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Representing Black Women and Love: a Critical Interpretative Study of Heavy Exposure to VH1’S Love and Hip Hop

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Representing Black Women and Love: a Critical Interpretative Study of Heavy Exposure to VH1’S Love and Hip Hop Representing Black Women and Love: A critical interpretative study of heavy exposure to VH1’s Love and Hip Hop A thesis submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of * Master of Arts in the Department of Communication by Olivia Harrison B.A. Rochester Institute Of Technology * May 2015 Committee Co-Chairs: Ronald L. Jackson II, Ph.D. and Omotayo Banjo Adesagba Ph.D. Abstract This study explores viewers’ perceptions after heavy exposure to VH1’s reality show franchise Love and Hip-Hop. Specifically the investigation seeks to understand how heavy viewership influences 1Black female college students’ view of male/female romantic relationships in their everyday lives as well as their understanding of the Black female image portrayed on the show. The researcher conducted 6 one on one interviews and coded each for emergent themes using the constant comparison technique. Cultivation Theory and Black Feminist Theory guided this study and the researcher’s analysis of the six participants’ responses. This study serves as an analysis of how media messages influence a specific target audience’s image of themselves and their relationship goals. 1 For the purposes of this study the term "African American" is used to identify those Americans, who are descendants of Africa. The term "Black” will be used interchangeably with “African American” to describe the generally shared histories, experiences, sentiments, issues and concerns, and social situatedness of African Americans. 2 3 Acknowledgements This has been a very, very, very long process and there’s no way I would have made it through without the continual guidance, support, help, and patience from Dr. Jackson. He never once gave up on me, even after countless times I thought I gave up on myself. Dr. Jackson you are truly a blessing to the department and to all the students you touch, and I’m so grateful to have you as my advisor. To Dr. Bates and Dr. Banjo, thank you for supplying support, guidance, and continuously showcasing Black Girl Magic within academia. I appreciate the support I’ve received from the faculty at the University of Cincinnati and the opportunity for me to further my education. A huge thank you to my always supportive parents, my Black and Brown girl magic girl gang and my dear friends Eugene, Brandon L and Branden E, there’s no way I would have made it through this process without you all. Thank you for always lifting me up when I’m down, listening to me whenever and wherever, celebrating my success, and loving me unconditionally. I am so grateful God has blessed me with people like you in my life. 4 Table of Contents Abstract Page 2 Acknowledgements Page 4 Table of Contents Page 5 List of Tables Page 6 Chapter 1 Introduction Page 7 Chapter 2 Literature Review Page 22 Chapter 3 Methodology Page 44 Chapter 4 Analysis Page 51 Chapter 5 Conclusion Page 80 References Page 94 Appendices Page 114 5 List of Tables Table 1: Snapshot of Participants Page 53 Table 2: Participant viewing of Love and Hip-Hop Page 54 Table 3: Seasons of Love and Hip-Hop Page 54 Table 4: Emergent Themes and Categories Page 55 6 Chapter 1 Introduction Media images, whether fiction or not, are often produced to reflect possible real world experiences. Although most media viewers believe their media consumption has little to no impact on their daily lives or decisions, research shows us that the abundance of images we receive from the media on a continual basis has the power to influence our perceptions of reality and consequently how we interact with individuals in real life (Grindstaff & Murray, 2015; Morgan et al., 2016). In today's hypermedia consumed society, we would be remiss to say that the media has no influence on either our perceptions of what is real or our culture in general. While the abundance of media images contributes to one’s perceptions of reality, the scarcity of marginalized group representations or diversity of character portrayals can also impact viewers’ perceptions of reality (Jain 2017; Mastro, 2015; Riles et al., 2018). A 2013 study conducted by Essence Magazine surveyed over 1,200 participants on their perceptions of the Black female images showcased throughout the media. The results yielded overwhelmingly negative depictions of Black women rooted in caricature portrayals such as Gold Diggers, Modern Jezebels, Baby Mamas, Uneducated/Ratchet Women, and Angry Black Women, just to name a few (Walton, 2013). In particular, the study revealed that Black women ages 18-29 reported seeing more negative images of Black women than positive, with 89% saying they saw Black women represented as ‘baby mamas’ while only 41% saw Black women represented as ‘real beauties’. Jerald et al., (2017) found that a heavy media intake, defined as consuming television for 7 approximately 18 hours a week, watching music videos for nearly 5 hours a week, and watching nearly 12 movies a month across platforms, framed Black college students image of Black femininity and endorsement of the Saphire, Modern Jezebel and Ratchet woman stereotypes. Jerald et al., (2017) saw that the viewing of Black female images within the media brought about a perceived realism and endorsement of the Jezebel stereotype for Black women in real life. These depictions can also have an impact on how Black women are viewed in the workplace. Sophia Nelson (2012) writes that African American women are underrepresented in workplace leadership positions, and they are found to be most likely to file discrimination suits at work. While Black women are likely to be recruited within their career field Essence’s 2013 study indicated Black women are not often retained or promoted within their respective workplaces. The present study centers around Black college women and the ways in which urban reality television, specifically the VH1 reality franchise Love and Hip-Hop, can influence viewers’ expectations of romantic relationships and their perceptions of themselves and the Black female image. Statement of Problem This study focuses on the influence of a Hip- Hop reality show on heavy viewing college females. The college aged population was selected for two reasons, one being the heavy influence of Hip- Hop and Hip-Hop media within the college and university space and the other being that a high concentration of Love & Hip- Hop’s audience are Black college aged women. 8 Within the past decades there has been an increase in the consumption of hip-hop media amongst college students (Gosa, 2013; Henry, et al., 2010; McIntyre, 2017, Patterson, 2013; Patterson, 2015; Shanks, 2017) Universities are currently offering college courses on hip-hop culture and literacy such as Sociology of Hip-Hip at the University of Cincinnati, Hip-Hop studies minor offered at the University of Arizona, and Hip-Hop, Youth Identities, and the Politics of Language offered at Stanford. University faculty and administrators have also witnessed college and university students emulating Hip-Hop artists’ use of language and style of dress (Henry et al., 2010; McIntyre, 2017, Patterson, 2013, Patterson 2015). Love & Hip-Hop falls within a television category of Urban Reality Television. Urban reality television includes programs advertised as unscripted that document the lived experiences of past and current rappers, hip -hop moguls, producers, friends and romantic interest of those within the Hip-Hop arena. College-aged women have become increasingly engaged in consuming urban reality television (Boylorn, 2008; Patterson, 2013; Reid, 2013), with VH1’s Love & Hip-Hop topping charts. When Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta premiered in June 2012, 3.6 million viewers tuned in, making it one of the highest rated VH1 programs of the year (Viacom, 2012). During Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta’s first 12-week season it ranked as cable’s top reality series of the summer among adults 18-49 and women 18-49. In 2017 about 81% of Love & Hip-Hop’s viewers were Black, and Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta came in as the third highest rated television series amongst Black viewers in 2017, with Fox’s Empire and Star being numbers one and two (Levin 2017). Love and Hip -Hop Atlanta was the 5th highest rated cable series for Black women within the 2016-2017 season with the top 5 being Empire (Fox), The New Edition 9 Story (BET), Star (Fox), The Haves And The Have Nots (OWN), and Love and Hip-Hop Atlanta (VH1) (Nielsen, 2017). Women between the ages of 18 & 49 account for 74% of Love & Hip-Hop’s overall audience and Black viewers account for 81% of Love &Hip Hop’s audience (Etkin, 2018). Black millennials, ages 18 - 34 are trailblazers in terms of technologies and social media tools (Nielsen Report 2016), and according to Nielsen in the 2016-2017 TV season, Love and Hip-Hop Atlanta was the second most talked about cable reality series on Twitter and Facebook and the second most talked about cable series overall, behind The Bachelor (Nielsen Report 2017), making it a leading show for Black audiences. Although the presence of urban reality television has grown in popularity amongst college and university students, there is limited discussion surrounding how Black college women experience urban reality television and apply what they are viewing to their lives or relationships. Studies indicate that Black undergraduate women face risk factors that could negatively impact their academic achievement, including unhealthy intimate relationships (Henry 2008, Henry, et al., 2010). Much of the mainstream society’s discussion surrounding the objectification and devaluation of Black women within Hip-Hop media has been focused on the public’s perception of Black women being objectified rather than if individual Black women feel objectified by the media.
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