AED 225 Blog Post 5-Challenging the Story of Race on TV

The story of race on television has always been centered on the oppression and dominance of white people versus all other races. White people are more widely represented on TV by a vast margin and when people of other races are cast on a television show, they are rarely cast as a leader or influential figure except in cases where there is a large proportion of their race. In a way the television norm is to allow minorities to be in power only when they are in power over others of their own race such as Philip Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Curtis Payne in Tyler Perry’s House of Payne.

  

One example that challenges this story of race on television today is in the USA Network show “Suits”. This example goes against the traditional story of race on TV in order to show that the story of race is now misrepresented. The relationship that I wish to explore in this show is the role of the head of the law firm, Jessica Pearson, a black woman, who is the managing partner and in charge of mostly white men. This character challenges the traditional story of race on television because not only is she a black woman in a leadership role, she is also in charge of well-educated, white men. I believe one would be hard-pressed to find another example of this kind of relationship on TV. Dr. Michael Morgan asserts that “television exaggerates the extent to which blacks have made it in society”, in the film The Electronic Storyteller. However, I believe that this statement, made in 1997, is now outdated and “Suits” is beginning to show how minorities are beginning to land more and more leadership roles. In fact, Harvard Law School’s website states that 39% of their students are “people of color”, a fact that contributes to this notion. What makes the show so good is that this role works well and is believable. This character is a prime example of not only how far minorities, such as black women, have come to this point in time in terms of workplace success, but also projects toward the future of minorities in the workplace as I believe relationships like this one portrayed in “Suits” will become increasingly pervasive throughout television in years to come.

Sources

1. The Electronic Storyteller. Perf. George Gerbner and Michael Morgan. 1997. DVD.

2. "HLS Profile and Facts." HLS Profile and Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012.     <http://www.law.harvard.edu/prospective/jd/apply/classprofile.html>.