A Social Cognitive Approach to Studying Racial
Stereotyping in the Mass Media
Travis L. Dixon, Assistant Professor, Communication Studies Faculty Associate, Institute for
Social Research, The University of Michigan
Although there have been examples of counter-stereotypical programming, such as The
Cosby Show, it can reasonably be argued that television still frequently portrays Blacks in a
stereotypical manner (Dates & Barlow, 1990; Evuleocha & Ugbah, 1989; Graves, 1993).
Dates and Barlow (1990), for example, have reported that Blacks are often portrayed as less
competent than Whites and have less "serious" roles than their White counterparts. Critics
argue that these stereotypes can have the effect of communicating misinformation about
Blacks. This misinformation is then used by Whites to make social judgments about African
Americans (Graves, 1993).
Four primary stereotypes of African Americans have pervaded the airwaves of both television
and film since their......
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