The Representation of Afghans in the American Sitcom United States of Al: Examining the Burden of Representation and Challenges of Media Visibility

Abstract

This article investigates the politics of visibility and the limits of representation in the American sitcom, United States of Al—the first network television program to prominently feature an Afghan character. Employing textual analysis, this article analyzes the first season of the program, paying close attention to the development of the title character and storyline. In an attempt to combat the negative stereotypes of Afghans in American media by portraying an all-good person worthy of American acceptance, United States of Al ultimately reifies the very stereotypes it hopes to counter. Further, as the analysis illustrates, United States of Al makes visible Afghans to network programming, but suffers in its attempts to represent a deep and dynamic character. Uncovering how United States of Al -one of the first of its kind—portrays Afghans is critical to our understanding of how Afghans are represented in the American cultural imagination and the extent to which they may identify belongingness within mediated sites of identity negotiation. As attention from Afghanistan dissipates with the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country, interest in framing U.S. involvement in Afghanistan continues and this article provides one intervention to engage in more nuanced discussions of media visibility, representation, and power as it relates to Afghans and Afghanistan.