Do you care about "seeing yourself" on screen?

[Allio]

Originally Posted by chrisdude

Isn't this issue entirely about kids?
I don't care if people in movies look like me, but if kids grow up seeing every character who accomplishes something important, or acts heroically is a white male, it's got to influence their perception of the world. I do think it is primarily a parent's responsibility to teach a child how the world works. But when every black character in a superhero movie is a sidekick, like Rhodey, Heimdall, or Lucius Fox, and every female is a love interest for the hero, that has to have SOME influence on an eight-year-old's outlook. Again, not a movie's responsibly, but if consumers want to see it, then that becomes what's marketable.

As mentioned before as a kid I tended to lean towards black characters rather than white ones

[Spike Spiegel]

Originally Posted by chrisdude

Isn't this issue entirely about kids?
I don't care if people in movies look like me, but if kids grow up seeing every character who accomplishes something important, or acts heroically is a white male, it's got to influence their perception of the world. I do think it is primarily a parent's responsibility to teach a child how the world works. But when every black character in a superhero movie is a sidekick, like Rhodey, Heimdall, or Lucius Fox, and every female is a love interest for the hero, that has to have SOME influence on an eight-year-old's outlook. Again, not a movie's responsibly, but if consumers want to see it, then that becomes what's marketable.

TV and films can reflect some inherent aspects of the culture they are produced in, but a little media literacy can go a long way. It's also a responsible parent's job to teach their child that the stuff they see on the screen isn't real, and that stereotypes are just that--stereotypes.

That said, I'd be lying if I said seeing Geordi LaForge, John Stewart/Green Lantern, and Static wasn't meaningful to me as a kid.