62m

Director: Loretta Alper

Synopsis (Media Education Foundation): Based on the forthcoming book by Pepi Leistyna, Class Dismissed navigates the steady stream of narrow working class representations from American television’s beginnings to today’s sitcoms, reality shows, police dramas, and daytime talk shows.

Featuring interviews with media analysts and cultural historians, this documentary examines the patterns inherent in TV’s disturbing depictions of working class people as either clowns or social deviants — stereotypical portrayals that reinforce the myth of meritocracy. :

Website: http://www.mediaed.org/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=411