Racism have throughout centuries persisted as a distressing societal problem, and the issue of responsibility has often been explored; Is racism being learnt unconsciously, or is it intentionally taught - and if so, but whom? While the common layman may argue that for racism to be learnt, it must first be taught - and thus the statement itself is contradictory and flawed, this is merely a naive misinterpretation. The essential point separating the two is the issue of intent: was the individual deliberately taught ideas of racism or did he learn them unwittingly?

Perhaps one perspective to consider is question if racism is really such a misguided and wrong idea. Nobel laureate and geneticist James Watson sparked controversy and outrage when he claimed that Africans and Europeans did not share the same brain power, as the intellectual capacities of people separated geographically do not evolve the same way. Thus, perhaps the reason why racism continues to persist in today’s modern world is science’s inability to give a definite conclusion on the equality of the human race.

In a bold move against one of the seven largest media conglomerate in the world, documentary “Mickey Mouse Monopoly” presented an informative and controversial case on Disney. It revealed how subtle influences, cultural stereotypes, and ideas of racism are currently today being carried on through today’s modern mass media and pointed out the cultural and racial stereotypes Disney passes on in its children movies, propogated under the pretext of innocence and fun.

For example, women are often portrayed in a highly distorted version of femininity, with highly sexualized bodies, coy seductiveness, and the need to always be rescued by a male. Class discrimination is also evident, with the protagonists always being white and the color black always closely associated with evil and danger. Representations of race or ethnicity, while relatively rare, often reinforce cultural stereotypes on the groups portrayed. Consider Ariel sacrificing her voice to win over the prince using her body in The Little Mermaid, or Asians as traitorous Siamese cats in Lady And The Tramp.

When media corporations such as Disney commands such an extensive audience comprised of young children susceptible to the wrong influence, the inevitability of the social implications of their messages obliges them to undertake serious responsibility - an aspect that Disney have thus far utterly failed to consider.

Focusing on the other aspects of the media such as television shows, we can spot even more subtle influences that teaches people about racism. Various depictions of racial stereotypes can easily be found: the lawless Negro gangs, the narrow-minded Asians or perhaps the desperately poor Mexicans.

Thus, when we the consumers are subjected to such influences of the mass-media, we are slowly taught, on perhaps a subconscious level, certain ideas or stereotypes of certain groups of people, including race. Furthermore, this influence has been increased exponentially through globalization - meaning that people from all over the world today are being taught such ideas on a daily basis.

On a side note, this brings a moral debate to arise: Should be media be allowed to behave in this way? In this age of the Internet, no one can certainly doubt the media’s power: It has brought down a US president in the Watergate scandal, fueled excessive consumerism, and has become the current most vital tool of war as Iraq invasion and subsequent media manipulation showed. Thus when the media begins to show dangerous messages promoting racism, the consequences are imminently severe.

Edward R Murrows once said this about the television: “This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box.” Should television and all forms of media be increasingly used not for public service or education but to spread such socially demeaning ideas for commercial or prejudicial reasons, one can only anticipate not a progression, but a degression of society.

Yet, taking things into balance, one may perhaps look into aspects where people may actually learn for themselves ideas of racism. One plausible example would be when a group of people, either associated through race, religion or nationality, have a consistent habit or characteristic that causes stereotypes to arise against them.

This approach, however, is flawed and self-defeating. If these people did not already hold racial stereotypes beforehand, why would they view the discriminated group through their race instead of income levels or other available choices? Obviously, certain racial stereotypes and racist ideas were already implanted and lurking beneath their subconscious, thus causing such mental groupings to be made!

It can thus be easy to conclude that society today is being taught about racism through subtle mediums such as the mass media. But while this knowledge alone may serve little purpose - what we can do is learn how to stop these flawed ideas of racism from continuing to be spread. Media corporations need to be further reminded and continuously pressured about the social responsibility they bear and learn that promoting stereotypical ideas will only serve to demonize their image and damage profits.

At first glance, eradication of racism seems idealistic - after all, it has existed for thousands of years. Yet, one should note that people today are increasingly living in a world of interdependence and of non-zero sumness; that is to say unlike the past, countries of the world today are so dependent on one another that they simply cannot afford to have more issues like ethnic cleansing, racial wars and the like first without suffering heavy and unwanted consequences.

Peaceful cooperation between races and countries is fast becoming significantly more beneficial to both parties economically, socially, and politically. When our fates today are intertwined like never before, it no longer becomes an idealistic issue, but a pragmatic one for society to rid itself of this excess baggage called racism, and one can’t help but anticipate that that day might arrive much sooner than expected.