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It's strange isn't it how media all over the world affects the thinking of people like me and the issue of how we see Black Americans is no different since the typecasts put forward by the media seem real, though are they ? I have no more idea at this side of the ocean whether those types are really what Black Americans have become, although three main categories seem to stand out from my European viewpoint.

The under-achievers and rap mentality.

I don't know why I see these as both the same, though the Media has a habit of mixing the two. For example, here in France the Black French singers that do rap music don't have the same press. They are respected to a certain extent though perhaps the lack of media coverage is responsible. Although it is not a genre of music that I enjoy, I respect that rap is clever, though the media coming to us from the States associates the rap mentality with the poor areas of black communities, and mingles an uneducated theme into our perceptions. You see hoods and people that Americans call low life, and I can't help but wonder if the media are getting it wrong, because surely there must be an equal mix of low life in the white population of America to that of African Americans, though it is not the message the media gives us.

The man of high morals and education.

This is a popular theme in the media that we receive here in Europe. Even in programs such as 24, the President of the United States was a Black American and he isn't the first. The message that we as Europeans get is that America's media somehow want to put right injustices from the past. I may be way off balance with my perceptions, though the number of times the main hero character is a Black American of impeccable intelligence, education and status, is sending clear messages that America wants to give back something to the Black Americans, although is this idealism or reality ?

Myself, I believe it to be a fantasy of the media and until I actually see Black people equally balanced with white Americans in politics and making the decisions that matter, my perception of reality won't change.

The worker a thoroughly integrated man

Many of the players in both movies and TV shows here in Europe are black stereotyped characters with average education, loads of moral fiber, working in positions of trust in the normal worker categories like hospitals, cops and emergency services. It's a big business, and the way in which they are portrayed is as contented human beings that make a difference. The balance isn't right. They are portrayed as the silent heroes that make a difference, although the media don't often take you into their homes as much as they do with their white counterparts. I really cannot see that the media are showing things as they are, and whilst I believe that indeed there are characters who are Black Americans that hold down jobs like this, what the media seem to be doing is glorifying their integration into society in America as if equal. I don't believe it is. I do believe that educational standards are open to all, though still believe that prejudices still exist.

There are good and bad all over the world. I have no prejudices, though when balancing image given by the media, it is wise to also take into account factual programs as well as those turned out in an effort to persuade the public that all is well with the world. Only by balancing the two sides can a clear picture emerge, and when TV shows start to balance truths a little more accurately, perhaps people will sit up a notice.

All men are equal though to the media some more equal than others. Don't believe everything you see, go out there and check it yourself.

Learn more about this author, Rachelle de Bretagne.
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