PAPERBACK ISBN: 0-88258-179-1     $32.95

Pub Date: 1993

African Americans in the Mass Media (Second Edition)

by Jannette Dates and William Barlow

The African American image created in the mass media has a dual reflection, on the one side, the self image of blacks, on the other side, the image of blacks created by whites. It is this split image that has become ingrained in popular cultures, molded public opinion, aroused public discourse, and fostered racial strife.

A comprehensive study of the portrayal of African Americans in the mass media industries—music, film, radio, television, advertising, and print and broadcast news—Split Image traces the struggle by African Americans to receive fair and balanced treatment in the media and to win recognition for their contributions to the media. In this edition, an essay that focuses on blacks in the public relations industry and on that industry’s role in shaping national opinion about African Americans adds greater depth to this already comprehensive review. Other contributors to this volume include media experts Thomas Cripps, Robert “Reebee” Garofalo, and Lee Thornton.

In 1999, Split Image: African Americans in the Mass Media was named by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication as one of the 35 most influential books in communication in the 20^th century.

About the Editors

Jannette Dates, PhD is Dean of the John H. Johnson School of Communications at Howard.

William Barlow is a former professor in the Department of Radio, Television, and Film and a black radio insider who,  for many years, was the voice on WPFW in Washington,

D. C.

Advance Comments

"A solid contribution to the literature of African Americans and popular culture."

—Library Journal

"The first comprehensive exploration of the relationship between blacks and media to be found in one volume."

 —The Washington Times

"Split Image should be read by every communications major before graduating from college."

—Bill Cosby

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