Watching Black on TV: Race & Representati

Catalog description

Against a background and history of the African American struggle for social justice and human & civil rights spanning from the 1950s to 2022, this course chronicles and analyzes the diverse contributions of Black artists featured on television, cable, streaming services-including independently produced series-and, to a lesser extent, film. A significant focus is critical analysis of changing social roles and images of African Americans presented from the “stereotypes” of the early years to contemporary times. We take a critical view of media-inspired images of the postwar era to the expanding images of the 1990s and early 2000, right up until the television years of “Black-ish.” An additional focus on issues and portrayals based on race, gender and the LBQTQ community looks at their role in shaping audience perceptions, popular culture, attitudes, and programming. Students critically examine the social and historical impact of serials, specials, docu-series, and documentaries in television entertainment history.