A quick look at the articles that caught the attention of BCRW Staff this week…
Disney Finds a Cure for the Common Stereotype With ‘Doc McStuffins’ by Brooks Barnes
Brooks Barnes reports for The New York Times on the newest Disney TV star, a six-year-old African American girl and aspiring doctor who opens a clinic for her stuffed animals. Slotted for a second season, the show is an unconventional but calculated move for Disney that seems to be paying off:
It’s considered an on-screen risk to make your main character a member of a minority, even in this post-“Dora the Explorer” age… But “Doc McStuffins” seems to have struck a cultural nerve, generating loud applause on parent blogs, Facebook and even in academia for its positive vocational message for African-American girls.
In a TV landscape usually inhospitable for girls and African America youth, Doc McStuffins represents a trend toward more diversified leading characters – role models that supporters claim can provide young viewers “an alternative to LeBron and Beyonce” and a way to combat the fact that black women make up less than 2% of doctors nation wide. Is TV programing like Doc McStuffins and productions like Brave (Pixar’s first female-starring film in 17 years) helping to create a new generation of feminists? Is it enough?
This article was picked out by Lulu, our Summer Research Assistant.