Movie, \"Spider-Man 2,\" That Discusses

¶ … movie, "Spider-Man 2," that discusses or illustrates the portrayal of diversity in the media. "Spider-Man 2" portrays diversity in the media the way many films portray it, marginally at best. Diversity in the media, even in 2004, is sometimes an oxymoron. The media talks about diversity, but in reality, it does not exist in many organizations, and some journalists are working extremely hard to make sure more media, such as newspapers, magazines, and television shows, diversify and portray all of America, not just some of it.

Yes, "Spider-Man 2" did attempt to address the diversity represented in the American landscape. In the newsroom, one of the senior reporters was a black man, but that is about as far as it went. The publisher and the rest of the news people featured were white, and the "token" black man was only featured to nag at the publisher about impending deadlines. There were a few other minorities in the film, but the vast majority of the people in the film, just like the actors populating the newsroom, were white, and did not accurately portray diversity in the media, or in the country's population. However, many journalists believe that most newspapers and magazines in America also are not an accurate portrayal of the real American citizen. Newsrooms seem to be one of the last places to diversify, even when faced with the obvious fact that their staff is primarily young and white. These journalists note, "At the San Francisco Examiner, Hardy, now 43, says there seemed to be a sort of quota for black reporters such as himself. 'We had four African-American reporters for the entire time I was there. One would leave, one would come - but we never had five'" (Oring & Danko, 1995). The Examiner is one of the largest and best-known papers in the country, and if they have problems with diversity, it seems that most other newspapers would struggle with it too.

The media often rely on stereotypes when depicting certain groups, and "Spider-Man 2" is no exception. The only black in the film is the editor who nags at the publisher and is always worried about deadlines. If there are other blacks or Asians in the film, they are extras, with no or very few lines. In addition, the Arab pizza storeowner is depicted as a short tempered, unreasonable boss, and the other "token" minorities have few if any lines. Even worse, the whites are the stereotypical heroes and good guys. Even the evil Doc. Ock turns good at the end, and destroys himself. Thus, the whites in the film are all good, which simply continues the stereotype that whites are good, and people of color are the "bad guys" or enemies. The villains in this film are also white, and that helps keep the stereotypical view of whites as the racial majority and superior race intact. Thus, this film, released in 2004, still uses many of the stereotypes of thirty or forty years ago. Granted, the film is based on comic book characters, and comic books certainly did not celebrate diversity, especially when they were popular in the 1940s and 50s. However, modern audiences know better, and they have to see through the stereotyping of white supremacy in this film. In an age when there is so much diversity in Hollywood, it seems the writers and directors could have done much more to work diversity into the picture. A character here or there is simply not effective. Many other films have managed to create diverse characters while still portraying comic book type situations. "Men in Black" is an excellent example. Therefore, this film did not help diversity, if anything, it added to the problem of diversity and stereotypical characters that behave in certain ways and do not mix with people of other colors or races.