Race and Media: Critical Approaches

331 Pages·2020·15.407 MB·English

by  Lori Kido Lopez (editor)

Race and Media

Race and Media
Critical Approaches
Edited by
Lori Kido Lopez
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York
www.nyupress.org
© 2020 by New York University
All rights reserved
References to Internet websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the
author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or
changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Lopez, Lori Kido, editor.
Title: Race and media : critical approaches / edited by Lori Kido Lopez.
Description: New York : New York University Press, [2020] |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020016957 (print) | LCCN 2020016958 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781479895779 (hardback) | ISBN 9781479889310 (paperback) |
ISBN 9781479881376 (ebook) | ISBN 9781479823222 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Mass media and minorities. | Mass media and race relations.
Classification: LCC P94.5.M55 R3155 2020 (print) | LCC P94.5.M55 (ebook) |
DDC 302.2308—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020016957
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020016958
New York University Press books are printed on acid- free paper, and their binding materials
are chosen for strength and durability. We strive to use environmentally responsible suppli-
ers and materials to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books.
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Also available as an ebook
Contents
Notes on Terminology vii
Introduction 1
Lori Kido Lopez
Part I. Representing Race
1. Racism and Mainstream Media 13
Lori Kido Lopez
2. Image Analysis and Televisual Latinos 27
Mary Beltrán
3. Visualizing Mixed Race and Genetics 39
Meshell Sturgis and Ralina L. Joseph
4. Listening to Racial Injustice 57
Dolores Inés Casillas and Jennifer Lynn Stoever
5. Branding Athlete Activism 67
Jason Kido Lopez
Part II. Producing and Performing Race
6. The Burden of Representation in Asian American Television 79
Peter X Feng
7. Indigenous Video Games 92
Jacqueline Land
8. Applying Latina/o Critical Communication Theory
to Anti- Blackness 101
Mari Castañeda
9. Asian American Independent Media 116
Jun Okada
10. Remediating Trans Visuality 127
Amy Villarejo
vi | Contents
Part III. Digitizing Race
11. Intersectional Distribution 141
Aymar Jean Christian
12. Podcasting Blackness 153
Sarah Florini
13. Black Twitter as Semi- Enclave 163
Raven Maragh- Lloyd
14. Arab Americans and Participatory Culture 178
Sulafa Zidani
15. Diaspora and Digital Media 190
Lia Wolock
Part IV. Consuming and Resisting Race
16. Disrupting News Media 205
Meredith D. Clark
17. Latinx Audiences as Mosaic 218
Jillian M. Báez
18. Media Activism in the Red Power Movement 230
Miranda J. Brady
19. Black Gamers’ Resistance 241
Kishonna L. Gray
20. Cosmopolitan Fan Activism 252
Susan Noh
Acknowledgments 265
Notes 267
Bibliography 273
About the Contributors 309
Index 315
Notes on Terminology
The terms used to describe racial and ethnic minorities are dynamic and
highly contested, reflecting the complexity of self-d etermination and the
fluid boundaries that surround all identities. The authors in this collec-
tion were allowed to choose their own terms, and as a result, there are a
wide range of choices represented in the chapters that follow. Below is
a brief discussion of some of the terms that are used, but all decisions
about racial terminologies are controversial and subject to individual
interpretation. Only a few of the authors specifically describe the rea-
soning for their choice of terminology in their chapters, but all make
choices that reflect what is respectful and ethical within the specific
communities they describe.
Asian American • Asian/American • Asian- American
The term “Asian American” was coined during the Yellow Power move-
ment in the late 1960s as a deliberate move away from the term “Oriental,”
which had come to be recognized as pejorative. While journalists regu-
larly use the hyphenated term “Asian- American” to describe Asians of
American descent, activists have argued that the hyphen is problematic
and should not be used because it connotes a division between the two
halves of one’s identity, rather than a united whole. Some scholars have
followed in the steps of David Palumbo-L iu (1999), who argued that
using the slash (“Asian/American”) designates an “and/or” relationship
between Asian and American where the two halves are equal while also
indicating the instability and mutability of this formation. Additional
terms such as “Pacific Islander” and “Desi American” have been added
to this category as it was acknowledged that the term “Asian Ameri-
can” had become a stand- in for primarily East Asians, resulting in terms
like “Asian Pacific Islander American” and “Asian Pacific Islander Desi
American,” among others. The term “South Asian American” is also
vii
viii | Notes on Terminology
sometimes used to describe only those with heritage from the region of
the South Asian subcontinent. There are many additional permutations
of these terms and the acronyms used to describe them, each calling
attention to various specific populations in an attempt to be more inclu-
sive and call attention to minority populations who are often ignored.
Arab American • Middle Eastern • Muslim •
Middle Eastern or North African
The terms used to describe Americans from Arabic-s peaking countries
in the Middle East and North Africa (such as Lebanon, Egypt, Syria,
Iraq, Morocco, Palestine, and Jordan, which have the largest popula-
tions in the United States) have been unstable since the first immigrants
arrived in the 1880s. While Arab Americans are sometimes defined as
those with heritage from countries within the Arab League, this is a
political category that shifts and does not necessarily reflect actual cul-
tural or ethnic connections within the Arab world. The U.S. census has
historically classified Americans from these regions within the category
of “White” (with the ability to designate more specific ancestry catego-
ries in the American Community Survey), and there are ongoing debates
about whether there should be a category designated as “Arab American”
or “Middle Eastern or North African (MENA)” on future versions of the
census. While many ethnically Arab Americans are religiously Muslim,
and people of both identities experience systematic oppression in the
United States in similar and related ways, the two categories should not
be conflated. Arab Americans can practice a wide variety of religions
and Muslims can be from any racial background.
Black • black • African American
The term “African American” is used to describe those living in the
United States who are descendants of African nations, largely as a result
of the Atlantic slave trade. The terms “Black” or “black” are used to
describe the racial category of peoples all over the world, both in Africa
and in the diaspora, with African heritage. While there are geographic
specificities to the terms, many use the terms “Black” and “African
American” interchangeably to describe people with African heritage in
Notes on Terminology | ix
the United States. There is debate about whether the term “black/Black”
should be capitalized (along with other terms that build from the same
root, such as “anti-B lack/anti- black” and “blackness/Blackness”). Those
who favor capitalization argue that Black is a racial category that is par-
allel to Asian or Hispanic, which are capitalized, and consistency would
demand that White also be capitalized. The term “Black” with a capi-
tal B is often used with pride to designate the transition from Africans
to Black people in the tradition of W. E. B. Du Bois, and is sometimes
used in conjunction with lowercase “white” in order to deliberately
center those who have historically been marginalized. Those who favor
lowercase argue that black can be used as an adjective, a general racial
descriptor, or an abstract concept such as “blackness” or “black audi-
ences.” Some authors switch between “black” and “Black” in order to
clearly distinguish when they are talking about Black Americans versus
the larger racial category.
Indigenous • Native American • First Nations • Indian •
American Indian
The term “Indian” is a potentially offensive term, as it is the designa-
tion created by European colonizers to the Americas who erroneously
believed that they had landed in India. It connotes the history of settlers
perpetuating genocide against the original inhabitants of what is now
called North America, as well as the ways native cultures have often been
commodified, depoliticized, and misunderstood. While there are many
individuals who use the term “Indian” to describe themselves, particu-
larly when among their own in- group, it is often seen as offensive for
non-N ative individuals to use this term. The terms “American Indian,”
“Native American,” “First Nations,” or simply “Native” are seen as more
respectful, and there are a wide range of conflicting arguments about
which is more accurate or appropriate. Many individuals also choose
to identify primarily with their specific tribal nation. The terms “indig-
enous” or “Indigenous” are used to describe peoples who existed prior
to colonization, and can be used to describe the Indigenous peoples of
the Americas. The lowercase “indigenous” is often viewed as an adjec-
tive, while the capitalized “Indigenous” is considered a more respectful
way of designating the term as a proper noun. Political recognitions of