CFP Representation of Ethnic and Racial Minorities in the 21st-century American Media (9/30/15; NeMLA 2016)

Representation of Ethnic and Racial Minorities in the 21st-century American Media - NeMLA 2016, Hartford (CT) March 17-20
https://networks.h-net.org/node/73374/announcements/74542/representation-ethnic-and-racial-minorities-21st-century-american
Announcement published by Javier Venturi on Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Type:
Call for Papers
Date:
September 30, 2015
Location:
Connecticut, United States
Subject Fields:
Ethnic History / Studies, American History / Studies

One of the problems with representations of racial and ethnic minorities in the 21st-century American media is that there aren't enough main characters, male and female role models, that will fairly represent their social advancement and academic achievements through sitcoms, movies, and mainstream media. Minorities (African-American, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Middle Eastern, African, Pacific Islander, Eskimo, Native Americans, etc.) are, on the whole, proportionately underrepresented in the media relative to their population. For example, in the popular sitcom The Big Bang Theory and recent Divergent film series, the roles of minority characters tend and continue to be secondary to male and female white protagonists. Minority characters are portrayed as sidekicks, best friends, hero’s nemeses, terrorists, funny male/female foreign characters, or represent the “other” who struggles to understand and accept the American way of life. This panel will analyze and discuss the misrepresentation and cultural marginalization of ethnic and racial minorities in the 21st-century American media, asking questions such as why are racial minorities portrayed more often as lower class individuals and what are the latest developments in the representation and reception of media output produced by, for or about ethnic minorities? Please submit 250-word abstracts in English to Javier Venturi.

Contact Info:
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

This year, NeMLA (Northeast Modern Language Association) has implemented a user-based system to accept and track abstract submissions. In order to submit an abstract using the button for a CFP entry, you must sign up with NeMLA and log in. Using this new system, you can manage your personal information and review and update your abstract following submission. Signing up is free, and you only have to do it once:

https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/15955

Chair: Javier Venturi

URL:
https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/15955