Media Representation of Asian Americans and Asian Native New Yorkers’ Hybrid Persona

Author

Min Huh, Graduate Center, City University of New YorkFollow

Date of Degree

6-2016

Document Type

Capstone Project

Degree Name

M.A.

Program

Liberal Studies

Advisor

David Halle

Subject Categories

American Popular Culture | Asian American Studies | Asian History | Community-Based Research | Family, Life Course, and Society | Inequality and Stratification | Other American Studies | Other Film and Media Studies | Other Languages, Societies, and Cultures | Race and Ethnicity | Sociology of Culture

Keywords

Media Representation, Model Minority, Asian Americans, Asian Native New Yorkers, New York, Hip-hop

Abstract

Asian Americans, having been degraded in the realm of popular media and neglected in the consumer market, have been unable to obtain a voice or leave a trace in American pop culture. The meager representation that Asian Americans rarely have is highly controlled through a distorted lens, inclined to paint them in a grotesquely exaggerated light for comic relief. The absence of Asian Americans in the media has compelled the Asian American youth to adapt the personas of different cultures in their desires for social and cultural mobility. These factors have given birth to a hybrid persona among Asian Native New Yorkers (ANNY), the subject of analysis in my thesis. These hybrid personas are part of the initial problem of misrepresentation, however, they are also a product of it as well. This essay and video interview explore the different layers of the issue, while attempting to arrive at a solution that grants Asian Americans Independence in their own representation.

Recommended Citation

Huh, Min, "Media Representation of Asian Americans and Asian Native New Yorkers’ Hybrid Persona" (2016). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1372