Many Asians have been misrepresented in American Media. There seems to be an obvious, yet subtly discriminatory, degrading portrayal of Asian men and women in the American media. Possible reasons for such portrayal include: the experience of war, Asian Economic success and trade relation, and even colonialism. These have contributed greatly to the stereotypes and misconceptions of Asians. .
In American history, in the last three wars (WWII, the Korean War and Vietnam War) the enemies of America were all Asians. These experiences might have fostered a sense of enmity towards Asians, especially towards Asian men since it was the Asian men who were fighting with U.S. soldiers. From my observations, Asian men in American media have been stereotyped as uncivilized, broken English speaking immigrants or Kung-Fu masters, nerdy bookworms, strict patriarchal husbands, asexual and unromantic. The foreign policy concerns and international relations between the U.S and Asia have profoundly influenced the experiences of Asians in American media. During the time of war, the role of the press and media rooted many misconceptions with Asians and misrepresentation of Asian values and false images in the American mindset. Images of Asians as the enemy are deeply embedded into American pop culture and consciousness, sustained by Hollywood movies like Fu Manchu or Year of the Dragon, and manipulated by political leaders like U.S congressmen who propose to solve the trade imbalance with Japan by chartering the Enola Gay (the airplane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima)(A.L 97).
Today's economic powers consist of Asian countries such as China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Japan. These economic successes might have caused resentment from the United States, which the media decided to exploit. As a country, the United States has had conflicts, politically and economically, with many Asian nations.
