Deck 10: Racism in the Media

Question 1

Both the electronic and _____ media have become major transmitters of society's cultural standards, myths, values, roles, and images.

A) Ethno-racial
B) Conservative
C) Regional
D) Print
E) Music

Answer 1

Print

Question 2

In theory, media institutions are expected to reflect alternative viewpoints, to remain neutral and objective, and to

A) Provide free and equitable access to all groups
B) Generate enormous financial profits
C) Identify social problems in contemporary societies and report on them
D) Be critical of all social institutions
E) Be held accountable to the needs and demands of the general public

Answer 2

Provide free and equitable access to all groups

Question 3

Rather than viewing the media as an institution that remains neutral and objective, critical race theorists would argue the media

A) Is a capitalist enterprise that serves the needs and interests of big business
B) Espouses anti-racism principles in most of its programming
C) Have very little influence on the individual beliefs and values of most Canadians
D) Routinely portrays people of colour in negative and stereotypical ways
E) Done a commendable job ensuring that more diverse roles are available to minority actors in Canada

Answer 3

Routinely portrays people of colour in negative and stereotypical ways

Question 4

In 1985, a parliamentary subcommittee on equality rights stated that people of colour were _____ in the Canadian media.

A) Exemplary
B) Invisible
C) Uncreative
D) Over-represented
E) Unique

Question 5

Due to the marginalized status of racial-minority communities in Canada, many White people are forced to rely almost entirely on the media for their information about minorities. As a result,

A) They are engaging in a form of aversive racism
B) They are going to be see the various ways visible minority groups contribute to the cultural and economic development of Canadian society
C) They are receiving information that is largely filtered through the perceptions, assumptions, and values of journalists and other media professionals
D) When they do have face-to-face interactions with minorities, they will be sensitive to some of the issues that they face in Canadian society
E) They are able to develop a more critical understanding of the world we live in

Question 6

What famous quotation was used by a Black Canadian actor who succinctly addressed the issue of invisibility in the media?

A) "To be or not to be?
B) "You can't handle the truth!"
C) "I have a dream."
D) "Mirror, mirror on the wall, tell me if I exist at all."
E) "I'll be back."

Question 7

Which of the following represents an example of systemic discrimination in the media?

A) The reliance on referrals in hiring from White producers, writers, and editors
B) Black directors who refuse to hire White male actors in leading roles
C) Putting in place measures that recognizes the qualifications and experiences of foreign-born actors
D) Refusing to award the Best Actor award to a minority actor at the Oscars for over 100 years
E) Media outlets who fail to adequately respond to allegations of racism within their organizations

Question 8

The belief that Whiteness is considered the universal (hidden) norm and allows one to think and speak as if Whiteness described and defined the world has been described as:

A) The Discourse of White Victimization
B) The 'rightness of Whiteness'
C) Unquestionable Whiteness
D) Whiteness Studies
E) Privileging Whiteness

Question 9

A consistent theme of both news and programming is the portrayal of people of colour as "the outsiders within". This type of depiction helps to perpetuate the discourse of __________.

A) Multiculturalism
B) Freedom of Speech
C) Blaming the Victim
D) Binary Polarization
E) Reverse Racism

Question 10

In a study of the extent of appearances of people of colour and Aboriginal peoples in national evening news programs, particularly their participation on CBC's 'The National' and CTV's 'National Evening News', almost all stories in which people of colour appeared were those in which the stories

A) Focused on entertainment
B) Focused on sports
C) Were about racism and anti-racism
D) Were about crimes committed by whites against people of colour
E) Were about non-Whites

Question 11

One of the most common and persistent of examples of racism in the media is the frequency with which people of colour and First Nations peoples are

A) Singled out as "creating problems"
B) Identified as "the problem solver" when it comes to eradicating racism
C) Portrayed in a diverse range of roles
D) Depicted as "national heroes" only if they lost their life in a peace-keeping mission
E) Not included in Molson's "I Am Canadian" commercials

Question 12

Journalists, editors, broadcasters, and directors of media organizations are not always neutral, impartial, objective and unbiased. In fact, the media often select events that are atypical, present them in a stereotypical fashion, and contrast them with ______.

A) Canadian laws
B) Familial values
C) Minority cultures
D) Conservative ideologies
E) White behaviour

Question 13

What IS NOT one of the images routinely circulated in the print and electronic media of Asians?

A) Exotic
B) Store vendors
C) Untrustworthy
D) Cooks
E) Assertive

Question 14

One of the ways that the media engages in the racialization of crime is by

A) Only focusing on white collar crimes that are committed against visible minorities
B) Routinely describing the race of offenders
C) Failing to highlight hate crimes being committed by whites
D) Over-emphasizing inter-racial crimes with white victims and minority offenders
E) Working too closely with police detectives which hinders their ability to be objective

Question 15

One of the first studies to identify and document racism in the print media in Canada was conducted by Rosenfeld and Spina in 1977. What newspaper did they examine?

A) The Ottawa Citizen
B) The Globe and Mail
C) The Toronto Star
D) The Toronto Sun
E) The National Post

Question 16

Mosher (1998), in his study examining racism in the criminal justice system of Ontario between 1892 and 1930, stated that this institution played an instrumental role in the racialization of crime for more than a hundred years.

A) The courts
B) The police
C) Catholic schools
D) The media
E) The federal government

Question 17

In 2002, Henry and Tator's study on racial bias in the English Language print media relied on six case studies to analyze the implicit meanings and messages embedded in the everyday discourses of journalists and editors. What methodological approach did the authors use?

A) Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)
B) Critical Race Theory (CRT)
C) Semi-structured Interviews
D) Media Decoding Analysis (MDA)
E) Information Technology Analysis (ITA)

Question 18

Identify the discourse of democratic racism that BEST DESCRIBES the following quote taken from the Globe and Mail, April 9, 1994: "In not reporting on the unusual pathologies of (ethnic groups other than aboriginals), we are failing in our duty to inform society of significant social facts".

A) Discourse of White Victimization
B) Discourse of Colour-Blindness
C) Discourse of Freedom of Speech
D) Discourse of Political Correctness
E) Discourse of National Identity

Question 19

There are two predominant images of the black male on prime-time television. One is of the 'crotch-grabbing buffoon'. The other is of the _______.

A) Authority figure (e.g. police, world leader)
B) Intellectual professional
C) Super-hero/athlete
D) Religious fanatic
E) Talented dancer and singer

Question 20

Canadian prime-time television programming continues to exhibit signs of racial bias and it is often manifested in the lack of ethno-racial representation on the screen. People of colour are rarely heard, and, when they do appear, they are usually represented in a _______ manner.

A) Tokenistic
B) Limited
C) Stereotypical
D) Traditional
E) Disrespectful

Question 21

A consultant in the Canadian advertising industry suggested that the non-representation of people of colour is not a result of racism per se, but rather racial 'uncomfortableness'. In this context, racial 'uncomfortableness' refers to:

A) Advertisers who do not want to risk offending a White customer base
B) The negative reaction that many in the advertising industry expressed when it was revealed they were now being mandated to enforce anti-racism initiatives
C) The way that minorities in the advertisement industry feel whenever allegations of racism surface
D) Time honoured traditions in advertising that reserve certain privileges for Whites
E) Threats that have been directed towards advertisement agencies attempting to make the industry more inclusive

Question 22

The process of turning an object or service into something that can be bought or sold in the marketplace is referred to as ______________.

A) Commercial ingenuity
B) Capitalism
C) Magic
D) Transformative Consumerism
E) Commodification

Question 23

News is more than just factual information; it is also a(n) ________.

A) Event
B) Commodity
C) Essential service
D) Marketplace
E) Symbol

Question 24

Responses to racism in the media have included:

A) Corporate takeovers
B) Community advocacy
C) Government interventions
D) Civil lawsuits
E) Multicultural strategies

Question 25

The media's images reinforce what form of racism?

A) Biological racism
B) Constitutional racism
C) Symbolic racism
D) Cultural racism
E) Strong racism
True and False Questions:

Question 26

The Eurocentric construction of Muslims/Islam/Arabs/Middle Eastern peoples in the mainstream media is a relatively recent phenomenon.

Question 27

The primary tool that the media relies on is essentialism when it comes to anti-Muslim bias.

Question 28

Researchers have routinely found that First Nations people are commonly portrayed as significant contributors to Canadian culture.

Question 29

The discourse of the Jamaicanization was one of many strategies employed by newspaper columnists responding to allegations of racial profiling by the Toronto Police Services.

Question 30

In recent years, where Black people were central to a television show, they tended to be portrayed in roles that are multi-dimensional and dynamic.

Question 31

Advertising plays a crucial economic role in the media as a primary source of income.

Question 32

In Canada, there are laws prohibiting the concentration of media ownership in the hands of a few.

Question 33

In a study undertaken in 2001, a discourse of analysis of ads appearing in Canadian magazines found that most advertisements included the presence of people of colour.

Question 34

As in other forms of media production, television commercials communicate meanings and messages.

Question 35

Challenging racism in the media has been difficult. Advocacy across Canada is erratic and generally limited to reactions to specific incidents.