De Commerciele Massamedia 62

Net zoals op de Nederlandse televisie ziet men in de VS dezelfde witte hoofden in iets wisselende samenstellingen op de beeldbuis, voor de overgrote meerderheid man en heel erg blank. Dat is de programma-invulling van de tv-bazen in de multiculturele samenleving.

'News Shows: White Men's Realm
By Joe Garofoli
The San Francisco Chronicle

Study documents lack of diversity on Sunday programs.
Here's a silver lining in last month's avalanche of news coverage of Don Imus: The disc jockey's racist and sexist remarks inspired at least one Sunday morning talk show to invite women and people of color to discuss Imus' comments.
Seeing nonwhite men on the Sunday shows is as rare as seeing them on the floor of the U.S. Senate. According to a study to be released Monday by the liberal media organization Media Matters for America, which was obtained by The Chronicle, at least 77 percent of the 2,150 guests who appeared on the four major Sunday shows in 2005-06 were men; at least 82 percent were white.
So that made the April 15 episode of NBC's "Meet the Press" somewhat unusual. PBS anchor Gwen Ifill and Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson - both African Americans - were invited as panelists in the wake of the Imus controversy. On the show, Ifill criticized host Tim Russert for tacitly endorsing Imus' history of bigoted remarks by repeatedly appearing on the DJ's show.
"There has been radio silence from a lot of people who have done this program who could have spoken up and said, 'I find this offensive or I didn't know,'" Ifill said. Turning to Russert, Ifill said, "These people didn't speak up. Tim, we didn't hear from you."
Not only did the moment make for good TV, it was a rare example, analysts said, of how broadening the pool of talking heads can lead to a more inclusive and representative national conversation. Sunday shows are closely monitored by the nation's decision-makers, as a barometer of Beltway buzz.
"The April 15 broadcast of NBC's 'Meet the Press' is an excellent example of how much better these programs are capable of being when a group of diverse personalities and voices are brought together to discuss issues of the day," said Media Matters spokesman Karl Frisch. Ifill's comments showed how the chummy Beltway media could foster "an environment where Imus' history of bigoted language could be tolerated."'

Lees verder: http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051407P.shtml Of:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/05/13/MNGI7PQ9901.DTL