Does race really matter on our tv screens? From the early beginnings of television and the facts, statistics and stories that follow, the answer may be clear. Television has reflected the way an audience views and looks at diversity and cultures as a whole. From ratings, to popularity or even a role itself, that bright box in our living room has been prominent in  accurately, and sometimes even inaccurately portraying multiculturalism in American Society.

Early on, interracial television was quite controversial. The first African American tv show, Amos ‘n Andy, was created in 1952 and showed all manners of black life in Harlem; however, it was based solely on racist stereotypes which are now considered harmful (Vanderwerff, 2013). this show was the offspring of a national movement aiming to stop blacks and whites from working together in a caucasian dominated industry. When integration became law in the mid 1950’s, it put small black theaters out of business, ending the production of race movies (Dancy, 2015). Sadly, while African American actors were the least visible in films and tv, white actors were taking roles depicting those same actors in genres called blaxploitation, and “black-face” scenes. These scenes showed racial stereotypes sometimes being acted out just for personal gratification and entertainment. Although this was so, civil rights and the fight for equality took a toll on our future positively, specifically that of television, showing more diversity, though therein lies the question…is it enough? This could be answered by showing all the reasons why this is not so and why it should be. 

If multiculturalism was present on our small screens today, it would give a more realistic look into the everyday lives of people, no matter the race. According to a survey backed by BBC, BSC, and ITC, participants complained that their country of origin was still underrepresented and often negatively portrayed. They also expressed concerns that broadcasters were prone to stereotyping ethnic groups (Hughes, 2002). Why is this current with all the progress that we’ve made? According to The Leadership Conference On Civil and Human Rights, FCC (Federal Communications Commission) is the government agency that is directly responsible for all radio, television, wire, satellite and cable internationally. In other words, this agency is in charge of regulating and determining review policies related to media ownership, Though in recent years, has frequently failed to protect Tv’s diverse voices. Though realism should be positioned somewhere in production, and even bigger cause should be the advertisement of racial harmony.

Promoting racial equality nationwide can be conveyed through television. Why so? Well little do we know, opposition to pro-minority policies is an important dimension of modern, symbolic racism (Ramasubramanian, 2010). This is evident so we need more shows like that of The Cosby Show, showing blacks in a positive middle class manner. Mixing races would be key to showing that all nationalities can co-exist in a good way. Television should go out the norm in not making a character prone to one race. Though important, if diversity shall grow, quality should be maintained with reality (Deggans, 2015). This also would be important for television ratings.
As time continues, and tv grows more diverse, ratings have been known to increase. From 2012-13, TV shows with over 40 to 50 percent more diversity scored higher ratings than that of other showings (Siegemund-Broka, 2015). Fox networks have annual conferences on increasing diversity with the catch of growing ratings (Deggans, 2013). Business wise it is a smart move for the notable network. In an analysis of more than 1,000 TV shows on 67 cable networks In 2011-12 season, UCLA researchers found that shows with more assortment had higher ratings and those that didn't attracted  smaller audiences (Lee, 2013). "It's clear that people are watching shows that reflect and relate to their own experiences," says Darnell Hunt, professor of sociology in the UCLA College of Letters and Science and author of the new study, Hollywood Diversity Brief: Spotlight on Cable Television. People are more captivated by shows that reflect who they are and what they can connect with. Another aspect of television multiculturalism is opportunity. Ratings due to diversity also have a preeminence over leads.

If television diversity is put into effect, it would give minorities the opportunity to lead in star in major shows. As of recently that has been present in shows such as Empire, starring African American actor Terrence Howard. It was an instant smash bringing in 9.9 million viewers and increasing every week by 15% (Blake, 2015). This is the same for shows such as "Black-ish" and "Fresh off the boat". As of March 10, there are 73 pilots with black actors as starring, leading, or supporting roles (Obenson, 2015). Though this is so, Media is still a white dominated industry.
There is an evident lack in television equality and not an even distribution in role, but there are some who feel that there is too much diversity and to take it further, it is "too much of a good thing". In an article written by Nellie Andreeva, she controversially says "But, as is the case with any sea change, the pendulum might have swung a bit too far in the opposite direction. Instead of opening the field for actors of any race to compete for any role in a color-blind manner, there has been a significant number of parts designated as ethnic this year, making them off-limits for Caucasian actors, some agents signal" (Lockett, 2015). She goes on to say "Because of the sudden flood of roles for ethnic actors after years of suppressed opportunities for them, the talent pool of experienced minority performers — especially in the younger range — is pretty limited." With this being implied there some who think that there is not enough of a specific race taking over television. Based on the facts, this is not likely.

From the start of the earliest television shows, there has been a gap between races. Though as time went on, color barriers were broken but the question is still up, is it enough? The lack of diversity on the small screens has put a shift in all aspects of American society. Ratings, portrayals, and social classes are just few of the many reasons why cultural diversity is key to the progress of ethnicities, because race does matter.

VanDerWerff, T. (2013, August 7). Amos ’N’ Andy was the rare representation of black culture on 1950s TV—but at what cost?

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Deggans, E. (2015, May 31). Racial Diversity Grows On Network Television, But Will Quality Lag Behind?
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Lee, C. (2013, October 8). Study finds TV shows with ethnically diverse casts, writers have higher ratings.
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Blake, M. (2013, February 2). With 'Empire,' diversity becomes the watchword on television.            
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Obenson, T. (2015, March 10). 73 New TV Pilots & Series with Black Actors in Starring and/or Supporting Roles Ordered for Next Season.
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Lockett, D. (2015, March 25). The 13 Most Ignorant Quotes From That Awful Deadline Article.
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