What is ethnic media and why is it relevant today? In this podcast entitled “Missing Voices: The Need for Ethnic Media,” several figures active in ethnic media discuss its fundamental importance to societies across the world.

Tabu Osusa works with marginalized communities in Kenya to expose their music, and explains how ethnic media can help keep traditional Kenyan music alive amid rapid Westernization. Khalil Abdullah and Jenny Chen showcase ethnic media as a democratizing tool in American society, where freedom of speech and freedom of press are sometimes not enough to guard against racial and ethnic bias in the media.

Further Readings
Asian Fortune
Ketebul Music
New America Media
“Mass Media and Racism” by Stephen Balkaran
“Racial Bias Still Haunts Media” by Salim Muwakkil

Danielle Wu is a Katzenberger Art History intern with the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in art history and archaeology from Washington University in St. Louis, with minors in Chinese and art.