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Americans are often criticized for their lack
of knowledge about foreign cultures and places. One tool that could help people
learn more about foreign places is television, since we often learn about our world through entertainment programming as well
as news. But what does television really teach us about different ways of living,
different people, or different places than what we are used to in the U. S.?
Choose one major television network and tune
in for its prime-time programming (try 8-10 p.m.) for three nights. Answer the following questions in
the corresponding assignment shell in etudes:
- How
many foreign people were depicted in the hours you watched? What nationalities
were they?
- How
many foreign places were depicted in the hours you watched? Where were they?
- Were
any foreign languages spoken? What were they?
- Were
people shown speaking English with a foreign accent?
- Which
foreign countries, if any, were represented?
- How
were foreign people represented? Were they good or bad characters? Heroes or villains? Comedic figures or serious characters? Men or women? Adults or children? Were only foreign places represented?
- Did
you note any foreignness during the advertisements? How was foreignness used?
- If
you saw NO foreignness, does this finding surprise you? Why? Why do you think this network did not choose to include depictions of foreignness in its programming?
- If
you DID see foreignness, what was it used for? Was there a pattern to the kinds
of foreignness depicted? Were the foreign people of the same race or continent? Explain why you feel you saw that you did. Draw
on some concepts you have learned about media industry to support your answer.
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