Kianna Cooper

February 5, 2016
Dr. Wynne
Genre Analysis on Racial Stereotype
Introduction
The genres are iconography and typography which they both talk about racial
stereotypes; however, the image show six different types of people holding signs that goes
against their stereotypical views on themselves while the article from New York Times by
Nicholas Kristof is more so focus on every race being racist to African Americans because of
racial stereotypes. The article is called Is Everyone a Little Bit Racist? and the picture is called
Im not Who You Think I Am! the image is just as blunt as the article. The iconography gives
the audience a more visual as well as short textual approach and the typography is focus on the
fact that stereotype can carried into racism.
What Is The Purpose of the Genre?
Both genres raises awareness of stereotype on the main focused races around the world.
The iconography mostly focus on Asian, Chinese, Muslim, African Americans, Mexicans and
Caucasians; their purpose for the image was to notify the people (all people) that they are not
what you think. The signs they holdup are pretty clear on what they want to address to the people
about themselves. The typography from New York Times focus mainly on African American and
more specific situations that blacks are racial stereotyped unconsciously even if the other
person says they were not racist. At the end of the article the author Nicolas Kristof attempts to
persuade the audience that there are some ways to bring the awareness to justice, because the

whole article is generally about innocent African Americans getting shot by law enforced police
officers however, he also talks on how we including African Americans are preprogram
subconsciously to think that African Americans are more of a threat over Caucasians.
Audience and Purpose
I believe that the intended audience for both these genres are for everyone. Everyone
must know the importance of racial stereotyping people; not just African Americans (black are
just number one over all who get racially judged or have to self-prove their selves individually
before any race) but every race. We are all humans first over everything and there should not be
any prejudgment before getting to know a person. The audience most likely knows the issue in
both genres are occurring in the article or the stereotypical ideas they think about the people in
the photography. What the audience do and think is more of the authors & photographers
concern in the way the author explains by informing/ persuading and the way the photographer
illustrates through the signs which are informing the audience. The audience can spend up to an
hour in a half or more on a debate or discussion on the typography because of the excessive
amount of information and examples. The iconography genre can be about thirty to forty-five
minutes of a debate or discussion because the illustration set up the people and the signs given.
The faces of the different people in the iconography are clearly trying to convince the reader that
what the signs they hold up are true. As well as the author uses example and an experiences to
persuade and inform the reader.

Rhetorical Issues: Ethos, Pathos and Logos

In the article the author actually tested his own experiment where he played a video game
that measure the unconscious mind; this game was design by Joshua Correll from university of
Colorado. Where the player plays as a cop while there was a number of whites and blacks
holding different objects and the games main objective is to shoot the person with the gun. In
the games that Nicholas Kristof plays he explains how he shot the armed African Americans at a
rate of .015seconds faster than the armed Caucasians. The further test results are effective to
show credibility towards the purpose of even if we say we are not racist unconsciously we can be
just a little. In the iconography the anger in the childrens faces; the fact that these are children
holding the signs (with what seems like simple sayings but are mighty power) show how even
children have to contend with the phrases on the sign and the possibly of being bullied by peers
who may be more privilege than the next. The significance in the children faces also show that
the issues below them are pensive, requires to address urgently and has to be stopped
immediately.
Structure and Delivery
Nicholas Kristof writes in way that the audience can understand, be moved and allow the
audience to also have an opinion at the end of the article. His textural elements used where
balanced throughout the entire article. The message given to the audience was clear right from
the beginning. Besides what you read on the signs and the childrens faces there was a few more
thing that communicate with the audience such as the black and white filter, and the fact that
there is two African American, Muslims, two Chinese, one Mexican, one Dominican and one
Caucasian kind of trigger who mostly gets targeted over the other. Lastly another element used
was the background design. There are nine children with three solid backgrounds two brick wall
one gated background, and two backgrounds with trees. These elements can be used to set a

visual organization or set an earnest mood in the iconography. Both genres have similarities in
the idea of stereotypes; however, the article stresses more on how stereotypes can lead to racism
and the picture is straight forward with the message stereotypes of what all people think of the
people shown.
Conclusion/Synthesis
The iconography gives the audience a more visual as well as short textual approach and the
typography is focus on the fact that stereotype can carried into racism. Both genre work well on
their own but together it sends the message Rascal Stereotypes in a full circle (complete).

Reference
http://imnotwhoyouthinkiamstereotypes.weebly.com/. Weebly. Weebly, 12 December 2012. Web.
Web. 5 February 2016.
Kristof, Nicholas. Is Everyone a Little Bit Racist? New York Times. New York Times, 27
August 2014. Web. 5 February 2016.