| MediaSmarts

Privilege in the Media - Overview

Privilege is the relative benefit that a group enjoys as a result of the discrimination or oppression of other groups. When we think about racism and discrimination, we often envision acts of deliberate meanness or quantifiable oppression of a disadvantaged group – hurtful words, tasteless jokes, deliberate exclusion from work or school, acts of violence, and so on – but it can just as easily take the form of privileges given to members of a more advantaged group.

Diversity in Media, Privilege in the Media

Benefits of Privilege in Relation to Media

I can look at the media and see people from my group widely represented as heroes, role models, leaders, news anchors, television hosts, and experts.

Diversity in Media, Privilege in the Media, Stereotyping

Forms of Privilege

Social justice activists and writers have built on Peggy McIntosh’s original essay on privilege in 1988, by adding to and modifing the original list to highlight how privilege is not merely about race or gender, but that it is a series of interrelated hierarchies and power dynamics that touch all facets of social life: race, class, gender, sexual orientation, religion, education, gender identity, age, physical ability, passing, etc. These categories will be further discussed below.

Diversity in Media, Privilege in the Media

New classroom resources on media and global development

Much of what we believe about the world comes from the media products we see and hear. This is especially true of places and things we might not have actually experienced, such as developing nations and global development efforts. Beyond Media Messages: Media Portrayal of Global Development looks at how the media influences our views of developing nations and global development efforts, how we can learn to read or view media portrayals critically and how we can become media authors to promote democratic citizenship.

Global Development Portrayal, Resources

Bias in News Sources

In this lesson students consider the meaning of the words “bias” and “prejudice” and consider how bias may be found even at the level of individual words due to connotation.

Diversity in Media, Indigenous People, Journalism & News, Persons with Disabilities, Privilege in the Media, 2SLGBTQ+ Representation, Religion, Stereotyping, Visible Minorities

First Person

In this lesson students consider diversity representation in video games by identifying examples of diversity in the games they play, comparing their findings to statistics on diversity in the Canadian population.

Diversity in Media, Indigenous People, Persons with Disabilities, Privilege in the Media, 2SLGBTQ+ Representation, Religion, Stereotyping, Video Games, Visible Minorities

Truth or Money - Lesson

In this lesson, students explore how advertising leverage can lead to censorship of information about public health issues.

Marketing & Consumerism, Tobacco Marketing

Making Media for Democratic Citizenship - Lesson

In this five- or six-day unit, students create a video podcast to present balanced, unbiased perspectives on global development issues.

Global Development Portrayal, Media Production

Beyond Media Messages: Media Portrayal of Global Development

In this three-day unit, students assess media coverage of natural disasters and their aftermath. Students explore how sensationalism plays a role in determining what is newsworthy, and how that can distort our perception of issues in developing nations.

Authenticating Information, Global Development Portrayal, Journalism & News, Stereotyping