How can TV and movies get representation right? We asked 6 Hollywood diversity consultants.
In 2012, Kerry Washington, star of the Shonda Rhimes-created ABC political drama Scandal,became the first black woman to lead a network drama in nearly four decades. Two seasons later, the series became the first on a major broadcast network that “was created by … Continue reading How can TV and movies get representation right? We asked 6 Hollywood diversity consultants.
How Netflix’s Voltron: Legendary Defender became an essential animated series
Since Netflix’s Voltron: Legendary Defender debuted in 2016, critics have praised the streaming network’s reboot of the iconic 1984 Saturday morning cartoon Voltron: Defender of the Universe (which itself was an adaptation of a Japanese anime series). Consensus throughout the reboot’s first two seasons was that … Continue reading How Netflix’s Voltron: Legendary Defender became an essential animated series
Solar eclipses have been a science fiction theme for thousands of years
Storytellers have long fixated on the awe-inspiring phenomenon that is a total solar eclipse. From ancient myths about dragons eating the sun to hundreds of more contemporary depictions — in Stephen King’s 1992 novel Dolores Claiborne, the 2006 film Apocalypto, or any number of … Continue reading Solar eclipses have been a science fiction theme for thousands of years
The myth that all black students get a free ride is just that — a myth
The conversation about equal access to education during the college admissions process — and the resulting bill for that education — were reignited after the New York Times reported Tuesday about a potential investigation by the Department of Justice on … Continue reading The myth that all black students get a free ride is just that — a myth
People are filing trademark applications to “own” the swastika and the n-word
Nine applications to register derogatory words and symbols have been filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office following a US Supreme Court ruling in June that barring such trademarks was unconstitutional. The n-word and swastikas are among the culturally … Continue reading People are filing trademark applications to “own” the swastika and the n-word
A new CDC report could reignite the debate over Hollywood’s influence on teen tobacco use
A new study about a rise in onscreen smoking is helping firm up the link between the media’s influences and our real-life behavior. A recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that between 2010 and 2016, the number of instances tobacco was used in any calendar week’s top 10-grossing movies had grown by a whopping 80 percent. From 2010 to 2016, the big screen increased overall tobacco impressions — otherwise known as the individual occurrences of tobacco use — by 72 percent, or 1,321 films. Among R-rated films, the trend grew 90 percent over that six-year period while films … Continue reading A new CDC report could reignite the debate over Hollywood’s influence on teen tobacco use
Barbie has adapted to the idea that all women are not the same. Now Ken has too.
After 56 years at Barbie’s side, Ken is getting a makeover. Mattel announced this week that it’s expanding its fleet of Mr. Rights, offering 15 variations of Ken dolls in three body types, seven skin tones, eight hair colors, and nine hairstyles. Like Barbie’s … Continue reading Barbie has adapted to the idea that all women are not the same. Now Ken has too.
A Major Global Foundation Just Pledged $1 Million to the Standing Rock Sioux
For many Americans, the protests at Standing Rock were an isolated event—one indigenous community, on one swath of land in South Dakota, fighting for environmental justice. Yet, as Sioux Tribal Chairman David Archambault II stood to accept the inaugural Henry A. … Continue reading A Major Global Foundation Just Pledged $1 Million to the Standing Rock Sioux
23 Things Speechless Season One Taught Us About Life with Disabilities
If you’ve been watching ABC’s freshman comedy Speechless, it’s not hard to see why the network renewed it for a second season late last week. The show is a quirky, insightful, heartwarming and at times startlingly accurate portrayal of what it’s … Continue reading 23 Things Speechless Season One Taught Us About Life with Disabilities
Underground’s Subversion of Villainy & Heroism Affirms Black Humanity
From pop-up procedural extras to galactic ‘Big Bads’, one thing TV has never been short on is black villains. I mulled over the implications of this during Underground’s first season and found myself coming back to it as I re-watched … Continue reading Underground’s Subversion of Villainy & Heroism Affirms Black Humanity
Abbey White 