Black Roles on Network TV

For much of television's early years, the America reflected on the screen was a nation of white faces, with only a few black faces, usually in menial occupations such as janitor, elevator operator, and so on. A look at the range of black roles on television today shows that much has changed and that the America reflected on screen today is more like the real America, with blacks and whites in all walks of life. Some of the changes have been seen as good, and others have been seen as not so good. Even the good changes have been seen as existing within a relatively narrow spectrum that still sets blacks apart on television, relegating them to specific programming niches and even behaviors and not reflecting the life of most blacks in America. The issue has been raised recently by critics who see fewer black roles on network television each year, and they are correct in this assessment. In addition, the roles blacks do have on television fall within a relatively narrow range.

The changes that have come about have occurred because the Civil Rights Movement created an awareness of the black community and in the black community leading to a demand for change. Change was slow, and it was always limited in the lifestyles it would reflect. The black world arrived in some form in the 1970s during the era of television relevance, when relevance sold. As long as there were viewers, shows like Sanford and Son had their place. Such shows still featured stereotyped portrayals by s

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nd tried to keep the program off the air, to no avail. The network wanted ratings and got them. The Coalition announced a plan to conduct a "selective buying" campaign against the sponsors of the show, but by the time this was organized it was too late for a boycott. The Black Anti-Defamation Coalition continued to monitor television after this failure, however, and mounted campaigns against various television shows it found offensive, notably ABC's Webster for perpetuating the image of the white person as savior of the black child in crisis. The group was more successful in this endeavor and got the network to air a show on the issue of whether or not a white child should be raised by a black family. However, as often happens with such organizations, within a few years the group had disbanded, unable to maintain an ongoing political presence in Hollywood (Montgomery 151-153). A number of black shows developed in the 1970s, primarily comedies, and primarily from the production company of Norman Lear. The beginning of this series of shows was All in the Family, a program based on a British show and transferred to Queens in New York. The main character was a right-wing bigot who railed against every minority group and who su

Category: History - B