ABC's Episode of Anti-Semitism

Responding to ADC's complaint, and a deluge of mail from ADC members, ABC now has promised to introduce a positive Arab-American police officer, "Abboud," as part of "Loving's" script. In a March letter to ADC, Ms. Hikawa said that although officer Abboud "will hav...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Washington report on Middle East affairs 1994-05, Vol.XII (7), p.66
Main Author: Baylouny, Anne Marie
Format: Magazinearticle
Language:English
Subjects:
Antisemitism
Broadcasting industry
Discrimination
Entertainment
Hikawa, Chris
Industry
Television
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Summary:Responding to ADC's complaint, and a deluge of mail from ADC members, ABC now has promised to introduce a positive Arab-American police officer, "Abboud," as part of "Loving's" script. In a March letter to ADC, Ms. Hikawa said that although officer Abboud "will have a small part at first, if response is strong, his role could grow." After receiving complaints that it had created an "evil Arab male stereotype," ABC claimed that it had initially introduced him as a European. According to ABC's Vice President of Broadcast Standards, Chris Hikawa, the script indicated that "the character is from an unnamed European country but that he now calls Kuwait his home. It was further established that he was an `old-world' European who lived by a turn-of-the-century code of behavior as far as women were concerned. `Loving' made these changes to [Dante Partou]'s biography out of a sensitivity to avoid an evil Arab male character."
ISSN:8755-4917
2163-2782