The Importance of Avoiding Stereotypes in Children's Television Programs

In the last two decades, there has been a corporate effort to rid cartoons of stereotypes. Warner Bros. has a series of cartoons called the "Censored Eleven"-eleven cartoons they've banned from reproduction because of the racial stereotypes apparent in them. One of these cartoons, "Coal Black and De Sebben Dwarves," is a "parody of Disney's Snow White with a cast of black characters" (Guide). Another, "All This and Rabbit Stew," has Bugs Bunny "being hunted by a slow-witted black hunter with a weakness for gambling" (Guide).

In May of 2001, Cartoon Network announced that they would air a marathon of Bugs Bunny cartoons-49 hours long. However, upon closer inspection, the network pulled 12 cartoons from the lineup. These cartoons dealt with stereotypes of African Americans, Native Americans, the Japanese, and Eskimos. Since the program would be aired when children under 11 would be watching, the network felt that airing such stereotypes would be inappropriate (Leland).

However, John Leland, in his New York Times editorial, reported that "Bugs' many encounters with French, Italian, and Irish stereotypes [ran] uncensored" (Leland). This calls the network's motives into question: why deem certain stereotypes inappropriate and not others? It seems, in this post-civil rights period, some stereotypes have become more avoided than others. However, stereotypes are harmful to all people, whether they are meant to parody African American or Caucasian races, social class or occupation. In our race to become "politically correct," have we deemed certain stereotypes harmful while allowing others to exist without chastisement?

When dealing with issues of hate speech, it is important to consider the ongoing debates on free speech. Faced with book-banning activists, the American Library Association enacts their policy against censorship. In their publication, "The Freedom to Read," they state that it would be against "public interest" to ban books that go against certain views. All innovative ideals are initially controversial, and banning these ideals because they are "unpopular with the majority" would halt the production of opinions. In a democratic society, people should be allowed the right to choose between "conflicting opinions" (American).

Topping the ALA's list of the "Most Frequently Challenged Books" are titles that showcase the realities of social injustice. The Adventures of Huckelberry Finn is among the top 100. Challengers of this book claim that the representations of slavery and racism are too graphic for young children (Goshgarian). However, for a child to have a complete understanding of the horrors of racism and slavery, they need to see through the eyes of the people who experienced these things. It is in this way that people form developed opinions. You can tell a child that slavery was horrific, but, until they really see what slavery was like, they cannot develop this opinion as their own.

A person's ability to develop their own opinions by choosing between "conflicting opinions" (American) makes both tolerant and hate speech equally important. Tolerant speech allows a person to gain ideals that promote tolerance. Hate speech allows us to see why tolerance is important because it invites us to imagine ourselves at the other end of intolerance. A person may be of the opinion that homosexuals should have equal rights, but that opinion may not be defined until they come across a website called "God Hates Fags" and can imagine how they'd feel if the website was called "God Hates You."

Though both tolerant and hate speech may be equally important in the development of opinions, stereotyping is a subset of hate speech that is overall very detrimental to the formation of opinions. Because of the inherent humor that generally accompanies stereotyping, children can view stereotypes as funny rather than hurtful. When a child hears a parent call someone a Pollock, they think that "Pollock" is simply a funny word for stupid. They are unable to comprehend the hatred toward the Polish that this statement stems from.

If it would be inappropriate for a child under 11 to view certain instances of stereotyping in Looney Tunes cartoons, then why would it not be inappropriate for the same child to view all instances of stereotyping? The problem lies in what stereotypes are considered "politically correct" in this period of time. When Warner Bros. created these cartoons, it was okay to stereotype African Americans. It is only today that such stereotypes have become intolerant. However, even in an era of political correctness, there are intolerant stereotypes that are not viewed as harmful.

Nickelodeon, a channel devoted entirely to programming for children, has programming throughout the day devoted to different age groups. In the morning, they have programs that appeal to preschool-age children. In the afternoon, they air shows that appeal to grade-school-age children. At night they have "Teen Nick."

Fairly Odd Parents, a cartoon aired in the afternoon, appeals to grade-school-age children. Therefore, it would be appropriate to assume that stereotypes would not be a part of this series. However, this is not the case. In an episode titled "Action Packed," the main character, Timmy, has a slumber party and invites two of his friends. The three boys get into an argument, and they retreat to their respective homes to watch movies alone. Timmy wants to watch the show with his friends, so he travels to the home of one boy, Chester, to watch it with him. Chester lives in a trailer park. When the boys want a snack, Chester's father offers them cans of cat food (Action).

This episode depicts people who live in trailers as poor-so poor that they have to eat cat food. Not only is the stereotype of people who live in trailers demeaning, but it is also shown to be humorous. When a child watches this episode, they are going to come away with it believing two things: it's okay to make fun of people who live in trailers, and it's also funny. The child in their class who lives in a trailer then has to deal with other kids making fun of him for things he's not even old enough to understand.

In another Nickelodeon show, Jimmy Neutron, the stereotype of a half-witted father is rampant. The main character in this show, Jimmy, is a scientific genius who consistently dupes his half-witted father. His father is a car salesman, and the stereotype of his occupation remains a running joke throughout the series. However, more importantly, Jimmy's father is a complete stereotype of a feminist view of men. His existence doesn't amount to much more than cars and dirty magazines, and he has no control over what goes on in the home. Things of that nature are left to Jimmy's mom who is, naturally, the family caretaker (Jimmy).

Adults can view such instances as they are meant-as jokes. However, children under the age of eleven do not yet have the capacity to understand the difference between a joke and an ultimate truth. If it is inappropriate for a child to see Bugs Bunny parody African Americans as poor handlers of their finances, it should also be inappropriate for them to see the Irish portrayed as heavy drinkers. Because children do not have the capacity to distinguish between humor and realistic portrayals, it is important that this form of harmful humor is unknown to them until they are old enough to form opinions outside of what was portrayed on their favorite television program.

With so much attention being devoted to the amount of violence in children's television programming, it would seem that some attention would be given to the other aspects of these shows that are just as, if not more, detrimental to a child's outlook. However, studies of this nature have yet to be conducted. It can be assumed that this stems from a society that avoids stereotypes not because they are harmful, but rather because they are politically incorrect. If we are to become a nation that believes in tolerance toward all people, then we must begin by instilling such values in our children. This can start with showcasing stereotyping as detrimental rather than humorous.

Works Cited

"A Guide to Censored Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies." Golden Age Cartoons. 2 Feb. 2006 .

"Action Packed." Fairly Odd Parents. Nickelodeon. 3 Mar. 2006.

American Library Association. "The Freedom to Read." Exploring Language. Ed. Gary Goshgarian. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2004. 445-9.

Goshgarian, Gary. "Huckelberry Finn Banned." Exploring Language. Ed. Gary Goshgarian. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2004. 457.

Jimmy Neutron. Nickelodeon. 16 Apr. 2006.

Leland, John. "Rascal or Racist? Censoring a Rabbit." The New York Times On The Web. 3 Jun. 2001. The New York Times. 20 Mar. 2006 .