African Americans are Portrayed Badly by Mainstream Media, Says Researcher

Researcher and former photojournalist Danielle Kilgo asserts that African Americans are negatively stereotyped by the mainstream media – especially in photos and video. Danielle Kilgo is receiving her doctorate from the University of Texas-Austin and next fall will start teaching in The Media School at Indiana University. She has been part of a research team at the University of Texas. Her research analyzes the visual images of African Americans in the media. She contends that both Black men and women are often portrayed in a derogatory light. She also has some interesting observations about photographing political candidates and how images can alter campaigns. Prior to starting her academic life, Kilgo worked as a photographer, designer and writer – so she fully understands the job of collecting and publishing images of people in a fair and unbiased manner. In the podcast, Kilgo talks specifically about unfair depictions of black men and women and how these images frame political discourse and public impressions. She contrasts how whites participating in a protest or demonstration are portrayed in a more positive context than blacks who protest an injustice. Whites are characterized as having justifiable outrage where blacks, most often, are portrayed as being angry and out-of-control. Kilgo was a participant in the 2017 Schuneman Symposium for Photojournalism & New Media sponsored by the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism and the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University. This year’s Symposium focused, in part, on media and racial issues.