This paper discusses the issue of stereotyping ethnic groups in film and television. In a 1999 Gallup poll measuring potentially offensive movie content, 62% said that they find negative racial stereotypes in movies and television to be "extremely" or "very" offensive. An additional 22% found it to be "somewhat" offensive. The results varied little among whites and non-whites, with 67% of non-whites, and 61% of whites falling into the "extremely", "very", or "somewhat" offensive categories. In the same poll, graphic violence, profanity and nudity were shown to be less offensive than negative racial stereotyping amongst all groups. These results make it clear that this is a problem that Hollywood needs to take notice of. But in the following pages, I will cite examples of recent Hollywood prime offenders of negative racial stereotyping.
