Below is a transcript of our conversation with Aiden Kosciesza:
David Nicholas:
I'm David Nicholas and this is Central Focus, a weekly look at research activity and innovative work from Central Michigan University students and faculty. One role and power of media in our lives is that it can reflect who we are and the way a whole new picture of us is created. One very new picture is an expanded view of gender identity. It is the research of Dr. Aidan Kosciesza, Assistant Professor of Communication at CMU.
Aiden Kosciesza:
Well, I think that media representations are part of how we understand gender in our culture. And I think that gender is part of how we understand sexuality. So, there are certainly connections between media representations of gender and the culture that produces those representations. And then the way that we as people are socialized into our gender roles and how we come to gender identities outside of the cisnormative binary.
DN:
Is it too much of a simplification to go to talking about stereotypes? What (what) are you specifically kind of looking at then?
AK:
Well, I would say it's complicated. Stereotypes are meaningful for people and most of my research is with people. I'm an ethnographer, so I talk to people about their media and their media use and what it means for them in their lives. And stereotypes are often discussed in media criticism, both at the academic level and also at the popular level, and I think that a lot of consumers, especially consumers, who are part of a marginalized identity group, are really sensitive to stereotypes. And have become more so because there are so many opportunities to talk about media stereotyping and it's becoming more visible. So, for people who are looking for media representations that resonate with them and they're part of a minority group, they are really aware of which media properties are presenting a more stereotyped point of view and which ones are breaking for you, those stereos, a little bit. Trans folks, non-binary folks, a lot of different types of gender diversity and the more that we see those representations, the more they also can be critiqued and the more diversity we can expect to see going forward.
DN:
When we're looking at these groups of folks and as (as) you said, some that are (are) now still marginalized, how much better are we than we used to be?
AK:
So, I think that U.S. media is much more inclusive now than it used to be and it's also much more aware of the gaps in inclusivity that still exist. There's a long way that we've come and part of the long way that we've come is awareness of how far there still is to go.
DN:
They're only suited to be represented in (in) this kind of context. Is that part of, maybe that goes back to the we've come a long way, but we've got a long way to go?
AK:
But we see very well-intentioned, I think, representations that still fall short in some ways, and we see representations that are breaking with the stereotypes that have been so common for so long. And I think that the, (the the) commonality here is how many people are or (or) maybe what I should say the progress here is how many people are talking about representations and questioning represent? I think that there is an awareness among media producers that these conversations are happening and because of that awareness, that is, that is shaping how media gets produced.
DN:
I appreciate the fact that your research is giving voice to it and helping to explain it as we move, and, the development, the understanding, the representation and all. Aiden Kosciesza, thank you very much for giving the voice to it and good luck as the research continues. We'll be interested to hear more of the stories as they come about, and we all maybe understand things a little bit better. Appreciate you being here.
AK:
Thank you so much David.
