The Blurring of Cultural Lines Race and Stereotypes

The Blurring of Cultural Lines Race and Stereotypes in Advertising Created by Sloane Signal Howard University

What is a Stereotype? Main Entry: stereotype Function: noun Etymology: French stéréotype, from stéréstere- + type Date: 1817 1 : a plate cast from a printing surface 2 : something conforming to a fixed or general pattern; especially : a standardized mental picture that is held in common by members of a group and that represents an oversimplified opinion, prejudiced attitude, or uncritical judgment

Minorities in Television George Jefferson was as if it was a fluke that he was rich Fred Sanford – junk dealer Good Times – always happy times in the projects

“Grab a Little German in The Wine Aisle” Example: Stereotypical portrayal of Germans United States “A Little German Goes a Long Way”

A Brief History Uncle Ben Aunt Jemima Rastus (Cream of Wheat) Frito Bandito

Segmentation Segregation It’s about knowing your target audience and anticipating its needs SRC – doesn’t everyone think like me? When in doubt, don’t Abercrombie and Fitch – http: //www. cnn. com/2002/ US/04/20/abercrombie. shir ts/

Can we advertise without offending?

What not to do Don’t stick a brown face in where a white once was Don’t assume minorities are dark-skinned whites Don’t base ethnicity on color – base it on culture Don’t assume that ethnic minorities find humor in the same things

Resources O’Barr, William. Culture and the Ad: Exploring Otherness in the World of Advertising Husband, Charles. A Richer Vision: The Development of Ethnic Minority Media in Western Democracies Woods, Gail Baker. Advertising and Marketing to the New Majority The Museum of Broadcast Communications – http: //www. museum. tv/in dex. shtml – http: //www. museum. tv/ar chives/etv/R/html. R/racis methni/racismethni. htm