A Lesson Plan from Life Planning Education: A Youth Development Program

Purpose: To explore media messages about diverse groups of people

Materials: Copies of the handout, “Messages in the Media.”(pdf)  for each participant; newsprint and markers or board and chalk; Leader's Resource, “Addresses of Television Companies.” (optional)

Time: Session 1: 15 minutes to introduce; Session 2:30-40 minutes

Planning Notes:

• You will divide the group into six teams to do this activity. To prepare handouts for each small group, make six copies of the handout and label them with one of the following:
• Women
• Old people
• African Americans
• Latinos and Latinas
• People with disabilities
• Lesbian, gay and bisexual people
• Then, make enough copies of each labeled handout so each team member has the same handout.
• For Step 4 you will need examples of media messages to help teens understand what to look for when they look critically at the media. Two weeks or so before you plan to begin the activity, look for both print and electronic media images. Watch television shows and movies popular with your group, and clip sample images from teen magazines and newspapers. (For example, you might share several contrasting visual images of women in the print media or your observations about the portrayal of African Americans in popular sitcoms or movies.)
• Some populations—lesbian, gay and bisexual people and people with disabilities—are largely absent from the popular media. Groups assigned those populations will have a more difficult task. In Session 2, discuss which groups are not represented.

Procedure:

Session 1

1. Ask teens for examples of popular television shows (both network and cable), movies and magazines. List them on newsprint or the board, by category. Ask teens how they would rate the portrayals  - on a scale from O (very negative) to 10 (very positive) for their representation and treatment of diverse groups of people. Explain that by “diversity” you mean people of color, women, old people, people with disabilities, and lesbian, gay and bisexual people.Take a quick assessment of the group's rankings and write them on the board or newsprint, under the following headings:
• Network television
• Cable television
• Movies
• Magazines
2. Tell participants to evaluate how the media portrays different groups of people that are discriminated against. Go over instructions for the activity:
• You will work in six teams and each team will be assigned one group of people to research in the media The groups we will research are:
• Women
• Old people
• African Americans
• Latinos and Latinas
• People with disabilities
• Lesbian, gay and bisexual people
• Find at least two examples of how your group of people is portrayed in these four media: network and cable television, film and magazines.
• Review television programs, movies and magazines. Find examples and take notes on your handouts.
• Bring your completed handouts and be prepared to share your findings with the whole group at the next session.
3. Divide participants into six groups and distribute to each the handouts you have prepared.
4. Provide several examples of media messages to help the groups get started. Use different, contrasting types of images and discuss them briefly to be sure everyone understands what to do with their assignments.
   

Session 2

1. Invite the teams to make their presentations. Ask for a group to volunteer to go first. Ask for their overall rating of how each medium treats their category of people and record it on the board or newsprint.
2. Repeat the process until all six groups have presented, then remind the group of the ratings they gave at the beginning of this activity. Have them adjust their media ratings up or down, according to their research.
3. Conclude the activity using the Discussion Points.
   

Optional Activity

Participants can write letters to network or cable channels to make their views known, both positive and negative. Have them include examples gathered during their research for this activity. Use the Leader’s Resource for addresses.

Discussion Points:

1. Overall, which medium does the best job of portraying diversity positively? Give examples of positive portrayals.
2. Which does the worst job? Give examples of offensive portrayals.
3. Do other media (such as newspapers, popular book, comic books, music videos, popular radio shows) portray diversity in a positive or negative light? Are particular groups portrayed better or worse than others?
4. What television show would you encourage a younger brother or sister to watch for a positive view of diversity? A negative view?