RUNNING HEAD: REPRESENTATION OF NON-DOMINANT GROUPS IN THE MEDIA 1

Representation of Non-Dominant Groups in the Media

Alejandra, Bridget, and Jessica

Minnesota State University, Mankato

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Not everyone interacts with cultures other than their own. Days, weeks, or months

could go by with no interaction with other cultures; then there is media. This is how people feel

involved with other cultures. News stories are intended to suggest conflict and force people to

develop their own opinion. Recent media coverage of non-dominant cultures include Black

Lives Matter, Presidential candidate Donald Trump expressing his plan to not allow Muslim

immigrants into America, and most recently Oscars being so white. These are all examples of

news stories that are two-sided. One person might be a supporter of the Black Lives Matter, and

another may think it is ineffective.

People have so many different opinions when it comes to these topics and when they

want to talk about it, but there are certain individuals that have more power in getting that

opinion published. For example, numerous individuals are going to listen to Trump and his

opinions because he is a man of power. One of the main reasons why he has so much power is

because he has a lot of money and he is a very successful business man. People listen to him

because he is highly successful and he is not afraid to say what is on his mind, even though

others may see it as unprofessional, rude, and disrespectful. Despite how rude and disrespectful

Trump is, people still listen to him and value his opinion. When it comes to media, individuals

will only listen to you if you have some sort of important role or if you are very powerful or if

you are very relevant to the story. There are two sides to every story but those sides should both

be broadcasted around the country, not just the person that has the most power.

One of the reasons why individuals do not understand why certain racial matters are

important is because they never took the time to place themselves in that perspective. As we

stated before, the most popular news broadcasts like CNN and Fox, only broadcast what they

choose and what will get the most viewers. The viewers then develop a bias based on what was
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broadcasted to them. The other side does not get released to the public. Situations like these

have to change otherwise individuals will not be heard and the public will be blind to important

issues like non-dominant groups. There will always be racial tension no matter what we do as a

country, but there are ways to lessen the tension and to give the non-dominant groups a voice. In

this paper, we will discuss current non-dominant groups and recent media coverage on those

matters.

Through deep analysis and literature review, we will dissect what media coverage does to

the different ethnicities of the United States. Does the media control us and our thoughts? Is the

media shaping our history? Media is not only shaping our history, but already has. The first non-

dominant group with the longest history of being targeted in media is American Indians.

Centuries ago, images appeared in print media, paintings, and literature that vilified Native

Americans; who were barely considered human (Sorrells, p. 140). It is comparable to

advertising to hate a specific kind. Dehumanizing is a tactic used in every war to get the general

public to hate another culture. If you search world war two comic strip, japs you will find

comic strips such as how to spot a jap and the brutality of the war against Japs. Use of bad

names is another way to dehumanize. I bet you could think of a few yourself.

There are more than bad names that media projects to give class to ethnicities. The

lifestyle portrayed in film productions is just as much media as the news. Although the number

of representations of Blacks has increased on TV and in films over the past 30 years, the

preponderance of images of African American males in stereotypically negative roles such as

criminals, pimps, drug dealers, and gang members continues a 200-year tradition of denigrating,

dehumanizing, and devaluing Blacks in the US (Sorrells, p. 138). Blacks are represented to have

a poor lifestyle and live in the ghetto in movies. The movie could be about how they made their
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way out of this way of life, but still portrayed them as these people that struggle. Why not

portray Black culture in movies as people that have had a good life and continue to? Would the

movie not be as believable or as good? Then lies the question of if this type of media portrayal

will change.

After 9/11 and the invasions of the Middle East in the 1990s and 2000s, a rise of films

featuring Arabs, Arab Americans, and Muslims started to reflect and fuel negative racial,

cultural, and religious stereotypes against these groups. The worst part about negative media

coverage on a specific culture or religion is that it affects more than a specific group of people,

but also the innocent ones that are somewhat associated with that stereotype. The textbook gives

a great explanation for a common misconception.

Print media sources in the United States erase the diversity and humanity within Arab and

Muslim groups while emphasizing their distinctiveness and otherness from Americans.

For example, Arab Americans are depicted in the U.S. media as Muslims. Yet the

majority of Arab Americans are Christian. Muslims are represented in the U.S. media as

Arabs. Yet only about 12% of Muslims worldwide are Arabs (Sorrells, p. 141).

This has you questioning all assumptions youve made about all the different ethnicities

youve ran into. You dont know if someone is Muslim unless you ask. The biggest problem is

the willingness to ask, and more importantly the sincerity when asking. The textbook suggest a

three step process in bettering and re-creating of media and popular culture: 1) increased

awareness, 2) informed action, 3) creative production (Sorrells, pp. 142-143)

A non-dominant group in the media that has recently received an enormous amount of

attention is Black, or African Americans. The most recent controversy is the Oscars So White

and the Black Lives Matter. There have been thousands of individuals protesting and
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demanding equality when it comes to Black lives. Both of these controversies were mentioned

and debated on in the media. The media can bring both positive and negative attention to these

matters. The positive is that the matters will be talked about and the nation will learn of these

movements. The negative is that the attention can turn from positive to negative. Some

individuals do not want to raise any more uproar and riots than these matter already have.

An article that I found talks about viral circulations of the images of black people in the

media and YouTube to suggest that these feelings evoke their semiotic meaning (Gray, 2015, p.

1108). The article also covers the platforms though which the images of Blacks gather, focus,

and habituate points of identification (and misidentification) and perception might complement

the continuing conceptual emphasis on racial meaning with a conception of media as a cultural

technology for generating and circulating racial feelings and feelings about race (Gray, 2015, p.

1108). Media Scholars and activists and represent historical accuracy and correctness while

trying to close the gap of what the real and complex conditions of Black life and what the media

portrays and distorts that justify Black subordination and domination (Gary, 2015). The stories,

videos, and pictures of Black people are tagged with emotions and feelings that the media pins it

with. Thus, the rest of the population reacts to what the media wants it to feel. The example that

Gray gives is the viral YouTube video of Antoine Dodson and a home invasion and attempted

rape of his sister that took place at his families home in Huntsville, Alabama. Dodson describes

in detail what happened in the moments of the home invasion to the camera (Gary, 2015). There

is a sense of attachment and belonging in the community that Dodson and his family live in.

According to Gary, the video went viral, not because of the heart-wrenching story, but because

of the way Dodson spoke to the camera and the emotions that came attached to it. The way he
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spoke and a phrase he said hide yo kids, hide yo wife became viral and almost a joke. This is

an example of how the media manipulates stories, especially those of Black lives.

When it comes to Arabs and Muslims in the Media people automatically tend to relate it

to a terrorist attack or something along those lines. People get scared when they see a Muslim

person in the airport, or maybe tend to say a stereotypical joke that a lot of people might find

funny but it isnt because it someones religion/race we are talking about. People have these

thoughts because of the 9/11 attack. The media blew it up that it was Muslims who had done this

and after this attack a lot of people have looked at Muslims/Arabs differently. In an article it

states between September 11, 2001 and September 11, 2003 articles about Muslim men were

often about Islamic resurgence, terrorism and illegal immigration with details about resumes of

holy warriors and manuals of killing. (Mishra, 2006, p. 1). After this had all happen in the

articles it also says The New York Times performed a watchdog role by highlighting violation of

civil rights of Muslims living in the United States and hate crimes committed against them after

the September 11 attacks. Such stories, however, were rarely able to resist the dominant

representations dominant representation of Muslim men as violent and dangerous and Muslim

women as victims of oppression (Mishra, 2016, p. 1). A book that I had found stated a lot of

things about Arabs and Muslims and what people thought about them before the whole 9/11

attack. The book says Arabs were seen as rich oil sheiks, sultry belly dancers harem girls, veiled

oppressed woman, and most notably terrorist. Most yearly firms portrayed their region as

faraway , exotic, and magical land; a place reminiscent of biblical stories and fairy tales; a desert

populated by genius, flying carpets, mummies, and rich Arab men living in palaces (Alsultany,

2012, p.7 p. 8). People from the media have bashed Arabs and Muslims so much they tend to

forget how it was before the 9/11 attack. Reading this book it was shocking to know so many
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ways people have pushed away the Muslim religion in the country. So many media sources were

degrading and mocking this religion the book also includes some new stories published in Times,

Newsweek, US News & World Report, as well as all news shows aired on CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS,

and FOX, with a focus on the first year after the September 11 terrorist attacks. The result is an

abundance of stories about oppressed Muslim woman. Consider a sampling of post-9/11

headlines: Lifting the Veil, Free to Choose, Unveiling Freedom, Under the Veil,

Beneath the Veil, and Unveiling Threat. Journalists promised to take viewers behind the

veil to revel a world termed in varying degrees secret, hidden, and mysterious that would shed

light on why Arabs/Muslims are terrorist (Alsultany, 2012, p. 75). It is hard to imagen that these

titles were once on all these media sources. The book had a lot to say about how after September

11 American eyes would never see Arabs/Muslims the same again.

In the following paragraph we are going to be including a few interviews about how

some of the people we know are affected by what the media says. We also focused on some main

questions and those were; what are your feelings toward the media? How do you feel your

culture is represented in the media? Do you have any feelings with your culture in the

presidential election? The last question we decided as a group that we thought was relevant was;

was there a specific instance in the media you felt was directed towards your ethnicity? We also

very excited to see what our fellow prior were going to say.

We interviewed with three different individuals and asked them questions about non-

dominant groups in the media. One of these individuals was Nimo (from class.) One of the

questions that we, as a group, decided to ask all of the participants who agreed to be interviewed

was; What are your feelings toward the media? Nimos answer was very quick and she had

very strong feelings towards the media and how she feels about them. Her response was Its
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biased, unfair, and doesnt have enough representations of minority groups. Nimo is Muslim

and she feels that her religion and culture is portrayed unfairly and the media has a negative bias

towards the Muslim religion/culture.

The second question we asked was; How do you feel your culture is represented in the

media? Nimos response was Its never been represented positively in the media. They always

portray the negative side but never show the positive side of the Muslim culture. Ever since

9/11 and even before that tragic event, Muslims have been portrayed and seen in a negative way,

by predominantly white Americans. Not all Muslims choose to be terrorists, just like not all

White Americans choose to walk into a public building and start mass shooting innocent people.

There are good and bad individuals in any culture but, unfortunately, the media chooses to focus

on the bad.

The third question we asked was; Do you have any feelings with your culture in the

presidential election? Nimo stated, Yes. Trump and Cruz are A-holes! All they do is talk

negatively about the Muslim community and immigrants. Its really sad to see so many

Americans supporting the small minded, racist and terrorist candidates. Yes, I called Trump a

terrorist because all he does is create fear and terrorize an entire group of people by encouraging

violence. She, again, had very strong emotions towards Trump and what the media chooses to

focus on in the presidential election. The media can easily choose not to focus on the negative

side of what the candidates choose to voice.

The fourth and last question we asked was; Was there a specific instance in the media

you felt was directed towards your ethnicity? Was it portrayed falsely? Nimo chose to choose a

story that was very recent in the media to describe her feelings. Nimo said, Yes. After the

terrorist attack in Belgium, the republican candidates suggested that law enforcement should
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patrol the Muslim neighborhood and mosques. I felt like that was directed to every Muslim

American living in the US - the millions of peaceful Muslim Americans. I took it very offensive

and very un-American. It was definitely portrayed negatively because the vast majority of

Muslims are against ISIS and all kinds of terrorist groups. The majority of the victims of those

terrorist attacks are Muslims. For the whole world to blame the victims and the ones suffering

from the consequences of the attacks is very sad. I agree with Nimo, there is no reason to patrol

the Muslim neighborhood because not everyone is choosing to terrorize innocent people.

Something has to be done but pointing fingers at a whole culture isnt the answer.

[Alejandra] In my interview I decided to interview someone that is Mexican but is

Muslim. She is from my hometown and her name is Ashley. She was not always Muslim she was

Catholic and I knew she would be the perfect person to interview because she has always said

she thinks the media has always looked down on Muslims. I will be asking the same questions as

Jessica did and see if answers are similar.

When I asked her about the first question which was what do you feel about the media?

She said, I think the media will always say rude remakes about us because of 9/11, and even

before that the media pretty much never talked about us. Now we are ALL terrorist and it is hard

because people look at me differently. Ever since 9/11 it had people ask why would you ever be

Muslim that religion is a bunch of terrorist and they think that because of the media. I love my

religion and I would not change it for the world. I think she had brought up some very good

points because I do not remember Muslims in the media before 9/11. That is when everything

hit, and the media made us scared of Muslims.

The second question was how do you feel your culture is represented in the media?

Ashley said, The media is a joke and I decided to stop watching it. All I see is a bunch of lies
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and they filter what they want you to know and what they do not want you to know. I am

Mexican and when I walk around without my hijab (veil), and my niqab (dress) people do not

look at me twice. When I do wear my hijab (viel), and niqab (dress), they stare at me and they

even point. It is very hard to be a Muslim in America because the media makes us stick out and

makes us seem like we are horrible people. I had never thought of her situation because Ashley

is a person that will not bring this up unless someone else does. I never mentioned anything to

her until now. I feel horrible for her because nobody wants to feel like the outcast.

The third question asked was, Do you have any feelings with your culture in the

presidential election? Ashely laughed and said, It is all a joke, I am caught in the middle and I

feel horrible for my family because my culture and religion is two totally different things. My

religion is Muslim but my culture and race is Mexican. Donald Trump hates my culture and

hates my religion. He wants to build a wall to leave Mexicans out and he hates immigrates.

Trump is not being realistic at all he wants all immigrates out. Little does he know he is an

immigrant too. He does not see the bigger picture, and I honestly do not know who I am going to

vote for. In both answers from Nimo and Ashley, they both hate Trump and I personally hate

him too because he has nothing but disrespectful remarks to say to people.

The last question we decide to ask is, Was there a specific instance in the media where

you felt was directed towards your ethnicity and was it portrayed falsely? She had the same

answer as Nimo and that was the terrorist attack in Belgium. Since Nimo had already talked

about that I decided to call her one more time and see if she had anything in her mind. She said,

The news right now is all about the elections and whenever Trump is on the news he always has

something to say about Mexicans or something to say about my religion. I can never win when it

comes to the news. I feel like a target all the time and it can get to be very uncomfortable.
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After the questions I asked Ashley and how different people viewed her when she would

wear her veil and dress that was very sad to me because even being Mexican sometimes I get

those racist remarks. I cannot imagine what she has to go through. I know if media would not

drill that image of a Muslim being a terrorist people would see them totally different.

[Bridget] I interviewed a gentleman whom I know from the gym, Mustafa (Moo$e)

Almeer. Moose stated his culture is Middle Eastern and his ethnicity is Saudi Arabian. The most

important aspect Id like to point out about Moose is that he hardly strikes me as Arab. I dont

get the negative vibe that media wishes to portray in his culture.

I asked Moose what he thought about the media. He responded, As an Arab American, I

think the media has full control over the representation of the Arab world to the American

society. The media represents a very small window of the Middle East. It only shows what

attracts viewers such as the war in Syria or the war against Israel. He went further by giving an

example of what America looks like in Middle East media, Vice versa, the media in the Middle

East only shows events in the western world that attract viewers such as the school shootings and

the Boston bombings. He didnt necessarily feel offended, as media is going to portray only

what is interesting.

Moose stated, The Arab culture is very rich in traditions, history, and delicious ethnic

Middle Eastern food. All of these aspects of the culture are not being represented by the main

stream media as it may seem boring to the American society. Aspects that may seem

important and interesting to ones culture, may be boring to another culture. War and violence is

what attracts the viewers.

What I found most interesting about what Moose had to say about the presidential

election is that the candidates will do what they have to do in order to get into the White House.
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[-] these candidates are fully aware that the majority of the voters are heavily influenced by the

mainstream media to which it built fear and anger towards Middle Easterners in the US.

Therefore, they use that accumulated anger and fear to gain votes by promising to stop Muslims

from entering the United States. That creates a disengagement and hate between the American

citizens and Middle Easterners.

In regard to Mooses feelings about the media directly effecting his culture, Moose

explained, It associates violence to my ethnicity and culture which leads viewers to conclude

that the Middle East is a violent place. Id like to point out that Moose purposely stated that the

media leads viewers to conclude and doesnt force opinions upon them. Moose had stated in

the interview, We should all base our conclusions on our own research, facts, and opinions

not the medias opinions.

Overall the main thing I learned about this project was everyone was such a different

standpoint in life and how people have their own struggle every day. When I interviewed Ashley

I was surprised with so many of the things she had to say. Also how poorly some people in the

media a portrayed. How one act act which was a pretty big act (9/11) could change the viewpoint

of a whole religion. People all over the world are identified because of the way they dress, or the

way they look, but I believe you should never judge a book by its cover.
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References

Alsultany, E. (2012). Arabs and muslims in the media: Race and representation after 9/11.

New York: New York University Press.

Gray, Herman. (2015). The feel of life: Resonance, race, and representation. International

Journal of Communication, 9, 1108-1119

Mishra S. "Saving" Muslim women and fighting Muslim men: Analysis of representations in The

New York Times. Global Media Journal. 2007;6:N_A.