Only 28% of speaking characters across 414 films and TV episodes in 2014-2015 were from “underrepresented” racial and ethnic groups, which is close to 10% below the U.S. population norm, according to a new study.
The report, from USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, examined 109 films and 305 TV series and found that neither has much to brag about in terms of putting minorities and women on either side of the camera.
“This is no mere diversity problem,” said Stacy L. Smith, survey author. “. This is an inclusion crisis. Over half of the content we examined features no Asian or Asian-American characters, and over 20% featured no African-American characters. It is clear that the ecosystem of entertainment is exclusionary.”
The study comes as the Academy Awards is being blasted for its lack of minorities among nominated films, spawning the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. The Oscars telecast airs on ABC Feb. 28.
Walt Disney Co. and The CW, along with SVOD players Hulu and Amazon, got decent marks for inclusion.
Read more at broadcastingcable.com.
