Television helped Lisa Ling appreciate her culture.
“It wasn’t until I started my job at ‘The View’ that I embraced my Taiwanese ancestry,” said Ling, co-host of the ABC morning talk show ‘The View.’ “I was excited to give people a sense that we’re there. We have a distinct identity. I’ve come to realize how important having a media presence is.”
But that presence is lacking, Ling told about 130 people Saturday in Coon Forum. More Asian Americans should get involved in the media to break down ethnic stereotypes and eliminate underrepresentation, she said.
Ling was keynote speaker for the Intercollegiate Taiwanese American Students Association’s conference, ITASA 2000: The Next Generation, which was hosted by Northwestern. In addition to Ling’s appearance, the conference also featured workshops, speakers, a film presentation and social activities during the weekend at NU.
“There weren’t many Asians in the media,” Ling said. “That’s one of the reasons I wanted to go into that field. It provoked me to pursue television.”
Before she signed on at “The View,” Ling anchored for the youth-oriented news show “Scratch,” reported for “Channel One News” and did international investigative reporting, including coverage of nuclear weapons smuggling in Russia and civil war in Afghanistan.
Ling said there has never been a better time for minorities to get involved in the media — many of the stories written about the Asian community are not written by Asians and do not use Asian sources, and there is even less diversity at the executive level, she said.
“Of the 26 prime-time shows that debuted last fall, not one featured a minority in a leading role,” Ling said. “I never like to think that I got my job solely because of my ethnic background, but the only reason they were hiring minorities was because of the pressure.”
The Asian Americans who are represented in the media are often stereotyped and written by non-Asians, Ling said. To correct the problem, the media need more Asian-American writers and more open-minded studios that are willing to back diverse programming, she said.
“How often do you see images that aren’t of the nerdy, kung-fu master, asexual man or of the submissive, docile woman?” Ling said. “There are very few roles that are offered to people in the Asian community that deviate from those images.
“There is an effort being made to hire more Asians in the news. Execs at networks are more open now than they ever have been to scripts that incorporate leading roles of minorities. A lot more Asian actors, directors and producers are doing things that deviate from stereotypical roles.”
Although some studios have made efforts to diversify their staffs and productions, few Asian Americans are applying for available jobs, Ling said, adding that it’s also the responsibility of the Asian-American community to improve the situation.
“The Asian community is quick to criticize when we could easily do something ourselves about it,” she said. “Rather than more people applying for the jobs and making an effort, they criticize. If you really want to see change, you have to stand up and do something. Be proactive.”
Ling was chosen to speak because “she’s second generation,” said Weinberg junior Doreen Lee, who worked on programming for ITASA.
“She represents our generation,” Lee said. “She’s gone a different pathway, and she’s a strong minority represented in the media.”
Lee said Ling’s message tied in the theme of the conference by emphasizing what people can do for the future.
“She stressed the stereotypes that need to be abolished in the media and how we need to be proactive about it,” Lee said. “We are the next generation, and she’s gone through what we will have to go through.”
McCormick junior Wendy Lin, president of the Taiwanese-American Student Club, said she thinks Ling is a great role model because she is young, successful and involved as a Taiwanese American.
“It was great to hear an insider’s view of what is going on between Asian Americans and the media and what opportunities are out there for us,” Lin said.
