Colour TV
Fall lineup shows U.S. networks finally embracing diversity
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/09/2014 (3477 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
In 2008, when America’s broadcast networks unveiled their new TV schedules, only one show was anchored by a minority — and he was a black cartoon character voiced by a white actor.
Six years later, prime time is undergoing a big, multicultural change. When the fall season starts in earnest Monday, it will deliver the most racially diverse lineup in recent history, with at least eight new shows prominently featuring non-white performers.
It’s a groundbreaking development that has those who have long lobbied for more diversity in television expressing both relief and surprise. Eric Deggans, an NPR TV critic and author, says it feels like “a fantasy fever dream.”
Leading the charge is ABC, with several new series populated by black, Asian and Latino characters. Among the most notable are Black-ish, a family sitcom that humorously deals with issues of race, ethnicity and assimilation, and Cristela, a sitcom pegged to a Latina law student played by standup comedian Cristela Alonzo.
Then there’s the sexy, twisty legal drama How to Get Away With Murder from superstar producer Shonda Rhimes (Scandal, Grey’s Anatomy) that stars Viola Davis. Both women are black.
Coming to ABC later this season is Fresh Off the Boat, about an Asian-American clan living in Orlando and American Crime, a drama from John Ridley, the black writer who penned the screenplay for the Academy Award-winning 12 Years a Slave.
Paul Lee, ABC’s entertainment chief, told reporters this summer diversity has become nothing less than a “mission statement” for his network.
“In a way, that’s not so much diversity as authenticity,” he said. “If you look at shows now that seem to lack diversity, they actually feel dated, because America doesn’t look like that anymore.”
‘If you look at shows now that seem to lack diversity,
they actually feel dated, because America doesn’t look like that anymore’
ABC isn’t the only network stepping up. Last week, Fox premièred Red Band Society, a medical drama starring Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer (The Help). Next month, NBC will roll out State of Affairs, a CIA thriller featuring Alfre Woodard as the president of the United States, and The CW has Jane the Virgin, an adaptation of a Venezuelan telenovela with promising newcomer Gina Rodriguez in the lead role.
Ever since 1999, when the NAACP decried the paucity of ethnic representation in prime time, critics and activists have prodded networks to boost their levels of diversity. Typically, the networks responded with half-hearted efforts, most often relegating non-white actors to secondary and/or stereotypical roles.
So why is diversity all the rage now? Because it makes good business sense, industry observers say. They point to the game-changing success of Rhimes and her spicy dramas, all of which feature multicultural casts.
Rhimes, who will take over ABC’s entire Thursday-night block this fall, is the most powerful woman in scripted television. Her political melodrama Scandal — starring black actress Kerry Washington — was the third-highest-rated drama on broadcast TV last season.
Of her trailblazing ways, Rhimes insists she’s just doing what comes naturally.
“I get a lot of ‘Why is it so hard to cast people of colour?’ questions,” she says. “My answer is always: ‘Why are you asking me that question?’ Why don’t you ask someone who isn’t casting people of colour?… I would rather you just look at the work, because the world of television should look like the world outside.”
Rhimes’ comments are underscored by research suggesting increased diversity can bolster ratings. A recent UCLA study analyzed more than 1,000 TV shows across cable and broadcast, and it found viewers were more drawn to shows with ethnically diverse lead cast members and writers.
Moreover, Nielsen says, black viewers watch 37 per cent more television than the U.S. average.
“(The networks) now see that diversity in casting is not only the language of the future, but it’s a route to Peabody awards, social-media buzz and ratings,” Deggans says. “It didn’t hurt that one of the most racially insensitive new shows of last season, Fox’s Dads, died a messy death amid loads of negative press about its jokes on Latina and Asian characters.”
And now, actors of colour are poised to benefit from the diversity push. For example, Davis, 49, lends her commanding presence to How to Get Away With Murder playing an enigmatic, hard-nosed lawyer and law professor. Despite a long career that includes two Oscar nominations and a Tony Award, it’s the first screen role to present her as a leading lady.
“There is no way, in the history of film or TV, that you’ve seen a character like this played by a black woman who looks like me,” she says, referring to her age and dark skin tone. “This is progressive. This is a first.”
On the other end of the spectrum is the 28-year-old Rodriguez, who in Jane the Virgin plays a straitlaced Latina student who is accidentally inseminated by a careless gynecologist. Despite the outrageous premise, Jane has been praised by critics, thanks largely to a funny, heartfelt performance by Rodriguez, who previously turned down what she called a “limiting” role on the cable series Devious Maids.
“Being a maid is fantastic,” she says. “I have many family members that have fed their families on doing that job. But there are other stories to be told, and I think the media is a venue to educate and teach our next generation.”
— MCT Information Services