Asian Americans in the Media

Group 1: Maile Nichols, Bridget Jimenez, Celine Tran, Jaelyn Hunter, Shelley Xing

 

Roles:

• Podcasters: Maile Nichols, Celine Tran, Shelley Xing

• Transcribers: Maile Nichols, Bridget Jimenez

• Audio Technician: Jaeylyn Hunter

• Podcast Editor: Maile Nichols

 

___ Transitions

___ Celine

___ Maile

___ Shelley

 

Introducing the episode:

In our episode, we will discuss how certain films in the media represent or misrepresent Asian Americans. This includes how the model minority myth is shown in the media, which pushes stereotypes on Asian Americans. We will also discuss how there is good representation in the film and how it gives Asian Americans something to relate to and understand. 

 

Transcript

 

[0:00:00] Intro Music

 

[0:00:11] Celine: Hi, my name is Celine

 

[0:00:012] Maile: I’m Maile

 

[0:00:13] Shelley: And I’m Shelley

 

[0:00:14] Celine: And today, we’ll address the misrepresentation of Asian Americans in the media and how the model minority myth creates stereotypes rather than breaking them, specifically in Hollywood. In the media, Asian Americans are seen as high-achieving, quiet, and problem-free, which reinforces the model minority myth instead of reflecting the diversity within these communities. This kind of misrepresentation is harmful because it not only spreads inaccurate narratives but also contributes to the invisibility of Asian Americans who do not fit these stereotypes.

 

[0:00:44] Transition to Bad Representation in The Media

 

[0:00:45] Celine: Speaking of misrepresentation in the media. Do you have any specific films in mind when it comes to misrepresentation?

 

[0:00:50] Shelley: I remember watching Harry Potter, which is a popular movie adaptation of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling that dives into the world of Wiz–Wizardry. In the past years, I have heard debates on whether Cho Change is a good or bad representation in Asians in the media.

 

[0:01:08] Maile: Yeah, there’s even an article called “There is Nothing Magical in Reinforcing Asian Stereotypes,” written by Anne Lu, that talks specifically about Cho Chang’s character. To give some background about Cho herself, she is a Ravenclaw student whom Harry developed a crush on, except she dated Cedric.

 

[0:01:25] Shelley: Omg it was so sad when Cedric died!!!

 

[0:01:28 Maile: Omg yea I literally cried. Anyways, back to Cho. When looking at her surname, “Cho” is Korean, but “Chang” is a Chinese surname, which already shows a lack of specific representation. Not only that, but she isn’t developed as her own person, with her story depending on male characters and relationships.

 

[0:01:49] Shelley: I’ve seen that she is shown as overly emotional, which fits into the “meek, dramatic Asian girl” stereotype, lacking the complexity compared to other characters. Since her character mostly revolved around her relationships with Harry Potter and Cedric, she was then placed in the “damsel-in-distress” trope after Cedric’s death. Cho Chang was seen crying multiple times and “all over the place” according to her peers, being labeled as dramatic. While she was representative of Asians within the Harry Potter franchise, her character greatly lacked depth, and was very surface level as a result.

 

[0:02:29] Celine: In addition to Asian representation in movies, there has been a rise in main characters in films with an Asian background. This includes the 2018 rom-com movie, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, in which the main character, named Lara Jean Covey, who is half white and half Korean. There has been some discussion of why this movie does not have the best overall representation, specifically for Asian Americans.

 

[0:02:52] Maile: Yeah, I remember watching this rom-com movie. To give you a little summary, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before revolves around the fake relationship between Lara Jean Covey and Peter Kavinsky. Their fake relationship actually started out because Peter wanted to make his ex-girlfriend jealous while Lara Jean wanted to hide her feelings for her sister’s ex-boyfriend.

 

[0:03:12] Shelley: There were actually a bit of negative reactions towards their fake relationships that developed throughout the movie due to growing feelings. In the article, “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and the Role of the Asian-American Actor - What is Racial Difference,” i–it ex–explores a few of the controversies of this film when it comes to representation for Asian Americans. One of the um– negative feedback revolved on how Lara Jean has an Asian background and that Kavinsky, Peter Kavinsky was white which was seen as just another example of how white men are casted and portrayed as the love interest over Asian men. This is an issue as it is, it is important to have representation on both sides. Her Asian background was not explored in the movie which can make her identity feel secondary in addition to the fact that the film focused on her white love interest.

 

[0:04:08]: Maile: Putting aside the plot of her relationship with Peter Kavinsky, Lara Jean fits the quiet, shy “perfect” Asian girl stereotypes. There were even a few scenes of her struggling to find a place to eat lunch alone before her best friend found her. It shows that she is not very social and tends to keep to herself.

 

[0:04:27] Shelley: I do remember the scenes of her being by herself at school when her only best friend and her fake boyfriend Peter Kavinsky was not around. There was this other scene later in the movie that showed how she wanted to stay in and help bake for her sister’s bake sale rather than go out and socialize and party with Peter Kavinsky. These scenes, show how um– she is solely focused on school, and never having a relationship before how–highlights how Lara Jean does fit in the Asian girl stereotype of being more quiet, shy, and reserved.

 

[0:05:04] Maile: Reading the article, there were also some comments about who was cast in the film and their ethnic backgrounds. For example, some people thought it was not as representative because of how Lana Condor, a Vietnamese-American actress, was portraying Lara Jean who is half Korean-American.

 

[0:05:22] Shelley: I do remember hearing concerns online about the actors’ and actresses’ racial background and how di–they do not mirror their characters in the film. This includes how none of the actresses of the main characters were actually Korean. This is partially due to the fact that Johnson, the director, is a white woman who has helped with the casting. This shows lack of knowledge when it comes to representing specific Asian races in films as it is important to give actors and actresses roles to characters with similar racial background to be more authentic. The article also goes into the issue of how only 5% of all roles in Hollywood are Asian-American and less than 1% are in the leading role. In order to have a more authentic approach when it comes to representation in the media, it is important to also have filmmakers and directors from underrepresented communities, like Asian Americans.

 

[0:06:18] Celine: When it comes to media representation for Asian Americans, there are many cases in which Asian characters are built or revolved around the Model Minority Myth. This includes Asian characters in the media being seen as the “smartest” or “most studious” in their friend group. For instance, Lane Kim from Gilmore Girls shows how she deals with traditional parenting and strict academic focus because of her Korean background. This includes being pressured to hide her passion for music and to do well in school because of growing up in a strict Asian household.

 

[0:06:49]: Shelley: There’s actually an article called “The Model Minority Myth: How Its Generalizations Have Hurt Asian American and Other Minorities,” written by Simrath Parma. It states how some individuals, “quickly learned that the only reason that others assumed I ke[ep] to myself, followed the rules, and solely focused on my studies was because of one reason; I am Asian.” Basically, saying how they are judged before they are known, solely based on the fact that they are Asian. Some of the stereotypes deal with Asians being seen as intelligent, obedient, and quiet successors which shows how the model minority myth does impact how Asians are perceived by their peers.

 

[0:07:35] Maile: Others have even said they were labeled as the “smart kid,” even though their grades may have said otherwise. Due to these stereotypes many Asians are judged too quickly, creating pressures while also ignoring struggles. When going back to Asian characters in the media, like Lane Kim from Gilmore Girls, many of them do fit this model minority myth where they are characterized by their strict academic focus due to the pressure and are usually the side character for a white main character, like Rory Gilmore.

 

[0:08:07] Celine: As we had discussed, recent films in the media that consist of misrepresentation of Asians, let’s look into older Hollywood films with Asian characters and how it affects Asian Americans are perceived currently. This includes how old Hollywood films usually have stereotypical roles and even “yellowface” or “brownface” when it comes to Asian characters.

 

[0:08:27] Shelley: In the article, “Old Hollywood Can Still Affect How Asian Americans Are Perceived,” written by Nancy Yuen, it includes specific cases of when “brownface” was used in old films in Hollywood. The article goes over how, during the Academy um– Awards of 2004, the audience laughed when Jim Carrey presented his speech with an exaggerated and stereotyped Indian accent when representing an Indian immigrant in the film “The Party,” and Chinese accent while squinting his eyes when referring to Cato Fong, who was a Chinese manslave in the 1964 film “A Shot in the Dark.”

 

[0:09:10] Maile: With these films that Jim Carrey mentioned in his speech, it shows how there were issues of casting white people over Asian actors for Asian characters in films. This includes mockery of Asian accents, features, and cultural gestures, and even racial slurs by the casted white actors.

 

[0:09:29] Shelley: The audience laughing at the racist jokes made against Asian representation in film also show how humor is constantly used to brush off racism. The article states how racism in these films, like “The Party,” is shown to be taken lightly when it shouldn't be, as it was listed as one of the most essential films by the British Film Institute. It is important to note that racism should never be taken lightly and should not be used intentionally as a joke. 

 

[0:10:00] Transition to Good Representation in The Media

 

[0:10:00] Celine: After going over bad representation for Asian Americans, I think it’s now a good time to start talking about good representation in the mainstream of Hollywood. Although having more representation does not necessarily mean it fully benefits the Asian community, as seen through the widely known film Crazy Rich Asians, directed by Jon M Chu.

 

[0:10:19]: Maile: I remember watching Crazy Rich Asians when it first came out! This film revolves around Rachel Chu, a Chinese American professor at NYU, traveling with her boyfriend, Nick Young, to go to his home country of Singapore for a wedding. There, she finds out that Nick comes from an incredibly wealthy and powerful family.

 

[0:10:39]: Shelley: Diving into Rachel’s character, since she is a Chinese American, Nick’s mother, Elenor, perceives her as “Americanized” as well as Rachel being raised from a single mother. Because of this, Elenor shows immense disapproval of Rachel and Nick’s relationship because of their social class differences.

 

[0:11:00] Maile: After watching this film, I think that Crazy Rich Asians shows cultural and familial challenges and expectations in both bad and good ways. Let’s start off with the bad, in this film, it only shows the rich and elite Asians, reinforcing the idea that Asians are all wealthy and successful. Additionally, Elenor Young openly frowns upon anyone that is not in their social class, reinforcing the idea that anyone who is not wealthy simply does not belong with them.

 

[0:11:31] Shelley: I’ll continue on with the good. Crazy Rich Asians include an all Asian cast, this is the first Hollywood film to do so in 25 years. This is a huge step in the right direction for visibility. Also, this film provides a platform where Asian characters were in a leading and complex roles, rather than the quiet side characters. 

 

[0:11:53] Maile: I read an article about representation in Crazy Rich Asians named “Is Crazy Rich Asian Good for Representation,” written by Nathan Liu. This article explains how the film is like a step backward for Asian Americans, as the characters are represented according to white norms. Although he argues that even though this film does not encompass the majority of Asian experience, it does showcase what life could be like for the minority of those who are both westernized and live very upper-class lives. Nonetheless, the unrealistic standards of how Asians live within Crazy Rich Asians are definitely the audience's greatest critique of the movie. But, regardless, it was overall a big step for Asian Americans, being the first ever film to have an all Asian cast while also gaining traction and popularity in the process.

 

[0:12:48] Celine: Since Crazy Rich Asians is not the most relatable film, the next piece of media we’ll discuss is about the character Tam from Young Sheldon. Even though some of his attributes also fall into some ster–stereotypes, I think he still manages to connect to a wider variety of audiences through personal experience.

 

[0:13:06] Shelley: To give some background on Young Sheldon, it is a TV show revolving around a young boy who happens to be a lot smarter than his peers, being both a genius and child prodigy. Tam is a side character who is both Sheldon’s classmate and best friend. When reading “Exploring Tam’s Character in Young Sheldon,” written by Jenelle, it talks about how, despite Tam falling into cultural stereotypes, he is al–also fighting against them through his own individuality.

 

[0:13:35] Maile: So some of these cultural stereotypes that Tam falls into is having a strict family, familial hierarchy, and family expectations with aspects of the “model minority myth” taking place. This includes Tam being academically successful as well as driven which then creates pressure for him to do well in school from both himself and his parents. Although, on the other hand, Tam breaks out of these stereotypes by not fully being defined by them as he has personality, humor, and interests. Overall, he is not surface level and has individuality by having more depth and emotion as someone who is thoughtful and empathetic which challenges the stereotypical norms of Asian men being socially awkward, quiet, and weak.

 

[0:14:30] Celine: Now that we’ve discussed how even the positives of good representation can have a negative side, I think it’s time to talk about a film that overcame it all by not only encompassing a maj–majority of aspects of the Asian American experience, but also an experience that other minority groups in the audience can relate to.

 

[0:14:50] Maile: The award-winning film Everything Everywhere All At Once took home seven Oscars and won the hearts of many in the process. The film is set around Evelyn Wang, a Chinese-immigrant mother dealing with the complicated dynamics of family, love, and acceptance of reality revolving around both her daughter Joy Wang and husband Waymond Wang. The article, “Everything Everywhere All At Once’ sets new standards for Asian representation,” written by Audrey Tsai and Ishaani Dhanotra, talks about how meaningful the representation of the film was. It showcases the difference between filmmakers simply casting actors for diversity in comparison to honestly and accurately representing the cast culture on the big screen.

 

[0:15:40] Shelley: This film shows the actors talking in their mother to–tongue and in English, with the writers of the article saying, “The film doesn’t treat accented English as a flaw; instead, it embraces it as an integral part of the characters and their community.” Everything Everywhere All At Once had depth, it feels real, and manages to make every day repetitive tasks connect to the audience. It has themes of mother vs. daughter relationship, individual vs. self, and immigrant experience.

 

[0:16:14] Maile: In a specific review of the movie written Qiouyi Lu shares their experience of watching the film, relating how it was, “Proof that people liked the world as seen through my eyes. That they wanted to see the world as I see it.” This review further highlights the impact of authentic storytelling and how it shows cultural identity in a realistic way. Most importantly, it showcases how the film moves away from stereotypes and pushes the power of representation as shown through audiences and their ability to both find comfort in the realness of the film as well as relate to it with their own experiences.

 

[0:16:55] Transition to Talking About Our Personal Experiences

 

[0:16:55] Celine: After diving into the different areas of representation as well as persistent stereotypes, as Asian Americans ourselves, where have you seen Amer–Asian Americans being portrayed in the media and film, while growing up and now?

 

[0:17:09] Maile: Yeah, some movies that I remember growing up watching were from Disney, like “Lilo & Stitch”, “Big Hero 6”, and I think the biggest one was “Mulan”. I always thought it was really cool to see a Disney princess have such a strong role as like a strong woman character and a fighter, and I feel like she was someone that a lot of young girls could look up to.

 

[0:17:32] Shelley: I think specific for me since I am Chinese, it was really nice like seeing my culture, like films. Yea just in film.

 

[0:17:40] Maile: That's so sweet.

 

[0:17:43] Celine: Yeah for “Mulan” when I was younger you know when, obviously when you’re a little girl, everyone’s like “oh who's your favorite Disney princess?” I just gravitated towards “Mulan” cause she was like the only Asian one. So I’d watched it a lot, so that was who I would choose most of the time whenever they asked, instead of like oh like “Snow White” or all the other ones. 

 

[0:18:05] Maile: No yeah, and I really like the songs in the movie as well, and obviously like I’m not Chinese, but I am Japanese so when “Big Hero 6” came out that was like super big for my family. And I thought that was like really fun to see, even though obviously like “Hiro” is not a Disney princess I thought it was still fun to see them all like in the costumes, and also like strong characters. Um, and I thought it was just a really fun movie as well. 

 

[0:18:31] Shelley: Yeah I liked how they, um, focused on like a Japanese A–American family in San Francisco, which is like, I feel it’s like a pretty specific representation to have. Moving to “Xo Kitty” which is um, an adaptation from “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” that we talked about earlier. It focuses on “Lara Jean’s” sister “Kitty” and her going to Korea and exploring her culture. 

 

[0:19:00] Maile: Yeah I really liked watching “Xo Kitty” especially as someone who grew up as half White and half Asian, so I thought it was really cool to kind of see myself in the media, um, I will say there are some parts in the show that are hard for me to watch.

 

[0:19:17] Shelley: I agree.

 

[0:19:19] Maile: Like some of the scenes, like, I just get such bad second-hand embarrassment sometimes.

 

[0:19:26] Celine: Yeah, I feel like they were trying to do like a mix of American teen romcoms, that are kind of cringe with kind of a k-drama mix. 

 

[0:19:33] Shelley: Yeah, I think that’s a good way to put it, yeah.

 

[0:19:35] Celine: But it’s kind of hard to like mix those two because they're so like opposite.

 

[0:19:41] Maile: Yeah for sure. And I know that season 3 like just came out, so I was watching it with my mom and I genuinely just would start laughing so hard at some points cause I couldn't take it seriously, but I think it is a fun show overall. 

 

[0:19:57] Celine: I think like the part where she goes to Korea to see what her mom experienced was also like, very cool to watch and I think each season they did celebrate Chuseok which was also really cool, so in this a- series, I think they did explore more of the- the Asian side which was cool to see as well.

 

[0:20:20] Maile: Yeah I think that was cool, especially with how she like is trying to find connections to her family during there, so I thin- think cooperation of family, um is also really nice for the show.

 

[0:20:32] Celine: Yeah and with the Disney channel wave, I grew up watching that a lot and I remember one of the shows that I really liked was the “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody” and one of the characters in it “London Tipton”, um she was known as to be not, not the brightest but she was also like very rich. Her, I think her dad had owned the “Tipton hotel” which they were living at. 

 

[0:20:53] Maile: Oh I think you’re right.

 

[0:20:55] Celine: Yeah so it’s kind of the opposite of the model minority myth where she’s not smart but then again she's also rich so that cancels out everything.

 

[0:21:07] Maile: No yeah, I watched a little bit of “Zack and Cody” but I just remember really liking “London Tipton’s” fashion, like she had really fun outfits, so she always stood out to me when I was a kid.

 

[0:21:19] Celine: It’s the money.

 

[0:21:20] Maile: Yeah, want that life.

 

[0:21:24] Celine: Um, to wrap it up, what were your guys like favorite representations growing up or even now? 

 

[0:21:30] Maile: Yeah I know for me personally, I know we’ve already talked about “Mulan” but she was a character that I, I think would currently relate to. She’s a very strong independent women and I feel like, she’s like a really good role model for young girls and especially just like being in college like I want to be able to be that strong independent person, being able to do things on my own, help my family and, um, just live my life, like in that way. Like being like strong so she definitely someone that I think I looked up to a lot as a kid and even now if I were to rewatch the films. 

 

[0:22:09] Shelley: For me I think “Everything, Everywhere, All at Once” I felt more repre- most represented. Um, it was really nice hearing um, English, Mandarin and Cantonese, which are the three um, most prominent languages in my household. And I also felt like I can relate to like the mother daughter, um relationship that was um, seen in the film. And how it includes a lot of cultural, like Chinese cultural um, values and like, in the film. 

 

[0:22:46] Celine: And my favorite was uh “ To all the boys I loved before” I know like the character’s Korean American but the actress Lana Condor is Vietnamese American, and I’m Vietnamese so it kind of resonates with me. And I’m also like a big fan of romcoms so when the time it came out I was in middle school, so just watching like, the series all at once was really, it was really fun to watch and I think um, like watching her character developed within the series like from her going from the shy, reserved, like smart girl, to being more open she got a big group of friends. I- It was really nice to see her like get out of her shell and you know represent. 

 

[0:23:33] Shelley: I also want to add to my part, for like the cultural part, mm I remember like seeing kung fu scene, which I thought were really cool. And fun fact my kung fu teacher was actually in the movie.

[0:23:39] Maile: No way!

 

[0:23:41] Shelley: Like she was the actual, you know the what’s it called, like I guess like the master showing her which was really cool to see, I felt like I can relate to it a lot.

 

[0:23:50] Maile: That’s really cool.

 

[0:23:55] Celine: Thank you so much for listening. 

 

[0:23:56] Everyone: Bye

 

[0:23:57]: Outro Music