black representation
TRANSCRIPT
Black-Oriented TV Shows
-Primarily sitcoms,
variety shows,
night-time dramas
-Found especially
on Fox, later UPN
and WB
In Living Color
1990-1994 on Fox
1970s: The Post-Civil Rights Era
-presence of black cast members and entirely black casts began to proliferate in the 1970s
Julia 1968-71 (NBC)
Sanford and Son 1972-77 (NBC) Good Times
1974-79 (CBS)
Flip Wilson Show 1970-74 (NBC)
Gray’s Argument:There are fewer “black shows”
- mainly scheduled on newest networks (WB, UPN, Fox)
-mostly sitcoms
-most were long-running shows that had been renewed
-primarily aimed at middle and working-class black Americans
(based on the 1997 TV schedule)
1996 Telecommunications Act
“…gave major US corporations…the green light to pursue mergers, joint ventures, new research and development, and worldwide expansion…[through which] major corporations extended their control.” (Gray, 120)”
Quotes from Gray:
“…the genre of situational comedy--long associated with intimacy, family, romance and domesticity--is a site of some of the most benign but persistent segregation in American public culture”
“Black oriented programming that enjoys a wide reception in black households, seldom if ever register with white viewers”
Segregation on TV?
All in the Family 1971-83 (CBS)
-ranked #1 in Nielsen ratings from 1971-76
The Jeffersons 1975-85 (CBS)
The Cosby Show 1971-83 (CBS)
-ranked #1 in Nielsen ratings from 1985-90
No More “Black Shows”?
Fresh Prince 1990-96 (NBC)
Family Matters 1989-98 (ABC/CBS)
Chapelle’s Show 2003-2006 (CC)
Bernie Mac Show 2001-2006 (FOX)
Sister, Sister 1993-1999 (WB)
House of Payne 2007-now (TBS)