i spy candy

In general, this course has been an eye-openingly interesting semester of discoveries and discussions. The conversational more than lecture style of the course really helped fuel discussions amongst classmates on topics of race, gender and diversity in the media. In some of these discussions I was surprised by what some people had to say on certain topics, usually by how honest they were in sharing their feelings about a certain race such as African-Americans or Asian-Americans. At the same time, I could feel the air in the room tense up when no one was answering a very race-driven question that would be difficult to answer without potentially offending someone in the room. Tense or not, these discussions leave the classroom with me. From the very beginning of the year, when I read my book about Asian-Americans in the media, I started to realize how I was becoming ultra-sensitive to race. I would go on with my life as usual, but I would notice things pertaining to race much more strongly and heavily. On television shows, commercials, magazine advertisements, even the cosmetics aisle at the grocery store. I felt like I was getting offended much more easily and perhaps reading too much into things. In particular, I realized how much my Korean and other Asian friends actually did fit the stereotypes discussed in the book and our class. Being a journalism major, I am one of the very few Asians or minorities in the J-school. Most of all my Asian friends really are pre-med, business, engineering or prepping for law school. It made me realize that, in a way, there are reasons why there is less or limited access to certain minorities. Similarly, the lack of coverage could be a result of a lack of care/activism/response from us—the minority group. If no one wants to report or be reported on, then it’s not going to happen. Obviously, this is not always the case and there is truly a problem with the lack of minorities and diversity in the news and the newsrooms, but at the same time, this class made me realize that there needs to be some effort on our part as well. As to many things in life, teaching and learning—educating is a great place to start.