Stereotypical images of blacks have persisted throughout multiple forms of media for decades, with one of the most recent arenas being reality television programming. This study examines the Bravo Television network series The Real Housewives of Atlanta to consider the impact of reality television on the image of black women in America today. This increasingly popular show is the most viewed in The Real Housewives franchise, and demonstrates that black women in America do not embody any one historical or contemporary stereotype of black women in particular, but rather are a compilation of these stereotypes depending on the situation at hand. / Master of Science

A figure that has been pushed to the periphery of television shows throughout history, the African American woman has become more and more visible recently thanks to the proliferation of the cheap-to-produce reality television genre. Although many of these shows do feature African American women, critics often argue that these shows are a disgrace to the community, full of bickering women who are more obsessed with their labels than one another. This dissertation is an attempt to recuperate these programs from such denigration. I argue that reality television shows that focus on African American women do provide a great service to the community. Using soap opera theory as a theoretical foundation and close reading as an analytic tool, this project argues that these reality programs, which are called docusoaps, provide complex representations of African American women that are rarely seen on television. In addition, they offer therapeutic space to the women on the program as well as possible ones to the Black female viewers at home. The case study is The Real Housewives of Atlanta, a show that has aired on Bravo since 2008. This show has served as the template for the various African American docusoaps that have followed it, making it an important site for the investigation of how these programs present Black women and possible therapeutic spaces for that community.

Reality TV is a growing form of entertainment, with streaming giants like Netflix and Hulu offering an extensive array of programs catering for different audiences. Currently one of the most popular franchises is “The Real Housewives”, within the franchise itself “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” is ranking at the top. Despite it`s high entertainment value, much of Reality TV has been critiqued for perpetuating harmful stereotypes.  This study therefore aimed to uncover the underlying messages regarding femininity, power, and social roles that are communicated to the viewers of the popular reality show “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills”. The following research question was formulated; How does "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" portray women in ways that either challenge or reinforce (gender) stereotypes? The study has employed a multimodal critical discourse analysis to the last three episodes of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” latest season (season 13). The episodes were watched and discussed multiple times, leading to the identification of four overarching themes; romantic relationships, career, conflict and physical appearance. Scenes from the show regarding these themes were analyzed, using theoretical frameworks concerning stereotypes, hegemony and gender.  The results showed some gender stereotypes being reinforced while others were challenged. The reinforcement of stereotypes through “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” lies in stereotypes being used as a weapon by the women against each other, portrayed by the network. The challenge of stereotypes lies in the way the program portrays the women as they contradict these narratives.