The Obamas and Mass Media: Race, Gender, Religion, and Politics [Hardcover]

Using the cultural prism of race, this book critically examines the image of African Americans in media of the twenty-first century. Further, the authors assess the ways in which media focused on gender, religion, and politics in framing perceptions of the President and First Lady of the United States during the Obama administration.1. Film, Print, and Broadcast Representations of African Americans 2. Historical Stereotypes of Black Men 3. A Feminist Reading of Mass Media 4. Images of African Americans in Advertising, PR, and Social Media 5. Network News 6. New Media Systems 7. Conclusions

The Obamas and Mass Media offers a potent argument that the media we create and consume reflect social mores and taboos. This will be an important book, because it matches cogent discussions of theories concerning race and identity, with powerfully representative case studies drawn from highly mediated and contested moments during the Obama administration. - Meta G. Carstarphen, Associate Professor, Graduate Director, Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Oklahoma, USA

This book is a great contribution to the field. Of particular notice and value are the literature reviews and discussions from a general perspective followed by the case studies. I believe this it should be used in any class that teaches about diversity issues in news and social media. It should also be a 'must read' for news editors across the country. - Federico Subveri, Professor, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Kent State University, USA

Coon songs. Black Sambo. Spades, pimps, hoes. The media's depictions of African Americans has, for most of two centuries, been unrelentingly negative, occasionally condescending, and more often, out-right venomous. The Obamas and Mass Media is a systematic chronicle of the ways, subtle and overt, that the various facets and outlets of the national and social media covered the candidacy anlS-