Benign Inequality: Frames of Poverty and Social Class Inequality in Children’s Movies

ABSTRACT

Media targeted at adults tends to portray poverty and social class inequality as the result of individual merit and moral worth. Research, however, has not uncovered how poverty and social class inequality are portrayed in media targeted at children. Drawing on a content analysis of the highest grossing G-rated movies, this study examines the proportional representation of characters in each class as well as frames of class conditions, characters, and the opportunity structure. These frames suggest that children’s media legitimates poverty and social class inequality in a new way—by presenting them as benign.

KEYWORDS:

• Children
• inequality
• media
• movies
• poverty
• social class

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge Karin Martin and Sandi Nenga for their helpful feedback on earlier drafts of this article.

Notes

1. Studies of frames of poverty and social class inequality in the media do not use consistent definitions of what it means to be a member of a specific class. We follow the authors’ lead when reporting their findings.

2. The distinction between media aimed at children and adults is blurry. We consider media aimed at adults to include news, sitcoms, reality television, R-rated movies, and books that require a sophisticated reading level. Media aimed at children includes G-rated films, picture books, and television shows specifically designed for children.

3. Occupation and education are often used in Weberian and Bourdieusian strains of class analysis. Together they capture life chances, market experiences, personal experiences, status, and economic resources.

4. Class origin is defined as class position at the beginning of the movie unless the movie tells otherwise.

5. In three movies working-class characters are framed as warm but also as bumbling buffoons.

6. The emphasis on working-class communities rather than individuals also reinforces the idea that the working-class is composed of undifferentiated masses and the upper-class is composed of differentiated individuals.

7. The dwarves may be unthinkable romantic partners due to their disability as well as their class.