Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program

Media researchers have often examined how film and television can have an impact on audiences. Media have various effects on audience members. When it comes to representing ‘the other’, the media often rely on stereotypes. Research has shown that ethnic Arabs are under-represented in US film and tel...

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Main Authors: Kubeisy, S., Freeman, Bradley C.
Format: Article
Published: Sage 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:http://eprints.sunway.edu.my/1502/
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author Kubeisy, S.
Freeman, Bradley C.
author_facet Kubeisy, S.
Freeman, Bradley C.
author_sort Kubeisy, S.
building SU Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Media researchers have often examined how film and television can have an impact on audiences. Media have various effects on audience members. When it comes to representing ‘the other’, the media often rely on stereotypes. Research has shown that ethnic Arabs are under-represented in US film and television, and their depictions are distorted with stereotypical portrayals. The current study joins the discussion on ‘media representation’ (in this case, informed by the construct of Occidentalism) by conducting a qualitative, thematic, content analysis (informed by narrative analysis, both socio-linguistic and socio-cultural) of the Jordanian television show My American Neighbor. Stereotypes can be both positive and negative, and they are often used by media storytellers regardless of their background or location in the World.
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spelling sunway-15022020-11-06T06:08:15Z http://eprints.sunway.edu.my/1502/ Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program Kubeisy, S. Freeman, Bradley C. PN1990 Broadcasting Media researchers have often examined how film and television can have an impact on audiences. Media have various effects on audience members. When it comes to representing ‘the other’, the media often rely on stereotypes. Research has shown that ethnic Arabs are under-represented in US film and television, and their depictions are distorted with stereotypical portrayals. The current study joins the discussion on ‘media representation’ (in this case, informed by the construct of Occidentalism) by conducting a qualitative, thematic, content analysis (informed by narrative analysis, both socio-linguistic and socio-cultural) of the Jordanian television show My American Neighbor. Stereotypes can be both positive and negative, and they are often used by media storytellers regardless of their background or location in the World. Sage 2020-12-01 Article PeerReviewed Kubeisy, S. and Freeman, Bradley C. (2020) Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program. Contemporary Review of the Middle East, 7 (4). pp. 431-445. ISSN 2347-7989 http://doi.org/10.1177/2347798920939840 doi:10.1177/2347798920939840
spellingShingle PN1990 Broadcasting
Kubeisy, S.
Freeman, Bradley C.
Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program
title Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program
title_full Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program
title_fullStr Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program
title_full_unstemmed Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program
title_short Bridging or widening the gap? Narrative discourses of the West and Westerners in Jordan’s My American Neighbor Television Program
title_sort bridging or widening the gap? narrative discourses of the west and westerners in jordan’s my american neighbor television program
topic PN1990 Broadcasting
url http://eprints.sunway.edu.my/1502/
http://eprints.sunway.edu.my/1502/
http://eprints.sunway.edu.my/1502/