Last month, SOCM members officially kicked off a project to identify and combat stereotypes relating to race and class in the media. The inspiration for this project comes from observations members have made about how local media outlets can influence public perception and lead to serious tension in our communities.
Members in the middle of the state have been particularly troubled by the portrayal of minorities in a publication called The Rutherford Reader. The Reader is a regional publication that is recklessly using stereotypes to incite fear and fuel aggression towards "others" in the community.
"In my opinion, the media is a double-edge sword. It can be used to inform and educate people about news and important events, which is mostly the case. Or it can be a destructive tool that is used to divide the community by spreading bigotry, xenophobia, and unwarranted fear, which is the case with The Rutherford Reader."
- Rutherford County SOCM member Saleh Sbenaty
To begin addressing these problems that lead to community unrest, we are collecting examples of biases in local publications to get a sense of the story the media tells about the world and about your community. This is where we need your help.
We are asking members and friends across the state to be on the lookout for racial stereotypes and negative portrayals of low-income and minority communities in their local print media and send them in to SOCM.
Some examples of things to look for include:
- Criminalization of Hispanics and immigrants, particularly by use of the word "illegal"
- Association of racial minorities and crime
- Association of Muslims with terrorism
- Negative portrayals of certain residential areas, neighborhoods, and parts of town
If something strikes you as inaccurately portraying a particular group of people, please send it in. You can send electronic links or notes you make to Organizer Brad Wright at brad@socm.org or newspaper clippings and notes to the main office at 2507 Mineral Springs Ave., Suite D, Knoxville, TN 37917. Please include the publication name and date(s).
A formal training on how to identify bias in the media, and what you can do about it, will be held at Middle Tennessee State University on March 26th. All SOCM members are welcome.
For more information on the project, the training, or to become more involved, contact Brad Wright.
