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SHIFTING MEDIA
20
STATE OF THE UNION
What is interesting about this current
movement, is the way in which social activists, philanthropists, and academics are calling on producers of commercial and public media
alike to tell stories that impact the public good and reflect a more accurate portrayal of Black people. The focus has been on pop culture assets, Hollywood films, and primetime television shows and occurs at a time when years of funding cutbacks and political backlash have resulted in public media taking a more cautious, conservative approach to programming. Additionally, as public media platforms have skewed towards a white, affluent, and middle- aged demographic, new digital platforms
and technologies including social media have enabled the production and delivery of content to multiple highly-segmented niche markets. The
Black public and younger demographics have migrated to sundry platforms where content speaks more directly to their cultural interests, consumption needs, and identities. This is consistent with historical trends in that young Black content makers have always demonstrated a propensity for migrating to find a place for their work, from independent to Hollywood, from PBS to Cable Access and back to independent outlets, and now to online and new platforms. However, there is a qualitative difference in
the current trends. Black content in decades
past always had fewer options due in part to
the limitations of technology and production requirements. In this new media landscape, Black content that speaks to the important social issues of our times may find funding and distribution across a range of industry spaces and platforms.
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