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Race-Related Content of Animated Cartoons

2006; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 17; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/10646170600829493

1096-4649

Hugh Klein, Kenneth S. Shiffman,

Gender Roles and Identity Studies

Abstract Relying upon a content analysis of 1 specific type of medium to which young people are exposed beginning at an early age, on a regular basis, and for many years (i.e., animated cartoons), the present study examines what types of messages are provided about being members of different racial groups. This research examines the following issues: (a) How prevalent are race-related content and overt acts of racism in animated cartoons? (b) Has this prevalence changed over time? (c) What "types" of characteristics tend to be associated with being Caucasian, African American, Latino, Native American, and Asian? Results indicate that the prevalence of racial minority groups has been low over the years, with gradual decreases in representation during recent years, when the American population of racial minorities has grown. As time has gone on, the presence of overt racism has decreased greatly, demonstrating particularly sharp declines in the years since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. On most dimensions studied, members of different races were portrayed similarly. KEYTERMS: animated cartoonsmedia contentraceracismportrayalsmessages This research was supported by a grant by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (R03-AA09885). We wish to acknowledge, with gratitude, Denise Welka Lewis, Scott Desmond, Lisa Gervase, and Thomas Lambing for their contributions to this study's data collection efforts. Notes The best way to understand the concept of camera cut is to think of looking through the lens of a camcorder, as if one were filming. Whatever is seen through the lens is in the field of vision. If someone moved outside of the field of vision and then returned to it, either because of his/her own movement or because of the movement of the camcorder's field of vision, that would constitute two camera cuts by this study's definition—one when he/she was initially in the picture, and a second one when he/she returned to view again after the temporary disappearance. Time increments for these computations were based in much the same manner that parking garage fees are based. If someone stays for 1 hour and 15 minutes, that person is charged for two hours. Likewise, in this study, if a cartoon had a running time of eight minutes and ten seconds, the computations for major/minor character are based on a nine-minute-long cartoon rule. Many dialogs and verbal exchanges or utterances do not involve complete sentences, but instead, are based on "shorthand" responses that take the place of complete sentences. For instance, if someone asked "How are you doing today?" and the response given was "fine," in this study, the "fine" reply would be considered one phrase counting as a sentence, since it is the functional equivalent of a "I am doing fine" complete sentence response. Further analysis of the data (not previously presented) revealed that these entertainment-type activities on the part of African American characters were highly prevalent during the 1930s and 1940s but almost completely vanished from the 1950s onward. Thus, as stated above, this type of negative portrayal of African American characters was not typical of the group's behaviors during all time periods, but rather, of their portrayals during the earlier decades studied. Asians constituted 2.8% of the American population but 4.3% of the cartoon characters studied during the 1990s. Hanna Barbera, for example, included safety-related interstitial segments into its hour-long Superfriends cartoon block during the mid-1970s. These featured the Wonder Twins in 3-minute self-contained cartoons that focused on such topics as crossing the street safely, how to be safe underwater, how to avoid drug use, and so forth. ABC is perhaps the best known provider of interstitial animated programming with its Schoolhouse Rock interstitial between-program segments featuring well-known vignettes like "I'm Only a Bill," "Conjunction Junction," and "Interplanet Janet." Most recently, the Warner Brothers studio's cartoon programs The Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain incorporated highly-entertaining interstitial animated cartoons of 1 to 3 minutes in length, focusing on such subjects as the names of various countries of the world, different types of cheese, and the countries from which they originate, and the elements of the periodic table.