Race and ethnicity in the media: why representation matters

Media representation describes how different people and communities are portrayed in TV, film, news, and social media.

In the past and to this day, portrayals of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people have often created or reinforced harmful stereotypes. Such stereotypes promote a narrow understanding of those communities. This has the knock-on effect of contributing to real-life racism and discrimination.

Representation matters because what we see in the media doesn’t just reflect reality – it also shapes it. On the other hand, positive representation can shift public opinion for the better and create greater understanding and appreciation between cultures and communities.

UK media is not fully representative of the cultures and ethnicities that make up our population, especially at senior levels.

Meanwhile, research into structural racism in the UK journalism industry showed Black journalists and stakeholders feel "alone and unsupported" in the newsroom, frequently have their ideas rejected, are made to feel like they don't belong, and have no one in a senior position that they can talk or relate to.

Entertainment awards shows are another good measure of whether a diverse range of entertainers are being given opportunities in film and TV. The lack of minority ethnic performers receiving nominations and awards at the Oscars inspired the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag and campaign. Even though the campaign is several years old now, not enough has changed.

Representation of minority ethnic people has risen over the past three years, both in front of the camera or microphone and behind the scenes.

The result was children and young people turning towards social media channels like YouTube and Tiktok where they can find content and stories that better reflect their own lives. But racism still exists in these spaces, whether it’s in the comments section or the fact that Black content creators are still paid less than white ones for similar opportunities.

In addition, coverage of events like recent Black Lives Matter demonstrations or the treatment of Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, has prompted questions about whether the UK news media itself still has a racism problem.

While advertising media has become more inclusive in recent years, marketing campaigns targeted at women and girls still tend to feature lighter-skinned Black, biracial, or 'racially ambiguous' women rather than dark-skinned women.

The lack of representation of dark-skinned people in the media is reinforcing it.

The Netflix campaign #FirstTimeISawMe asked people from minority groups when they first saw themselves reflected by a character on-screen. What this revealed is that it isn’t just about seeing a person of the same ethnicity as you on-screen.

This is why fleshed-out characters, not stereotypes or two-dimensional characters, are so important.

Children and young people are still developing their sense of who they are. The media they consume plays a role in how they view themselves. A lack of representation can lead to children from minority ethnic backgrounds feeling invisible or unimportant.

This is wrong – no child should grow up feeling less valuable than others because of who they are or where they come from.

The more positive and varied representation of people from all races and ethnicities there is on-screen, the more that media can help children to grow up embracing themselves and others for who they are.

Through our Young Ambassador's board, we are able to hear directly from young people about the issues that matter to them most.

We give the young people we work for a chance to represent themselves which helps to inform, shape, and influence our work.

Here’s a small selection of books for children and young people to help them discover new things about their own culture, or someone else’s.