I don't think indian_skimmer is trying to say that racism doesn't exist - and we do need to keep this debate in perpective.
What I think is being said is that racism is not the only sterotype made, and therefore it is not neccessarily of such sinister intent as we might think. The sterotypes of ginger = nerdy; computer geek = ugly and cowardly; English = evil; glasses = clever are all incredibly common. The sterotype of fat=unattractive is far more widespread than anything we're discussing here to do with race, and fat people are vastly under-represented in TV and film.
All these things could be seen as unacceptable, and I would love to see a fat, ginger person in a lead role, but they're not always as a result of that stereotype. It might be that the English actor (or the actor capable of doing an english accent) is better at pulling off evil, it could be that the guy capable of playing a computer nerd is not conventionally attractive, it could be that the black actress is better at playing stick fighting leader than the next woman. There doesn't always have to be sinister intent, or even underlying unconcious bias. There may well be sometimes - particularly in relation to individual auidience reactions - but it's by no means guaranteed.
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What I think is being said is that racism is not the only sterotype made, and therefore it is not neccessarily of such sinister intent as we might think. The sterotypes of ginger = nerdy; computer geek = ugly and cowardly; English = evil; glasses = clever are all incredibly common. The sterotype of fat=unattractive is far more widespread than anything we're discussing here to do with race, and fat people are vastly under-represented in TV and film.
All these things could be seen as unacceptable, and I would love to see a fat, ginger person in a lead role, but they're not always as a result of that stereotype. It might be that the English actor (or the actor capable of doing an english accent) is better at pulling off evil, it could be that the guy capable of playing a computer nerd is not conventionally attractive, it could be that the black actress is better at playing stick fighting leader than the next woman. There doesn't always have to be sinister intent, or even underlying unconcious bias. There may well be sometimes - particularly in relation to individual auidience reactions - but it's by no means guaranteed.