How Do We Make Australian TV More Diverse?

One member shares their thoughts, following Waleed Aly's Gold Logie win.

Australian TV, for all its thrilling primetime content— I’m looking at you, The Bachelor— seems as diverse as a homogeneous glob of mystery meat.

In my childhood, I was acutely aware that people who looked like me were almost entirely absent from my screen. How could it be that Neighbours, a show that depicts suburban Melbourne, is so devoid of people who aren’t white?

(We may all remember Sunny the exchange student and the Indian family, but their presence was at best tokenistic and insubstantial.)

To deal with this jarring lack of representation, I told myself that I can’t expect minorities to be represented (and represented well) in an industry that is just warming up to multiculturalism in the first place. “Surely it is just because there are so few of us when compared to the white majority that casting a show with a substantial number of people of colour would seem inorganic,” I thought.

However, as I grew older and came to terms with my bisexuality, the lack of diversity in Australian television became harder to ignore and more painful to digest.

What I've said so far might seem fatalistic, and as whiney as it gets, but I come armed with a plan. To make Australian TV more diverse we must first empower those in the margins to reclaim their voices.

What does it mean, to reclaim one’s own voice? Well, my vision of such reclamation works best on a grassroots level. To counter the issue of a lack of diversity, we as young people should proactively encourage more representative television by getting involved in media ourselves.

Diversity goes beyond one’s race, sexuality, gender or any describable facet of identity. Diversity includes accepting the voices of people different to ourselves and letting them speak for themselves.

Have unique stories to tell? Practice writing scripts. Like to act? Audition for the roles you want. Just want to support the arts? Donate your time or money to an organisation that is committed to diversity, or start your own.

The best way to be heard is by communicating. By steadily increasing our participation in the media, those of us who feel marginalised by the status quo will be shifting the parameters of what is seen as acceptable and “normal”. This will require the involvement of all, and not just minorities.

Diversity need not be an overnight revolution. I hold the belief that the smallest steps taken can change our worlds for the better, and this is why I think that Australian TV will be more diverse if we collectively foster an environment where people of diverse backgrounds and identities can take action for themselves, and consequentially enrich Australian television, improving the lives of those like myself who are often dismayed by the lack of diversity in Australian television.

Congratulations to Claudia for winning this writing challenge, answering: How Do We Make Australian TV More Diverse? Claudia wins a $50 Westfield gift card for her submission. For your chance to win, check out our latest writing challenges in our Comps section. Also, be sure to follow this guide on how to win the writing challenge!

Photo: Channel Nine.