Identifying Stereotype in Video Games: GTA San Andreas
A throwback from a 2013 video project, which drew inspiration from Anita Sarkeesian's series "Tropes vs. Women in Video Games", this section of the argument, presented by me, focused on the misrepresentation of black males (read: stereotypes) in video games prior to the project's completion, with the grand scope of the project aiming to illustrate the liberties taken with characterization surrounding various gender and race portrayals through the lens of interactive media. For this instance in particular, Grand Theft Auto (GTA) San Andreas was chosen as an archetype for said misrepresentation. The narrative, which juxtaposes protagonist Carl Johnson with his friends, his neighborhood, and the police, successfully — surprisingly — uses all of the aforementioned ancillary characters and settings as a foil to highlight the problem inherent in unfounded racial stereotypes.