Type “black college students” into a search engine and see what pops up. Web sites with information like high crime statistics for black people, AIDS rates among black women and low graduation rates for black students are listed.
There must be more information on the Internet that portrays black college students in a positive light. Yes, there are certain sites like blackcollegewire.com and blackcollegian.com, but unfortunately, they only have information on college events. Rarely is there information about the beliefs, values and the types of students.
The Internet is cluttered with stereotypical articles and information about blacks. Many officials claim to have been trying to get rid of racism for the past few years. But many conservatives believe affirmative action serves no purpose.
They believe the world has changed and blacks have fair opportunities. If that’s true then why does the media often show blacks negatively?
The media often perpetuates stereotypes. It seems as if American society prefers to restrain blacks by constantly portraying negative images of them on television screens.
This frustrates me as a black college student. When the words “black college student” are typed in a search engine, positive images should pop up. These stereotypes are not a representation of all black college students.
Yes, there are some black criminals and blacks with STD’s. But what about blacks who achieve? It’s a shame that in order to find this information, you have to do some deep research.
Researchers have to go through online databases and visit libraries just to see a different perspective.
If more blacks worked in the media, there would be more positive stories and images. When you look on Web sites or TV, it’s seems like reporters think average blacks are abnormal people. A prime example was CNN’s “Black in America.”
The documentary talked about issues blacks face. Some could wonder was this documentary necessary? Blacks in America know what they go through.
Many of our stories are the same as any other race. If I’m not mistaken, there are white people in jail too. Why don’t they have CNN special called “White in America.” How would white Americans feel if they had an entire documentary dedicated to the problems they face?
What about reporting the positives about blacks? Today, it seems the media has nothing positive to say about the black race.
LaTasha Edwards is a public relations student from Houston. She can be reached at famuanopinions@gmail.com