Diversity in Geekdom: Video Games

Video games like Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto 5 have made headlines in the last few years thanks to record breaking sales. Those sales exist because video games are hugely popular. About 185 million people in the United States play video games. It’s no secret that people of all background play video games, its hard to tell that from the lack of diversity among playable characters. According to a study published in the journal “New Media and Society” in 2009, only 3% of all video games characters can be identified as Latino. And of that 3%, only 5% are characters you can use to play. As we continue our series on Diversity in Geekdom, Latino USA producer Daisy Rosario speaks with three people who love video games but would like to see things change. Mary Lordes is a writer at Upright Citizens Brigade and former co-host of the video game podcast Unlimited Lives. David Brothers is a former journalist who works at Image Comics. Vander Caballero is the Creative Director of Minorty Media.