How do you think a lack of media diversity and positive representation affects our society outside of the media?

 

Ultimately the media shapes the perception society has upon any issue and this is no different in terms of media diversity and representation. One just has to look at the rise of Islamaphobia or the tendency for police stop searches to focus upon young black men. It is fictional TV shows which portray black men in that type of character; it is the press in particular which used phrases such as ‘Islamic terrorism’.  If companies are choosing not to interview candidates because they have a Muslim name and the media continue to associate terrorism with Islam then there is a primary example of the correlation between the media and our society.

 

When we watch TV or films and we see stereotyped characters or the token Asian/ black family the media is perpetuating images which need to be challenged. Following this, viewers internalise these stereotypes and so these form a basis for a preconception of what someone from a certain ethnic group may be like. A lack of positive representation continues to breed inequality; the constant portrayal of ‘young black men’ being gangster like rude boys, involved in crime and drugs means that the opportunities for them are then limited in terms of employment and success. They become more prone to discrimination, targeted by the police and in the case of some young people this turns into a self- fulfilling prophecy.

 

People are influenced by what they read and watch, therefore those reading the papers are getting a white perspective on what is considered to be a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural society, so already society is being shaped by one perspective regardless of how different the views of respective writers are.

 

Furthermore, with such little diversity in the media, is it not a reflection on how equal opportunities in terms of employment must still be an issue? If the majority of British newspapers barely have writers/staff of colour then this is continuing to make it difficult for aspiring journalists of colour to break into the media. This then has a knock on affect whereby minority groups feel marginalised and resentment builds.

 

The organisation was set up to largely address the continued discrimination on the basis of race and culture present in the media today. Both the organisation itself, through campaigns such as ‘All White Pages’, along with our writers focus on alerting the general public to those issues which often go unreported by the media both in and outside of the UK.  Not only do we look at discrimination in the media, but also in society, the workplace, employment opportunities and more, because we believe that all these things are obstacles to a truly multicultural society.

 

Do you think that more opportunities for writers of colour are necessary to allow for increased and improved representation of people of colour in the stories- factual and fictional- told by the media?

 

Absolutely. The media must be a reflection of the society in which it exists.

During London Fashion Week we published an article by Kiri Kankhwende titled ‘Racism on the Runways.’ Fashion journalism is dominated by white journalists. Without the voice of a non-white writer how would we know about the unacceptable levels of racism which continue to exist in the world of fashion?

 

Writers of colour will bring their own perspective and experience to any given issue which may or may not differ from that of a writer who is not of colour. The presence of a writer of colour on a mainstream TV channel or as a columnist for a major broadsheet will go beyond just challenging stereotypes and one dimensional opinions. It will also break the trend for writers of colour to cover events in ‘ethnic’ areas.

 

We have already seen success with our writers being published in the New Statesman, Guardian Comment is Free, Daily Telegraph and the Voice among others.

 

Equality and equal opportunities are the cornerstone of any successful society, based on this, writers of colour and the need for diversity is an absolute necessity.