To dislike how Africa or black people are shown on TV

[BeenWondering]

Pretty much that.

I was watching something on TV last night about an Ethiopian tribe. All very well some might say but I despise the way Africans are portrayed as some naked, bead-wearing persons without autonomy.

They never show, at least on primetime, the technological developments in East Africa, or the wealth that West Africa offers.

And when it's time to 'give money' r.e comic relief, or whatever, it's always some starving face gawking at the screen.

Why can't they ever show on primetime the go-getters, the ones striving to achieve, the innovators? At present it makes me think wtf!

It's objectifying and 'othering'.
Through ignorance and naïveté all cultures do it about all other cultures to a certain extent but the UK media stereotyping of Africa is shocking.
I consider myself pretty well versed and can think of a tiny handful of portrayals of 'Africa' which weren't mud huts or dystopian slums.

TTWK- there have been at least 2 Italian TV series broadcast here over the last couple of years, countless cookery programmes, hundreds of hours of music, art, history. Italy receives loads more coverage than the continent of Africa.

TTWK- there have been at least 2 Italian TV series broadcast here over the last couple of years

Yeah, Gomorrah & Sopranos, I watched them. (although Sopranos was American about an Italian family).

YANBU!!!!!!!

Maybe you're watching bad programmes?
The black gentleman I'm currently watching speak is a chess grandmaster, (first black US GM in fact); he's articulate, urbane, knowledgable, extremely well dressed, and highly ambitious. In fact his ambition in life was to become a GM, which he achieved, making history. Highly inspirational.

He's not African though, he's Jamaican by birth (now US citizen).

There are countless programmes about Italy's wonderful history/culture etc that do not include mafia references.

These threads always go the same way. Wilful ignorance and minimising. Sigh.

Well it would be quite patronising to have shows about how well some black people have done, despite being black.

Eh? who suggested that?

Although, in a country where 'being black' tends to put you at an immediate disadvantage I can't say I'd find it patronising at all.

There are countless programmes about Italy's wonderful history/culture etc that do not include mafia references. These threads always go the same way. Wilful ignorance and minimising. Sigh.

And countless programmes about Egypt's wonderful history/culture.

Africa is big, very big. And across large parts of it, you cannot realistically ignore poverty, bad government, corruption, civil war, ethnic cleansing / genocide, repression, Islamic fundamentalism and general misery.

YANBU OP, I know exactly what you mean. I think if people saw some Nollywood stuff, they would be very surprised.

OP, yanbu. people are shockingly ignorant, and this thread just proves it.

Yanbu. I'm white British married to black african and didn't realise how much dicrimination there was til I saw it 1st hand. I really worry for dd. DH adores nollywood bit I dondon't doubt some representations do places no favours.

'I've had some ridiculous things said to me when people learn I'm African. Not because they want to be hurtful (most of the time anyway) but because they genuinely believe that we all live in mud huts/have bones through our noses/have had malaria.'

Try being Irish in America.

Faith and begorrah.

NeedAScarfForMyGiraffe
Out of curiosity OP, you don't have to answer (obviously!) but are you white?

Would that change things? If so then I am green, with flickers of grey and strands of purple.

Just a thought but this may be a side effect of over-exposure in the media, especially TV.

If you look at the proportion of black people as a percentage of the UK population Statistics, and then look at the number of times black people are represented in TV shows, TV adverts and catalogues, it is immediately obvious that there is a far higher incidence of representation in the media than reality.

I totally agree, OP. When I went to Kenya on holiday, we visited a Masai community and we saw some of the Kibera slum in Nairobi, but we also saw the quite normal neighbourhoods and ate lunch at the various shopping centres. There is a real perception of African countries as undeveloped and the people as tribal savages. All very strangely Heart of Darkness-y. The truth is that places like Kenya are developing nations. I would be hugely interested to watch a programme about the social changes being brought about by the burgeoning middle class, for example, but that doesn't play into cultural expectations and stereotypes, and is probably harder to market.

Totally agree OP. I have very little knowledge of Africa but the majority of what I've seen in the media makes me think of poverty, mud huts, etc. It's only common sense that tells me that's only one facet to an entire continent!

I'm ashamed to admit that when the news channels was covering the Westgate Shopping Mall attack, one of my reactions was mild surprise that there were shopping malls in Nairobi.

Then I realised I was being ridiculous - of course there are shopping malls. Nairobi is an important city in Kenya.

But if my only knowledge of Africa came from what I saw on TV I may not have realised that there were cities in any African country other than South Africa....

people are shockingly ignorant, and this thread just proves it.

No it doesn't. Some people are ignorant about some things and knowledgeable about others.

Comments made by a few dozen people in one thread in a message board proves nothing, unless your post is attempting to prove that painting hundreds of millions of people with a broad brush is ignorant, in which you have succeeded.

previous posters have spectacularly missed the point

Disagreeing does not mean that people have "missed the point". Others have different viewpoints, which are just as valid as your own.

I wasn't talking about others 'viewpoints'. Have you actually read the responses I was referring to? The OP was making a point that sad charity ads were one of the only things we saw of Africa. People responded 'well of course charity ads are meant to be sad'. That clearly wasn't the point.

Not getting into the mud with you, QS.

then don't reference my posts.

Can I recommend this TED talk about this.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg

It is by Chimamanda Adichie about this very point.