Executive Summary
Guy Cumberbatch, Sally Gauntlett, Maxine Richards and Victoria Littlejohns
The research
This survey examined the representation and portrayal of ethnic minorities in the top ten most viewed television programmes each week over a period of four weeks on the five terrestrial channels (BBC1, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5). The sample was drawn from 20th November to 17th December 2000.
A total of 204 programmes were captured in the sample. The main genres are listed below:
This sample must be considered to represent the blockbuster programmes on television: the total combined audience for these 204 programmes was 1,156.54 million ‘viewers’ (as given by BARB), or, more correctly, viewing experiences.
Representation
Ethnic categories used in the 2001 population census were employed to categorise the television population and allow comparison with real world data.
This UK TV figure is also boosted by ethnic minority visitors1 who, when removed from the sample, reduce the representation of resident UK ethnic minorities to:
Black people occurred more frequently in UK programmes (3.7% of all participants) than in the real world (2.1%).
Asian people (including Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and ‘other Asian’) were the most under represented. Compared with the real world, where they account for 3.7% of the population, they were almost invisible on television at just 0.9% of UK TV programme participants (or 1% if visitors are included).
Other ethnic minorities (‘Chinese and all other ethnicities’), who are estimated to be some 0.6% of the population in Great Britain, accounted for only 0.2% of participants in UK programmes.
Mixed parentage people have been estimated at 0.4% of the real world in census updates of Great Britain and appear at the same frequency in UK programming (0.4%).
When examining the nature of the portrayals, a number of findings provide more grounds for concern about how ethnic minorities are represented:
Portrayals
In the overall sample, ethnic minority participants were far less likely to enjoy major roles. They contributed:
In fictional programmes
In factual programmes
The overall ethnic minority representation achieved in this sample was primarily due to minor interviewees (a role enjoyed by 66% of all ethnic minority participants compared with only 40% of the White comparison sample).
Additionally, representation of ethnic minorities was far more likely to be achieved by vox pop sound bites or very brief interviews (21% compared with only 4% of the White base).
The marginalisation of ethnic minorities suggested by the above is also seen in the subject of contribution to factual programming. In total 167 subjects were coded for ethnic minority participants and 199 for the White base sample. However,
These figures might be taken to imply trivialisation of ethnic minority contributions.
Perhaps more interesting in this comparison between the two groups, is that while 17% of the White base made contributions to everyday subjects such as gardening, cookery, hobbies and interests, this was true of only 2% of the ethnic minority sample. Apart from the occasional cookery contribution, ethnic minorities were almost invisible in this domain.
Overall, most measures did not reveal the kind of overt examples of prejudice against ethnic minorities claimed by some. However, the pattern of findings is troublesome and draws attention to some more persistent if subtle forms of representation and portrayal.
One example, which is clearly not simply a UK problem, emerged in the analysis of the total sample. Coders were asked to categorise all Black participants in terms of skin tone and features. While 45% of all Black women were judged as having predominantly ‘western features’, this was true of only 17% of Black males. Furthermore, while lighter skin tones were no different between males and females, 30% of Black males were judged as having ‘dark’ (ebony) tone compared with only 11% of Black females.
This might suggest a bias in favour of White idealisation of ethnic minorities (at least for women) who appear to be only reluctantly admitted to our screens. These findings may indicate a more central problem in the growing concerns about the representation and portrayal of cultural diversity.
The Home Secretary, Jack Straw, recently stated that he would not be surprised if the forthcoming census revealed that 10% of Great Britain’s population was now an ethnic minority. He may be premature in this, but the very youthful profile of ethnic minority groups (only 8% are over 60 compared with 21% of White people in Great Britain), indicates that this will certainly be the reality before too long.
Is television falling behind in the race?
This survey examined the representation and portrayal of ethnic minorities in the top ten most viewed television programmes each week over a period of four weeks on the five terrestrial channels (BBC1, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5). The sample was drawn from 20th November to 17th December 2000.
A total of 204 programmes were captured in the sample. The main genres are listed below:
- Quiz and Game (17% of programmes) included Who Wants to be a Millionaire? They Think Its All Over and The Weakest Link.
- Documentaries (16% of programmes) included Pet Rescue and Murder Detectives.
- Soap Operas (14% of programmes) included EastEnders and Coronation Street.
- Consumer programmes (9%) included The Antiques Roadshow and Charlie’s Wildlife Garden.
- Police
and Detective (6%), such as Heartbeat, Comedy (5%) and Contemporary
Drama (5%) were the remaining predominant genres. Many of the remaining
programmes were films.
This sample must be considered to represent the blockbuster programmes on television: the total combined audience for these 204 programmes was 1,156.54 million ‘viewers’ (as given by BARB), or, more correctly, viewing experiences.
Representation
Ethnic categories used in the 2001 population census were employed to categorise the television population and allow comparison with real world data.
- Overall, ethnic minority representation on television was 8.4% of all people counted in the programmes captured.
- USA productions included 11.8% ethnic minority participants compared with
- UK
productions which included 6.9% representation.
This UK TV figure is also boosted by ethnic minority visitors1 who, when removed from the sample, reduce the representation of resident UK ethnic minorities to:
- 5.2% of the world of television compared with
- 6.7% in
the real world (as given by the Office of National Statistics, 2001)
Black people occurred more frequently in UK programmes (3.7% of all participants) than in the real world (2.1%).
Asian people (including Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and ‘other Asian’) were the most under represented. Compared with the real world, where they account for 3.7% of the population, they were almost invisible on television at just 0.9% of UK TV programme participants (or 1% if visitors are included).
Other ethnic minorities (‘Chinese and all other ethnicities’), who are estimated to be some 0.6% of the population in Great Britain, accounted for only 0.2% of participants in UK programmes.
Mixed parentage people have been estimated at 0.4% of the real world in census updates of Great Britain and appear at the same frequency in UK programming (0.4%).
When examining the nature of the portrayals, a number of findings provide more grounds for concern about how ethnic minorities are represented:
Portrayals
In the overall sample, ethnic minority participants were far less likely to enjoy major roles. They contributed:
- 9.1% of all incidental roles
- 8.4% of minor roles, but only
- 5.7% of major roles.
In fictional programmes
- 15% of ethnic minority participants were in major roles compared with 22% of the total television population (6% of all major roles) in fictional programmes.
- 29% of ethnic minority participants were in minor roles compared with 30% of the total television population (9% of all minor roles) in fictional programmes.
- 56% of
ethnic minority participants of all incidental roles compared with 48%
of the total television population (11% of all incidental roles) in
fictional programmes.
In factual programmes
- 3% of ethnic minority participants were major presenters compared with 6% of the total television population in factual programmes (3% of all major presenters were ethnic minorities).
- 3%
of ethnic minority participants were minor presenters compared with 6%
of the total television population in factual programmes (3% of all
minor presenters were ethnic minorities).
The overall ethnic minority representation achieved in this sample was primarily due to minor interviewees (a role enjoyed by 66% of all ethnic minority participants compared with only 40% of the White comparison sample).
Additionally, representation of ethnic minorities was far more likely to be achieved by vox pop sound bites or very brief interviews (21% compared with only 4% of the White base).
The marginalisation of ethnic minorities suggested by the above is also seen in the subject of contribution to factual programming. In total 167 subjects were coded for ethnic minority participants and 199 for the White base sample. However,
- more than one quarter (26%) of the contributions made by ethnic minority participants were either coded as ‘personal experiences’ or ‘subject too brief/no substance’ compared with only 11% of the White base sample.
- one
quarter (24%) of ethnic minority contributions were about musical
performances or other entertainment compared with only 11% of the White
base sample.
These figures might be taken to imply trivialisation of ethnic minority contributions.
Perhaps more interesting in this comparison between the two groups, is that while 17% of the White base made contributions to everyday subjects such as gardening, cookery, hobbies and interests, this was true of only 2% of the ethnic minority sample. Apart from the occasional cookery contribution, ethnic minorities were almost invisible in this domain.
Overall, most measures did not reveal the kind of overt examples of prejudice against ethnic minorities claimed by some. However, the pattern of findings is troublesome and draws attention to some more persistent if subtle forms of representation and portrayal.
One example, which is clearly not simply a UK problem, emerged in the analysis of the total sample. Coders were asked to categorise all Black participants in terms of skin tone and features. While 45% of all Black women were judged as having predominantly ‘western features’, this was true of only 17% of Black males. Furthermore, while lighter skin tones were no different between males and females, 30% of Black males were judged as having ‘dark’ (ebony) tone compared with only 11% of Black females.
This might suggest a bias in favour of White idealisation of ethnic minorities (at least for women) who appear to be only reluctantly admitted to our screens. These findings may indicate a more central problem in the growing concerns about the representation and portrayal of cultural diversity.
The Home Secretary, Jack Straw, recently stated that he would not be surprised if the forthcoming census revealed that 10% of Great Britain’s population was now an ethnic minority. He may be premature in this, but the very youthful profile of ethnic minority groups (only 8% are over 60 compared with 21% of White people in Great Britain), indicates that this will certainly be the reality before too long.
Is television falling behind in the race?
1 This term represents participants who were visiting a country in which they became a minority (e.g. Nelson Mandela in the UK).
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