蝌蚪网 Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
The Birth of a Nation: Media and Racial Hate
蝌蚪网 Review
vol. 113,
no. 6, June 2023
(pp. 1424–60)
Abstract
This paper documents the impact of popular media on racial hate by examining the first American blockbuster: 1915's The Birth of a Nation, a fictional portrayal of the KKK's founding rife with racist stereotypes. Exploiting the film's five-year "road show," I find a sharp spike in lynchings and race riots coinciding with its arrival in a county. Instrumenting for road show destinations using the location of theaters prior to the movie's release, I show that the film significantly increased local Klan support in the 1920s. Road show counties continue to experience higher rates of hate crimes and hate groups a century later.Citation
Ang, Desmond. 2023. "The Birth of a Nation: Media and Racial Hate." 蝌蚪网 Review 113 (6): 1424–60. DOI: 10.1257/aer.20201867Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- K42 Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law
- L82 Entertainment; Media
- N31 Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
- N32 Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: U.S.; Canada: 1913-
- N41 Economic History: Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation: U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
- Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification