The Tyra Banks Show and Diversity in the Media

Among the most popular among flowing TV programs is the Tyra Banks Show which is taped live in front of a live auditory modality in New York. The convey, which lasts for an hour and is aired in syndication by Warner Bros., debuted in September 2005. Currently running in its terce season, the Emmy Award-winning show has aired over 357 episodes and is set to run for at least two more seasons.(www.wikipedia.com)The Tyra Banks Show is a talk-show fashioned after(prenominal) Oprah Winfreys Oprah, which banks on its anchor/creators celebrity and fame to occur viewers. The show itself is named after the celebrity who lends credibility and ensures a captive audience from the ranks of millions of adoring fans. The shows main target, however, are women or specifically, untested Afro-American women who can easily identify with or who wish to simulate its host, Tyra Banks.As a talk-show, the Tyra Banks Show is packaged by its producers to provide an sufficient dose of information and e ntertainment to its audience, covering a wide flesh of topics from beauty to womens issues and concerns. Among the notable episodes, however, are the ones where the former supermodel goes on secret missions to reveal to the viewers the experiences of women in vulnerable situations from Tyras own prototypical hand accounts (e.g. women who suffer from weight discrimination, women in prison, and women working in despoil clubs).The show also tackles the issue of racial discrimination.(www.tyrashow.com) Interestingly, the Tyra Banks success is resoundingly connatural to Oprah Winfreys own success as a celebrity-host due to the event that each episode of her TV show puts her in unique situations. For instance, Tyra is make to put on heaps of prosthetics to become a 350-pound woman so she can feel how it feels to be discriminated against because of her weight. She also spent a daylight in prison to better understand the reasons of womens incarceration.Clearly, the Tyra Banks Show is an onslaught at addressing the diversity in American tillage and identity. It was created to provide women, curiously African-American women, in response to the growth of the African American people which was seen by advertisers as a profitable base for sustaining minority media. (Dickson 2) Consequently, at that place has been an observable increase not only in the number of African-American actors, actresses, and TV hosts as the demand for African American-oriented television programs have risen. Undeniably, Tyras success in breaking through the male-dominated Hollywood talk show industry is a feat in itself and her being African-American at the same time makes it even more tempting to view her as the epitome of empowerment.Her success in The Tyra Banks Show parallels her success as a runway model at a time when White was the supreme symbol of beauty and the public was reluctant to widen its standards. Tyra Banks is therefore the holy representation of a woman who broke th rough stereotypes, which adds gravity to her electrical capacity and credibility to discuss issues and problems that women and African-American populations confront. However, Tyras own identity as a media-invented stereotype of beauty for African-Americans (waif-thin, tall, flawless skin, perfect white teeth) has the top executive to contradict the causes she supports. Tyras back shew as a supermodel, coupled with segments in the show featuring beauty tips and Tailored by Tyra makeovers also negate her advocacy for a beauty ideal that goes beyond physical appearance.Nevertheless, the Tyra Banks show fosters a better understanding of diversity and multi-culturalism. Despite its limitations, its success is a uncover indication that African-American representation is slowly but surely gaining ground in the mainstream media. The show is also a reflection on the lives and culture of African-American communities, which makes it an important source of knowledge for understanding and ap preciating the diversity in American society.Works CitedDickson, J. (2006). The representation of African-American women in television advertisements. McNair Scholars Journal, 1 1-12.The Tyra Banks Show website accessed on 03/15/2008 from <www.tyrashow.com>Wikipedia.com accessed on 03/15/2008 from <www.wikipedia.com>