In 2021, Netflix partnered with Associate Professor of Communication Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative to release an inaugural report on inclusion in its scripted film and series content. Netflix also committed to updating that report every two years through 2026 as a means of creating...
Who says hashtag activism can’t create change? Eight years after April Reign launched the #OscarsSoWhite movement, an initiative, backed by new research shows that there have been more nominations for people of color at Hollywood’s top awards.
The research appears online at a new website , launched by...
As world leaders prepare to meet this month at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Egypt, journalists and communications professionals around the globe are gearing up to cover the negotiations. And a new center at the USC Annenberg School is ready to improve the impact of climate communication.
The school has launched the...
When people think of the American civil rights movement, they don’t often consider Washington, Oregon and California as hotspots for Black activism. The Black Press, however, tells a different story. Black activists from the West Coast have crafted human rights campaigns that have often set the agenda for the rest of the nation — from the Gold Rush era all the way until today's...
Amid increasing calls to restrict curricula that engage critical race theory in American classrooms, award-winning journalism instructor and scholar Allissa V. Richardson has founded the Charlotta Bass Journalism & Justice Lab at the USC Annenberg...
Islam is the fastest-growing world religion, but you would have no idea this was the case if you watched popular television from four countries whose content is broadcast around the globe. A new study reveals that not only are Muslims nearly absent from episodic content, they are still stereotyped in negative ways.
The report,...
Close your eyes and imagine your favorite character from popular culture. Think about who they are, what they value, and how they behave. Now, draw that character on a piece of paper and identify a problem or issue you currently see at home, school or in the community you care deeply about. How would the character solve the problem?
This “Characters, Problems,...
As Mental Health Awareness Month kicks off, news and stories about mental health may seem to saturate media outlets. Yet a new report reveals that in top movies, mental health is rarely in the spotlight.
The study, entitled “Mental Health Conditions Across 200 Popular Films” is the second report on...