Reaction: New Report Finds The Arts An Area Of Considerable Disappointment For Many Black Britons

The largest ever survey of Black British people has found that the arts and media are areas of considerable disappointment for many Black Britons.

Despite clear efforts to reform ‒ and increasingly common references to ‘blind’ casting ‒ theatre, film, television, publishing and the mainstream media are all depicted as sources of longstanding disappointment to Black communities.

The research was announced today by the Black British Voices Research project, a collaboration between the University of Cambridge, the Voice newspaper, and I-Cubed Consultancy. They surveyed over 11,000 Black Brits across sixteen topics including Britishness, Identity and Racism.

The report also confirmed that fewer than 10% believe theatres and publishing houses are doing enough to encourage Black participation.

The music industry fared better than theatre or publishing, with 38% of respondents describing it as a positive medium for Black cultural expression as opposed to 31% who believed it was negative. At the same time, media such as broadcasting, music, film, and theatre are all viewed as formats in which Black British talent can thrive if given suitable opportunity.