I am an avid media consumer. And while movies, musicals and books do fall into this media consumption, my primary source of entertainment and media is television. I watch shows after they’ve already ended (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Office,) shows that have been going on for years (Grey’s Anatomy, Supernatural) and shows that are only on their first or second season (Riverdale, The Good Place.) I watch shows written by men, shows written by women, shows starring men, shows starring women, network shows, Netflix shows, US shows, UK shows, you name it.
And what I’ve learned is this: none of them are perfect.
Not one T.V. show I have ever seen has met every social and political standard I want it to meet. Casts are never as diverse as I want them to be or as they could be. Writers write dialogue or actions that are oppressive or insulting. And once again I am including every show I have ever seen, past and present.
Does this mean I don’t watch T.V.? Hell no.
If every time a piece of media did not meet my idealistic standards of diversity and “woke-ness” I decided to drop it, I would be completely media-free. This does not mean I condone media creators not being diverse or being sexist, racist, homophobic, etc. What it means is that I practice conscious media consumption.
Let me explain this with a case study. My favorite show is Supernatural on the CW. It is clever and funny and touching and a huge part of the person I am today. This show stars four straight white men and regularly kills off most of its female, LGBTQ, and POC characters. And it pisses me off. It is certainly not okay with me that the writers treat these identities and these characters this way. But rather than never watching it again, while watching the show I acknowledge and consider the choices the writers and actors make. And I’m not silent about it. I use social media to voice my opinions and in fact, in the case of Supernatural, conscious consumption of media has launched a spinoff. That’s right, enough women voiced that they wanted to see women, specifically four characters, have screen time, and they now have a backdoor pilot.
All practicing conscious consumption of media takes is active thought and consideration when taking in any piece of media. That doesn’t mean that there are lines that can be crossed – there are certainly books and shows and movies that I feel take it too far and choose not to watch. But when the lines are blurry, actively thinking about the shows I watch and books I read allows me to still enjoy the parts I love while criticizing the parts that are not okay.
It’s not just Supernatural, though. Jughead’s asexuality and aromanticism being erased on Riverdale, the death of Poussey on Orange is the New Black, the queerbaiting of Sherlock and John on Sherlock, and those are just a few. Obvious or not, racism, sexism, homophobia, ableism, are as rampant in television now as they have ever been. That does not mean that I or anyone should never watch T.V., it just means think about what you watch and press play from there.