Black Media and Inequality in the Media Structure: Notes on Brazil and USA

Abstract

The objective of this article is to analyze the articulation between racism, communication policies (to promote or restrict racial diversity), and their reflection in the organization of media systems. This research is focused on Brazil and the United States, countries that have different trajectories in regulating and promoting racial diversity in communication. In the American context, there were explicit laws that restricted African Americans’ access to concessions, however affirmative actions were implemented to introduce greater plurality in the sector. In Brazil, on the other hand, there were no formal limitations, which, however, did not imply a reduction in inequality in the media structure. As a methodology, this investigation adopted a documentary analysis (laws and reports) to map communication policies and the participation of the black media in media systems, and interviews made with black media’s owners. As the main result, this research points out that the affirmative action policies to employ black professionals and promote greater racial diversity in this field are reflected, even today, in a more plural scenario in the USA compared to the Brazilian one. Brazil, with 56 % of the black population, has only 10 news websites and a magazine, while the United States, with 14 % of African Americans in its population, has over 500 black media. However, in the two countries studied, the difficulty of promoting racial diversity in communication is evident, either due to the obstacle of advancing the debate and the creation of these policies, such as the Brazilian case, or due to the setback and discontinuity of the affirmative action policy verified in the States United.