Black sitcom

A **Black sitcom** is a sitcom in American culture that mainly features an African American cast. Although sitcoms with mostly Black characters have been present since the earliest days of network television, this genre became more prominent in the 1990s.

### Early twentieth century

In these days, Black actors were often cast in roles like comic clowns in a tradition tracing back to the genre of Black minstrelsy popular in the early 20th century.

_Amos 'n Andy_ was the first television sitcom to portray Black people. It was widely popular. The 1951-53 television show replaced the white actors from the original radio show with Black actors. They represented Black individuals as businesspeople, judges, lawyers and policemen. Amos 'n Andy was canceled after airing over 70 episodes because the NAACP alleged that the show was stereotyping.

Then there were no all-Black sitcoms shown in the U.S. until the 1970s.

### 1970s–1980s

A series of popular Black sitcoms appeared in the 1970s. These include _That's My Mama_, _Good Times_, _Sanford and Son_, _What's Happening!!_, and _The Jeffersons_. These sitcoms have been criticized as fostering an image of segregation. They also helped to perpetuate a belief that Black and white cultures are so different that integration is unwanted and unworkable. In the 1980s, sitcoms such as _The Cosby Show_, _A Different World_, and _Frank's Place_, challenged stereotypical portrayals of Black people. They were nevertheless seen as "Black" (segregated) even with white actors.

### 1990s

After the 1980s, the major U.S. television networks appeared to lose interest in Black sitcoms. In the 1990s, newer networks such as Fox, The WB and UPN, anxious to establish themselves with a Black audience. The networks featured Black sitcoms such as _Martin_ and _Living Single_. They drew high ratings among Black households. They were also profitable even with a limited white viewership.

Though there were some Black sitcoms successful with white audiences in the 1990s such as _Family Matters_, _Moesha_, _Sister, Sister_ and _The Fresh Prince of Bel Air_, the number of new programs continued to decline.

### 2000s

From 1997 to 2001, the number of Black sitcoms on U.S. television declined from 15 to 6 as white viewership declined. That decline has continued. Civil rights organizations have accused networks of denying minorities equal opportunity as well as a greater participation in general television programming.

### 2010s

Black sitcoms in the 2010s included _The Game_, _A.N.T. Farm_, _Are We There Yet?,_ _Tyler Perry's For Better Or Worse_, _Love That Girl!_, _Let's Stay Together_ and _Reed Between the Lines_. Reruns of popular 1990s Black sitcoms aired on BET, Bounce TV, TV Land, TV One, MTV2, and TBS.

On August 10, 2012, _Tyler Perry's House of Payne_ became the longest-running sitcom with mostly an African-American cast in the history of American television in terms of number of episodes, beating _The Jeffersons_.

On September 24, 2014, over 11 million people watched the premiere episode of the ABC sitcom _Black-ish_. The sitcom was met with mostly positive reviews. It had 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The show includes many references to current racial issues in America. _Black-ish_s two spin-off shows, _Mixed-ish_ and _Grown-ish_, also have African-American leads and deal with racial issues.