The group specifically looks at children ages 2 to 11. By contrast, most of the series shown during the 9 p.m. hour have multicultural casts. Also, situation comedy, the most popular genre among young people, is the least diverse of all the genres on prime-time television, the study found. Only 14 percent of sitcoms have racially mixed casts.
Dramas are three times as likely to have diverse casts.
The networks are not doing their jobs, and in a lot of ways they're doing worse than they did last season. By recognition, respect and role models, they learn very powerful messages about who's important and who's not. They are not getting a sense of inclusion from prime-time television. The study also concluded that white characters are more likely than black characters to be shown in professional business occupations, while blacks are more likely to be depicted in law enforcement-related positions. Almost all of those characters are portrayed by Latinos, the study found.