have ever played a video game that the main character wasn't white.

Stereotypes can appear in the media because of the biases of writers, directors, producers, reporters and editors. But stereotypes can also be useful to the media because they provide a quick identity for a person or group that is easily recognized by an audience. When deadlines loom, it's sometimes faster and easier to use a stereotype to characterize a person or situation, than it is to provide a more complex explanation.

Stereotypes can be found in virtually any game. In any war game there are Arab Terrorists. Black and Latino men most of the time, are the ones who are stealing and creating violence. I find these kinds of stereotypes to be somewhat disgusting. What are these video games teaching little kids whose brains aren't fully developed? That this is how the world really is?

I found an article that appeared in The San Diego Union Tribune. The article talked about the video game Grand Theft Auto, and the scenes and stereotypes that are depicted in this game. The article argues that games such as the Grand Theft Auto sequel, which is described glowingly and at length in a game magazine the boy recently brought home, are dangerously reinforcing stereotypes.

"A lot of young people are unable to discern between reality and satirical depictions," he said. "It makes them very vulnerable." This makes you wonder how children who play this game treat and look at people of different races and cultures. These video games have a huge impact on interpersonal relationships. Should something change when it comes to the characters in these types of games?

In class, we also looked at how women are depicted in video games. Women in video games are shown as players with little waists, not wearing a lot of clothes, and most of the time are waiting for someone to come to rescue her. They are rarely seen as the main character who is trying to win a challenge and rescue someone else.

A couple of semesters ago I took a class called, Gender and Communication. We watched this movie about how women are shown in hip-hop videos. Basically they are just an accessory. After watching that video I couldn't look at hip-hop videos the same. Now I will notice how characters are shown in video games.

After reading this article I wonder how this kind of new media technology will help to shape the interpersonal relationships we have. Will we always look at people of color and other cultures with this stereotype that video games display?

New Media Technology & Relationships

It seems like every year we are introduced to some kind of new technology that we need to learn how to use to stay "updated" in the world of new media technology, whether it is being a member of a social networking site, having the newest cell phone that is touch screen and can access the internet. Everyday we are learning about technology that may or may not help to enhance our interpersonal relationships.

In this day and age, I feel like new media technology has definitely helped to shape interpersonal relationships in a good way. Now there are so many new technologies that we can use for more than one thing, such as a cell phone. A cell phone now has the capabilities of calling and texting someone, taking a pictures and uploading it to facebook, accessing the internet, any time and any palce. Over the past few years it has been interesting to see how relationships are either benefiting or not benefiting from new technology.

I know that in my personal life, my interpersonal relationships have changed because of new media technology. My cell phone is a piece of technology that is always with me. If I need to get a hold of someone, or someone needs to get a hold of me, they can text or call me, and get a response fairly quick. Text messaging is a new media technology that I truly believe has shaped interpersonal relationships. Texting is something that is easily used by most people, and may be faster to use than to call someone. However, texting does have disadvantages. It removes the more personal aspect of a phone call, messages can be taken out of context, because the receiver doesn't know the tone that the sender is portraying. There have been many times when I have received a text message and I took it completely out of context, and it either caused a misunderstanding or a fight.

I feel that facebook is the number one social networking site that helps maintain relationships. I am able to stay in touch with my friends and family, by looking at their profile, writing on their wall, looking at their pictures, etc... Most of the time if I write on a friend's wall I get a faster response back then if I would have called them. Facebook users vary when it comes to age. At first the site was for college students only, and then later they opened it up to everyone.

Here are some stats to see how much facebook has grown since February 2009:

Facebook reporting nearly 45.3 million active US users in the last 30 days
Facebook growing in every age/gender demographic. Fastest growing segment: Women over 55, up 175.3% in the last 120 days.
Facebook growing faster with women than men in almost every age group. Women comprise 56.2% of Facebook’s audience, up from 54.3% late last year.
45% of Facebook’s US audience is now 26 years old or older

The social networking site, Twitter allows a user to follow anyone they want . I have heard of many of my friends having Twitter accounts because it helps when it comes to getting a job in the field of public relations. Everyday, more and more celebrities are joing Twitter, and this allows users to become more familiar with them, and stay updated on what they are doing in their everyday lives. Ellen Degeneres has a Twitter account and decided one day to put on her status anyone who shows up at a certain bus stop dressed as a super hero, would get free tickets to attend a taping of her show. There were at least twenty people who showed up dressed as super heros.

Along with new media technology I don't believe there is any sense of space or time. Now, most cell phones have the Internet on them. So you are able to program them so that your email comes right to your phone. With new media technology you are always connected in some way. Some people like that, others don't.

However, along with all of the new media technology that is developing it can help you stay in touch with friends and family members, who don't get the chance to talk to as often as you like. Applications such as Facebook, myspace, Twitter and blogs help you to stay connected and maintain relationships.