stereotype
Last updatedDefinition
A stereotype is an idea or attitude about a person or group of people that overgeneralizes based on incomplete and inaccurate information. Stereotypes in media can be perpetuated by photo choice, with descriptors, and with story angles and sourcing in a larger sense (such as only talking to Hispanic or Latino sources for stories about immigration or low-income neighborhoods).
As University of Massachusetts Amherst communications professor Mari Castañeda wrote in the 2018 paper “The Power of (Mis)Representation: Why Racial and Ethnic Stereotypes in the Media Matter”:
“Audiences view the broadcast of racial and ethnic stereotypes as simply reflecting the ways things (and people) ‘truly are’ and hence these images are perceived as potentially real and unquestionable. … Consequently, the subtle (and sometimes not so subtle message) becomes that the places where people of color best belong become prisons, agricultural fields, kitchens, and homeless shelters, but not in positions of power.”
Countering stereotypes in media coverage can include consulting as wide an array of sources as possible, considering everyone as an individual rather than a “type,” and consulting trusted colleagues or third-party inclusivity readers on specific issues. See the Language, Please editorial tools for more resources.
Additional resources
- Racial stereotypes influence perception of NFL quarterbacks (University of Colorado Boulder)
- How Racial Stereotypes in Popular Media Affect People — And What Hollywood Can Do to Become More Inclusive (Scholars Strategy Network)
Summary
A stereotype is an idea or attitude about a person or group of people that overgeneralizes based on incomplete and inaccurate information. Countering stereotypes in media coverage can include consulting as wide an array of sources as possible, considering everyone as an individual rather than a “type,” and consulting trusted colleagues or third-party inclusivity readers on specific issues.