The Media War on Black Male Youth in Urban Education

Book excerpt: News media, film, and the music industry have become powerful sources of misrepresentation of Black male life in the social imagination of white society. The pedagogy of popular culture has important implications for educators and youth advocates who desire to challenge the myths and distortions that ultimately harm youth. This volume raises awareness of the media war on Black male youth in popular culture, and the impact this image battle has on the discriminatory treatment of the population in urban educational settings. Citing the recent controversial deaths of Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis, the portrayal of black males in contemporary films, and the locus of hip-hop masculinities, this volume offers a unique framework for analyzing how contemporary image-making practices affect Black male youth in urban education. It also offers ethical considerations for educators in their critique, consumption and reading of Black male subjectivity in media, and provides avenues for practical applications of critical media literacy on the ground.