Stereotypes in the mediaStereotypes play an important role in today's society and particularly in propaganda. According to Webster's dictionary, stereotypes are defined as a fixed conventional notion or conception of an individual or group of people, held by a number of people. Stereotypes can be basic or complex generalizations that people apply to individuals or groups based on their appearance, behavior, and beliefs. Stereotypes are found everywhere. Although our world seems to be improving in many ways, it seems almost impossible to free it from stereotypes. Stereotypes have existed since the dawn of time in our daily lives through religion, politics and the media. Humans tend to “use stereotypes in our humor, in our descriptions of others, and even in our beliefs.” We may believe that it is possible to get rid of such habits; however, when considering regular propaganda promotions, this would make this goal impossible. However, stereotypes are not always negative; therefore, this essay will discuss the negative and positive aspects of stereotypes used by propaganda. Propaganda is a force that can influence and affect everyone; bring about changes in behaviors, attitudes and beliefs. It is also known that the media have an impact on their viewers by changing their judgments based on the information they receive. A significant amount of stereotypes disseminated by propaganda have similar effects. This essay will illustrate how stereotypes are typically portrayed and their function in propaganda. It will also reveal how effectively stereotypes can work when used in propaganda tactics. The media often uses and distorts stereotypes; however, they are widely accepted by society. TV shows like The Simpsons are full of stereotypes during their half-hour run. The Simpsons contains a large number of viewers who watch the show daily because it airs during prime time. Characters like Apu are very discriminated against and stereotyped. In this show, Apu is characterized as an Indian immigrant, who prays to Ganesh and has a very visible and different accent. This is a stereotype observed by young children and perceived as humorous; they apply this knowledge to those they encounter in real life. Viewers of this show believe this information to be completely accurate because they have little to no knowledge about this particular group. Although the stereotypes shown on television are usually distorted, they are fairly well accepted by the public as the truth..