Is that really me? A Deeper Look at Motherhood Depictions in the Media

Motherhood. For decades, television and film dictated our understanding of motherhood, often creating unrealistic images. Today, not only do portrayals of motherhood seem to be diminishing, but they often perpetuate a narrative that doesn’t align with many lived experiences.

A 2016 Washington Post article delves into possible theories about why American mothers are rarely portrayed as competent. In the article, author Michele Weldon describes the “Slapstick Mom,” whose sole representation on screen is to provide comic relief to the audience through their snapshots of parenting. Weldon notes that showcasing mothers as “idiots” or drama queens has become the norm in television, minimizing the hard work mothers perform daily.

 Although this article is over eight years old, many of its assertions remain true—depictions of the motherhood experience rarely capture the nuances of what it means to be a mother. And for Black mothers, an accurate representation feels almost impossible.

The '90s and early 2000s gave Black audiences a variety of Black mothers on screen from Dee on “Moesha” to Rochelle on “Everybody Hates Chris,” audiences saw a range of what Black motherhood could look like. Currently, in prime-time television across all networks, only three prominent Black mothers are depicted. Representation matters.

Television and film influence our cultural norms and personal identities and often dictate what we consider to be appropriate behavior regarding family dynamics and gender roles. And despite more comprehensive representation of motherhood over the years, we can’t ignore the connection between exposure to certain images and narratives and how we begin to understand and perceive ourselves. In other words, what impact will that have on our parenting if we constantly see images of motherhood that stray from our lived experiences? What will affect our self-esteem if we constantly see depictions of “super moms” or absent-minded mothers? Sure, we’ve evolved from seeing mothers on screen vacuum in heels, dresses, and pearls, and Black mothers in the media are no longer relegated to being single, welfare mothers but are current depictions of mothers struggling to keep it together a better representation?

Scholar, author, and cultural critic bell hooks once said, “Identity is about representation.” This statement resonates deeply when we consider the misrepresentation of Black motherhood in the media. We must continue to question the relationship between identity and representation, and demand that our content creators are more accountable in creating images that truly reflect our shared identity.

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