baratunde on I'm Baratunde Thurston, new co-host of TakePart Live on Pivot TV (and still author of How To Be Black / cofounder of Cultivated Wit). AMA!! - http://www.reddit.com/r...
"Slight correction: I'm not an actor. I mostly just "play" myself, but I'm not out there auditioning for character roles and such, so I'm less directly affected by casting decisions and stereotypes, for example. That said, there's one thing that comes right to mind. U.S. media culture still has this idea that THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE! when it comes to representing certain types of minorities in media. It's what I'll call The Highlander Model. So if there's a latina with a TV show, the industry historically has been like, "CHECK THE BOX!! LATINA SHOW IS COVERED. NEXT!" and it's harder for the second latina to get a shot. I'm actually seeing that change for at least two reasons. 1) more media fragmentation and media-making power. Basically, folks can make their own stories and distribute them (waves at Issa Rae / Awkward Black Girl) 2) Traditional industry perspective is shifting to reveal that "diversity" isn't just some charity case, but it's also really good business. Like, there's money..." - @baratunde