Center for Digital Media Innovation & Diversity

Digital Lives of African Americans
Dr. Kevin Clark

Because of the trip to West Africa and the influence of Dr. Clark and Dr. Witherspoon, I’ve focused on ‘Who Am I?’ and how African Americans are viewed and depicted. To that end, I’ve chosen to focus on the impact of authentic and diverse representation in children’s media and how it impacts the identity, self-image, and aspirations of youth of color. This is demonstrated through my work as a full professor and founding director of the Center for Digital Media Innovation & Diversity, which includes the national study of the Digital Lives of African American Tweens and Parents.

The purpose of this work was to explore the educational impact of technology and digital media on African American families in non-school environments such as home and community in order to acquire a more complete picture of intragroup differences among African Americans and their technology use.

As a consultant, I’ve also provided diversity & inclusion expertise on scripts, character designs, storylines, animations, interactive games, audience outreach strategies, podcasts, and toys for organizations like: Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), Cartoon Network, Jim Henson Company, Fred Rogers Productions, Disney Junior, Hasbro, Mattel, Facebook, YouTube Kids, Netflix, and Amazon Studios (e.g. The Snowy Day movie, Fred Rogers Blog, Washingtonian magazine).