Commercial interests invariably become entwined with making films, with reporting
the news and with other forms of information and entertainment. Pervasive mediagenerated gender and racial stereotypes distort cultural representations and
negatively impact users’ perceptions of society. As students learn to create various
forms of media, their points of reference are often these negative images, which
are then reflected to some extent in their content. This creates a worrisome cycle
reinforcing the stereotypes in the present and perpetuating these for the future.
While there are clearly no right or wrong answers in art, there are good and bad
interpretive choices in pedagogy. This essay explores and articulates a more useful
method of student engagement, especially in reference to media literacy,
multiculturalism and stereotypes and presents pedagogical methods and
strategies to combat negative images in the media.