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Stereotypes in Mass Media

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Stereotypes in Mass Media

Mass media has become a main source of popular culture in modern society. The media does not only entertain or feed information to the audience, but also transfers the beliefs, values and stereotypes of the society resulting to a change in the order of life in society (Wells 514). According to Althusser, families, schools and religions play a crucial role of ideological state apparatuses. Such institutions indoctrinate and transfer the ideologies of society into the minds of people in the society in order to control them. However, in modern society, the media is turning out to be yet another apparatus for controlling the minds of people.

To most people, the pieces of art such as movies, magazines, documentaries and music in the media seem unique. However, all these products are no different from each other. The content in the media reflects the life of people in such a way that people would comprehend. Such a reflection occurs through reproduction of stereotypes which impacts profoundly on life in society (Wells 514). This paper examines the stereotypes mass media in more detail by considering the works of Betye Saar, the use of the concept in advertising and images in popular culture such as Aunt Jemima among others.

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima

Betye Saar is one of the few women who challenged the male artists’ dominance in the museum and gallery spaces in the 1970s. Some organizations such as The Gorilla Girl and Women Artists in Revolution did not only fight against male dominance in the world of art, but also advocated for a solution to social injustices and political issues affecting them. For this reason, Betye Saar, through her piece, addressed issues of gender as well as race. At that time, even though the American government had passed laws regarding voting rights and

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