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Analysing the representation of ethnic diversity
Before we move on to our reception research, we will briefly analyse the representation of ethnic diversity on Flemish television. Until recently, the representation of ethnic diversity was hardly discussed in Flanders, but awareness of the importance of ethnic minority representations has grown immensely in the 21st century. In particular public broadcaster VRT makes an effort to ascertain a steady and balanced ethnic minority presence on screen, in line with the public service ethos. In 2003, a Diversity Cell was established and a Diversity Charter was signed, aiming for a fair representation of ethnic minorities both on and behind the screen (VRT 2003). In 2004 and 2007, a Diversity Monitor was used to ‘measure’ the ethnic minority presence on screen (VRT 2004 and 2007). Both reports find a higher ethnic minority presence on public television in non-fiction, whereas commercial channels do better in fiction. For instance, in 2007 14.1% of all persons on the main public channel Eén are ‘coloured’ – in non-fiction 17.4% and in fiction only 6% (as opposed to 13.9% on commercial channel VT4). The relatively low presence of ethnic minorities in fiction is surprising, considering the public broadcaster makes a conscious effort at representing ethnic diversity in all genres. However, commercial channels (in particular the smaller ones, with lower budgets) import more American fiction, which often has ethnically mixed casts. Ironically, the channels making less effort at representing cultural diversity do a better job – although they hardly represent Flanders, to viewers a crucial distinction which we will return to.
The above account indicates that there is a problem of under-representation in domestic TV fiction in comparison to non-fiction. Before the 1990s, hardly any ethnic minority characters were represented. This is related to a predilection for historical drama based on literary sources (Dhoest 2004). Even though there was a clear intention to define Flemish cultural identity, this was pursued mostly by means of emphasising internal homogeneity rather than contrasting with internal or external ‘others’. From the 1990s, the move to contemporary genres initiated more diversity. While sitcoms, with their fixed ensemble of core characters, remained predominantly white, soaps and crime drama opened up to ethnic minority characters. In police serials, the urban setting and the weekly changing guest roles enabled the realistic inclusion of ethnic minority characters, the producers looking for a good balance between representations as criminals and as victims. Soaps are inherently best suited for the inclusion of ethnic minority characters, because of their large casts of regular characters and their elaborate storylines allowing for balanced and complex portrayals. Indeed, most ethnic minority characters on Flemish television have appeared in soaps.
In order to answer the first research question on the representation of ethnic diversity, we screened all prime-time fiction in a constructed week (one day from seven consecutive weeks in January and February 2007). We focused on the main public channel (Eén), the main commercial channel (VTM) and its main competitor (VT4). To start, there is a clear distinction between public and commercial broadcasters: Eén scheduled only domestic fiction in prime time (plus one Dutch serial), VTM also scheduled some imported fiction, while the smaller VT4 only scheduled imported (American) fiction. Domestic fiction generally has much higher ratings but is also more expensive, so those who can afford it always schedule it in prime time. Both Eén and VTM schedule daily domestic soaps (Thuis and Familie), Eén (at the time of research) adding the domestic telenovela Emma and VTM a bi-weekly soap, Wittekerke. Taken together, these soaps represent about half of all the fiction scheduled in prime time, which confirms its centrality as a genre. Thuis performs best at representing diversity, with four long-standing ethnic minority characters: Mo, a kind-hearted Moroccan plumber with a heavy accent, his daughter Aïsha, a well-integrated law student, Waldek, an extremely nice and integrated Polish character, and Moroccan medicine student Youssef. More generally, Thuis is clearly preoccupied with the representation of diversity in terms of gender (the credits portray nine male and nine female protagonists), class, and sexuality (introducing a lesbian couple). This contrasts with the all-white casts of the commercial soaps, as well as the all-white comedy and crime drama broadcast on public television in this period.
Two other domestic dramas on public broadcasting include ethnic minority characters. Kinderen van Dewindt is a partly government-funded program about a family business, including a central lesbian couple, and secretary Sumaya, whose foreign origins are hardly mentioned. In contrast, Emma explicitly deals with the cultural roots of the Turkish Birsen, one of the two protagonists in this telenovela about equal opportunities funded by Flemish government. Although laudable in principle, partly because of the overly educational tone this telenovela failed to attract an audience. Like the (few) other main ethnic minority characters, Birsen is very positively portrayed, but the degree of attention to her ethnic origins is exceptional. In the terms used by Geraghty (1991, 141-4), she is a ‘singleton’, a black character introduced in storylines about black issues, as opposed to the general politics of ‘incorporation’, where ethnic minority characters are represented as part of the community. However, as they are often alone (with the exception of Thuis), ethnic minority characters tend to carry a heavy burden of representation because they are supposed to but never quite manage to represent a whole community. The main problem is not stereotypical representation (as stereotypes are often consciously contradicted), but rather under-representation, so the few characters are not able to evoke any sense of diversity across and within ethnic minority communities.
The American fiction broadcast on commercial channels VTM and (particularly) VT4 presents a very different picture. While the sitcoms (in particular the daily reruns of Friends) show a predominantly white US, crime dramas such as CSI and LA Dragnet have a self-evidently ethnically mixed cast, both in the main and in the supporting roles – even though the lead roles tend to be played by white actors. Clearly, the academic and public critiques have had some effect, as not only black, but also Latin and Asian characters are included. ER, broadcast on VTM, is another example of such self-evident diversity both in the main and supporting parts, reflecting the fine-tuned American sensibility on such matters. All in all, American fiction gives a relatively diverse and ‘multi-ethnic’ representation of society. On the level of representation, it clearly performs better than Flemish fiction, which is mostly ‘white’. However, the few Flemish programs with ethnic minority characters portray them in an overwhelmingly positive manner, consciously trying to avoid stereotyping, which makes us wonder if audiences are equally positive.