Chapter 8, Student Web Activities, Sociology and You, Glencoe, 2003

Chapter 8: Social Stratification
"Social Class and Television"

Introduction
In this chapter you learned about social class and stratification and the influence of these factors on the lives of people in our society. In the following activity you will learn about the representation of social classes on television. You will read an article that discusses ways in which working and middle classes are represented, and how their audiences react to the portrayals.

Destination Title: Social Class and Television

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Directions
Start at the top of the “Social Class and Television” Web site of the Museum of Broadcast Communications.

Scroll down the page to read the full text of the article, taking notes as you go.

Use what you have learned to answer the following questions.

1. Which social classes are most often represented on television?

2. How are male working-class characters portrayed on television? How are female working-class characters portrayed?

3. How do middle-class characters act differently from working-class ones?

4. What assumptions are made by researchers in the television industry about working-class viewers?

5. Choose a current sitcom to watch on television. During viewing take notes on the representation of social classes and the characters’ portrayals of their social position. Using your notes, rewrite the episode of the show to improve the way in which working-class people are represented. Read or perform the script with friends and classmates.