THERE WAS A TIME WHEN ALMOST ALL THE ACTORS APPEARING IN 
U-S MOTION PICTURES AND TELEVISION SHOWS WERE WHITE.  AS RECENTLY
AS THE 1950'S AND EARLY 1960'S, WHEN THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT 
CHALLENGED LEGAL BARRIERS BASED ON RACE, BLACKS AND OTHER 
MINORITIES WERE MAINLY USED FOR COMIC RELIEF IN TELEVISION 
PROGRAMS.  AS GREG FLAKUS REPORTS FROM LOS ANGELES, THE PICTURE 
IS DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT TODAY, BUT THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY 
STILL HAS A LONG WAY TO GO IN REPRESENTING THE NATION'S 
DIVERSITY.

MOVIES AND TELEVISION HAVE COME A LONG WAY SINCE THE DAYS WHEN 
BLACKS AND OTHER MINORITIES WERE ALL BUT INVISIBLE ON SCREEN.  
TODAY, SOME OF THE MOST POPULAR ACTORS IN HOLLYWOOD ARE BLACK.  
DENZEL WASHINGTON, WHOOPI GOLDBERG, WESLEY SNIPES, AND MORGAN 
FREEMAN ARE SEEN REGULARLY IN STARRING ROLES.  BLACK COMEDIAN 
BILL COSBY WAS, FOR MANY YEARS, THE MOST POPULAR MAN ON 
TELEVISION. 

ACCORDING TO NEW FIGURES RELEASED BY THE SCREEN ACTORS GUILD, 
ETHNIC MINORITY ACTORS NOW TAKE MORE THAN 20-PERCENT OF THE MOVIE
AND TELEVISION ROLES AVAILABLE EACH YEAR.  FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 
HISTORY, CAUCASIAN ACTORS REPRESENT LESS THAN 80-PERCENT OF THE 
TOTAL JOBS IN THE INDUSTRY.

BUT, DESPITE THESE GAINS, SOME OBSERVERS NOTE TELEVISION, IN 
PARTICULAR, REMAINS SEGREGATED INTO PROGRAMS MAINLY TARGETED AT 
BLACKS AND THOSE TARGETED AT THE WHITE MIDDLE CLASS.  LOS ANGELES
TIMES COMMENTATOR KAREN GRIGSBY BATES SAYS MOST PRIME TIME SHOWS 
ON NETWORK TELEVISION TODAY HARKEN BACK (RESEMBLE) TO THE 
ALL-WHITE SHOWS OF THE 1950'S. 

         I WONDER SOMETIMES IF THE UNRELIEVED ETHNIC SAMENESS OF 
         SOME OF THESE SHOWS DOES NOT REPRESENT IN SOME WAYS A 
         WISH TO GO BACKWARD (TO A TIME) WHEN THERE WAS NOT SUCH 
         COMPLICATION ABOUT WHAT "THEY" WOULD THINK OR HOW "THEY"
         WOULD BE OFFENDED, BECAUSE THERE WAS NO "THEM" TO TAKE 
         INTO CONSIDERATION.

MS. BATES NOTES THAT POPULAR PROGRAMS LIKE "SEINFELD", "FRIENDS",
AND "MAD ABOUT YOU", RARELY HAVE BLACK ACTORS EVEN IN BACKGROUND 
EXTRA ROLES.  SOME PRODUCERS SAY THIS REFLECTS THE WILL OF THE 
WHITE MIDDLE CLASS, WHICH IS STILL THE WEALTHIEST SEGMENT OF THE 
POPULATION.  HOWEVER, MS. BATES SAYS PROGRAMMERS ARE IGNORING A 
LARGE AND RAPIDLY GROWING PART OF THE POPULATION.

         AS MIDDLE CLASSES OF OTHER ETHNICITIES BEGIN TO EXPAND, 
         AS PEOPLE CONSUME MORE AND HAVE CHILDREN WHO WILL 
         CONSUME MORE, THEY HAVE TO REALIZE THAT THERE ARE ALL 
         KINDS OF PEOPLE WITH DOLLARS IN THEIR HANDS WHO ARE 
         WAITING TO SPEND THEM OR WHO CAN BE PERSUADED TO SPEND 
         THEM IF THEY ARE APPROACHED WITH SOME MANNER OF RESPECT 
         AND DIGNITY.

KAREN GRIGSBY BATES SAYS THE ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA COULD DO A GREAT
DEAL FOR SOCIETY BY PORTRAYING MORE INTERACTION BETWEEN RACIAL 
AND ETHNIC GROUPS.   SHE SAYS THE STUDIOS NEED NOT SACRIFICE 
PROFITS IN DOING THIS.

         YOU DO HAVE TO KEEP IN MIND THAT IT IS A BOTTOM-LINE 
         INDUSTRY, IT IS NOT A SOCIAL SERVICE, BUT I DO NOT THINK
         THOSE TWO ARE MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE.  I THINK YOU CAN DO 
         GOOD WHILE YOU ARE DOING WELL.  YOU JUST HAVE TO WANT 
         TO.

NOT ALL BLACK OPINION LEADERS AGREE WITH MS. BATES IN HER 
CRITICISMS OF THE ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA, BUT EVEN INDUSTRY LEADERS 
ADMIT THE SITUATION IS FAR FROM PERFECT.

BLACKS, WHILE ABSENT FROM SOME OF PRIME-TIME TELEVISION'S BIGGEST
SHOWS, ARE REPRESENTED OVERALL ON SCREEN FAR MORE THAN ARE MOST 
OTHER MINORITY GROUPS.  

SCREEN ACTORS GUILD FIGURES SHOW BLACKS, WHO REPRESENT MORE THAN 
12-PERCENT OF THE OVERALL U-S POPULATION, FILLED MORE THAN 
14-PERCENT OF FILM AND TELEVISION ROLES LAST YEAR.  BY CONTRAST, 
HISPANICS, WHO MAKE UP MORE THAN 10-PERCENT OF THE U-S 
POPULATION, WERE CAST IN LESS THAN FOUR-PERCENT OF ALL TELEVISION
AND FILM ROLES LAST YEAR.  ASIANS AND AMERICAN INDIANS WERE EVEN 
LESS VISIBLE ON SCREEN.  

AS THE DIVERSITY OF THE NATION'S POPULATION INCREASES, THE 
PRESSURE ON HOLLYWOOD TO REFLECT THAT DIVERSITY IS LIKELY TO 
INCREASE.