Why TV Needs Black People

TV is in big trouble.

Here are two facts that every television executive should have sleepless nights over:

1.       According to the last 2011 census Britain is becoming a more ethnically diverse country. London is 40% Non-white. Leicester, Luton and Slough are now “minority majority cities” (over 50% of the population are from a black, Asian or ethnic minority) and Birmingham is predicted to join them soon.

2.       Black, Asians and other ethnic minorities watch less television than their white counterparts. On average BAME people watch five hours less television per week (22hours vs. 27hours). The really worrying fact for people at the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel Five is BAME people watch only half the amount of Terrestrial TV than the rest of the population (8hours vs 16hours).

So there you have it TV execs; a segment of the audience that is growing that clearly doesn’t want to consume your product. If this were a business presentation I’d be thinking how do I sell my shares now?

But before I hand in my notice and open the ice cream shop in Brixton Village that I’ve been dreaming about for the last two years a small academic study by the University of California might hold the answer as to what TV execs can do.

During 2011-2012 the University of California’s analysed more than 1,000 “scripted television shows” – that’s drama and comedy to you and me – for how many people of colour appeared in them and the results were striking. The study found that programmes with more actors of colour had above average ratings.

The amount of actors of colour a TV programme had really mattered. The study found that average ratings were highest when the casts were 31 – 40% from an ethnically diverse background. At the other end of the spectrum, ratings were the lowest among shows with casts that were 10 percent ethnic minority or less.

And it wasn’t just “in front of the camera” stats that influenced the ratings, the colour of the staff behind the camera also mattered. The broadcast shows with the highest ratings all had writing staff where at least a fifth of the staff were BAME.

In a recent conversation with Keli Lee the Head of Casting at Disney ABC she told me that the diversity of cast is vital in attracting minority audiences. 15 years ago on screen ethnic diversity on the American network ABC stood at roughly 6%, today it is 27% with shows such as Modern Family, Greys Anatomy and Scandal.

The answer is simple for British TV executives worried about their falling ratings and a growing audience that is switching off:

Employ more black people behind the camera and put more of us in-front of the camera. And if you really want to save TV you might even want to make a few more .of us executives too