Reasons and Effects of Stereotypes

    If you look closely at media, you will find examples of stereotypes.  Television writers must establish their characters quickly, often within a thirty minute program.  By using stereotypes, they are able to accomplish this quickly.

    Let's examine the stereotypes presented in crime dramas about policemen, policewomen, criminals, women, old people, teenagers, and minorities.   Some familiar stereotypes may be:

• policemen: use any means, legal or illegal, to capture the criminal
• policewomen:  have forced their way into the police arena and , by nature of being female, are inadequate on the job, crumble under pressure, and are unreliable as partners
• criminals: have no regard for life, themselves or others, are the outcasts of society from poor social backgrounds
• women:  are victims of crime, not able to defend themselves, given to hysterics
• old people:  are victims of crime, live in fear, easily manipulated
• teenagers:  are perpetrators of crime
• minorities: are involved in a number of domestic squabbles, as well as, responsible for the majority of serious crime

    The news industry and journalists need to produce news stories quickly and with limited coverage space.  Stereotypes provide a way, through their frequent use, to present easily recognized representations of people that audiences feel they know.  Complex news items can be made more understandable by using stereotypes of the "hero", "villain", and the "victim".  The news story, often based on conflict, minimizes the issues by using these stereotypes in its narrative structure.  This structure allows for a quick and convenient way to deal with the tight deadlines faced by journalists.

EFFECTS OF STEREOTYPES:

    The repetition of these images may have serious consequences.  Naturally, if people come to accept these images as true, then misrepresentation occurs.  These stereotypes seem to give us permission to overlook the individuality of people and the particulars of any situation.  They can breed hatred and fear of specific groups of people.  They can affect one's own perceptions of his race or sex.  They can place impossible demands, such as the beauty stereotypes of women in advertising, on individuals and foster a lack of self-esteem.  Stereotypes influence our perceptions of ourselves and others.   Stereotypes, repeated often enough, come to be viewed as reality rather than a chosen representation.