Germany’s Next Top Model and the Psychology of Privilege [The Germany Files]
by Guest Contributors Carolina Asuquo-Brown and Elisabeth Schäfer-Wünsche
Heidi Klum may have never exactly been a catwalk super model like fellow German Claudia Schiffer, but she is definitely one of the country’s most savvy business women and biggest advertising stars.
In Germany, Heidi’s face sells sweets, shoes, fast food and almost every other product you could come up with. But her biggest media success so far has definitely been to follow Tyra Banks’ footsteps and host a show called “Germany’s Next Top Model,” a show that in most respects is the exact copy of its big sister “America’s Next Top Model.” We all know the story: Young hopefuls from all parts of the country flock to Heidi’s castings (conducted strict governess style), strut their stuff on the catwalk and undergo various photo shots and challenges before, in the end, one young woman is crowned the next Heidi.
One thing that is strikingly different though is the ethnic make-up (no pun intended) of the contestants. Though a look at any shopping-mall or classroom will suggest that Germany is an ethnically quite diverse nation, up to season 3 (this summer) no brown face made it to the final stages of the show. In last year’s show, a girl with a Brazilian mother came fifth. But it was not until the 2009 season, that Sara Nuru, Bavarian-born with Ethiopian roots, did not only crash the Top 10 ranks but also won the contest.
Interestingly enough, another hugely popular German TV format (also adapted from a US show, namely from “American Idol”) is well known to draw its contestants mainly from Germany’s migrant population. It has consequently elicited quite a number of vitriolic remarks from the media, branding it Germany’s “Migrant Idol.” But most Germans (at least those who admit to watching the show, as it is considered quite a bit of a guilty pleasure that most intellectually demanding German TV viewers deny watching), for 5 consecutive seasons have happily been going along with the highly diverse crowd of aspiring Idols.
Things seem to be a bit different though, when it comes to reactions to Sara Nuru’s victory and to modeling, a business that is almost solely based on looks: features, hair, body and the iconography created around those attributes.
Based on comments from German online communities, it seems that the majority of participants in those virtual discussions happily accepted the fact that the arguably prettiest contestant won, some voicing that they especially appreciated the fact that a not stereotypically German looking girl made it.
Of those that did not agree, only few were blatantly racist, but quite a few more flaunted an only slightly more subtle racism. They argued that in line with the traditional laws of citizenship (with German citizenship only granted on the basis of German ancestry) Germany’s next top model should be genetically and quintessentially German. The laws have long changed, but it seems that the concept they embodied still lives on.
Most posts that had an issue with a winner of color claimed they found it difficult if not impossible to identify with products or fashion that were advertised and promoted using a black model and that as Nuru looked nothing like the majority of Germans, she could not be considered a role model.
This line of argumentation strikes one as odd, considering how little the average woman can or generally does identify with the omnipresent size zero models anyway, regardless of common ethnic background.
The interesting bit is however, that – for most of these posters – this might be the first and only time that an issue that normally is the fate of the minority population, to not see yourself, the way you look, your hair, your body reflected in mainstream media and advertising, becomes relevant to them.
Always keeping in mind that these reactions were shown only by a “minority” of people, this seems to be an excellent example of how a very profane everyday issue can actually highlight the often hidden psychology of privilege and of power. Hidden that is to those who possess these privileges, often oblivious and without ever reflecting on that, as being the representative “norm” is never questioned. Social-psychological and at the same time political issues like the processes of group identity, stereotyping, and the influence of minority representation on majority group members’ perception are tackled by the show.
Having to come to grips with the experience of not seeing yourself reflected and represented and thus having your position and self-image questioned poses a psychological challenge to a majority. The comments may be ignorant and annoying, but on the flipside even the slightest bit of realizing that media representation mirrors the power structure within a society is a first step, as this is a concept that is not easily conveyed to those that are not negatively affected by it.
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of
OnceUponaTime wrote:
Well I’m glad that you mentioned this was a minority viewpoint even in Germany. I have lived in Germany and am Afro-German myself, and while I agree there are instances of racism that still occur, Germany has come a long way from its Nazi past. I think many (if not a majority of) white Germans consciously have chosen to be non-racist because of the past. Germans want to get as far away from that image as possible.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 8:49 am ¶
BLACKkittenROAR wrote:
Very thought provoking post, but I am unsure if this realization will really lead to a mass understanding of what it is like to be the “other” and not the norm. The privileged may simply only see that they have suffered the injustice, and not translate it to those who are now finally getting representation. That is the function of privilege, it seems to act at times as a blindfold to injustice, even if this creates a double standard.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 9:00 am ¶
Numa wrote:
Thanks so much for this post! I’ve been trying to find a German/Austrian equivalent of Racialicious for a while now, but to no avail! So I’m glad to see posts on here concerning the pop culture I grew up with!
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 9:35 am ¶
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
from that 1st photo alone, no one is really that dark skinned. Yeah, I mean the brown paper bag test.
How depressing.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 10:33 am ¶
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
This reminds me of the massively popular show, Indian Idol, in India (based on American Idol). One of the finalists last year (or in 2007, I think) was a contestant of Chinese descent. He had a Chinese name and Chinese heritage– he does not look Indian and he does not have Indian heritage. But he belongs to a sizeable Chinese community in India and he spoke fluent Hindi. He became an overnight popular senation with Indian audiences right away.
However, some Indians had a negative reaction to him because they said he cannot become an “Indian Idol” since technically, he’s not Indian. But in some past interviews, he kept insisting that he’s Indian and he considered himself Indian, not Chinese.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 11:07 am ¶
7thangel wrote:
wow.
maybe canada’a next top ‘white’ model or canadian white idol will finally have a POC win, but they can barely even make the top `0 or the show cuts despite the overwhelming talent and/or looks.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 11:58 am ¶
Medea wrote:
“Any shopping mall or classroom”? I guess it depends on where you live. Germany is 91% ethnically German, and it’s not spread evenly across the country. I’ve been in shopping malls and classrooms without a single person of color.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 12:43 pm ¶
Moviegirl wrote:
Hey
Not to nitpick but isn’t American Idol based off of England’s Pop Idol and thus all the Idol shows in other countries are based off of Pop Idol?
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 1:48 pm ¶
Tea In My Cup wrote:
Yes, Medea, that’s my experience, too. However, any person that passes you in the mall and who doesn’t look noticably “different” might also be from Poland, Russia or other places, not necessarily Germany. They probably have a different standing than people of colour, who can’t pass as ethnically German, but the post brought up that German version of American Idol (which is a nasty program), and most of the contestants fell under that category: not ethnic Germans, but not dark-skinned either, but from Poland, Holland, Italy, Romania. (At least in the 2008 season…)
There’s always such a curious lack of Turks.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 1:50 pm ¶
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
@ Moviegirl: yes. A lot of U.S reality shows are pretty much based on British game/reality shows.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 3:04 pm ¶
Triseult wrote:
I really enjoyed this analysis, and I’m glad you rightfully point out how absurd it is to question if someone can ‘represent’ the population based on skin color, when the fact they are part of the Elite is not raised.
I want to bring up, on the flip-side of your conclusion, that having people of color access the Elite is not a sign that society is becoming more accepting. As we all know, the election of Obama didn’t put an end to racism in America. On the contrary, it’s creating a false sense of finality to the question of racism: now we’re told that if African-Americans don’t succeed, it is their own fault and no fault of society, since someone like Obama obviously succeeded.
In my opinion, we live in an age where the major gain by the African-American community in America is that under exceptional circumstances they have access to the power elite. That is a gain, of sorts, and it feels as tainted as that of Black women in Germany having earned the right to be objectified and held up to dementing beauty standards by the mainstream.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 3:59 pm ¶
Courtney wrote:
“Most posts that had an issue with a winner of color claimed they found it difficult if not impossible to identify with products or fashion that were advertised and promoted using a black model…”
What is it with the idea that in order to shill products to some group, the salesperson and potential buyers *have* to be phenotypically similar?
The only problem I see with the majority of salespeople having light skin is that, at this point in time, it has the effect of protecting whiteness (not individual ethnicities– whiteness), thereby shutting out people who don’t identify with that .
Microsoft recently made headlines for “photoshopping” a brown man out of an ad that was used on its Polish website. His head was replaced by the head of someone with a ~noticeably lighter~ complexion.
Some people responded by saying this change was understandable, as Polish people need someone of a “white” phenotype in their advertisements. They are probably right; an off-white man’s appearance in a website ad could utterly confound Poles. I’m just thankful this particular ad didn’t make it to billboards visible from Polish roads; an oversight like that could’ve been catastrophic!
Surely, it is impossible for people who look different from one another to engage in sophisticated commerce… Or perhaps it can seem that way, when the only intercolor commerce you think “white” people should engage in will lead to a shoe shine, or a gutter getting cleaned.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 5:42 pm ¶
mile wrote:
My first thought when I began to read this was “isn’t Germany predominately white anyway?” The largest somewhat non-white ethnic group of which I was aware in Germany was Turks.
So I did a quick check, and 91% of Germans are German in terms of ethnicity. Turks make up the largest minority group, as I expected, at 2.1%, and the rest is made up of immigrants who are primarily white. The top four ethnic groups for this small group of others are Serbian, Italian, Polish, and Greek.
So I can’t really be all that mad at Germany for having a 100% white cast on Germany’s next top model, and I can see why people might feel that a black model did not represent Germany, as blacks make up far, far less than 1% of the population. (Serbs, the largest ethnicity in that small “other” group I mentioned above, make up 0.5% of the population, while Greeks, the smallest, account for 0.35%. Obviously, as no black ethnic group is listed, their numbers are smaller.)
I’d like to see a Turkish woman on the show, especially considering the relations between Turks in Germany and Germans, but I don’t find it terribly upsetting if a group that accounts for less than 0.35% of the population isn’t heavily represented in a modeling show.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 7:28 pm ¶
ashlynn wrote:
“Most posts that had an issue with a winner of color claimed they found it difficult if not impossible to identify with products or fashion that were advertised and promoted using a black model and that as Nuru looked nothing like the majority of Germans, she could not be considered a role model.”
Whoa. If I had dollar(yes I’m being greedy) for every German kid I’ve seen rocking fitted hats and AF1’s, talking about how 50Cent is the truth…I’d be like, “Recession? What recession?”
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 9:33 pm ¶
ashlynn wrote:
And to add on to that, maybe I’m staring too had, but regarding the ANTM series, it always irked me that the winning models of color somehow always ended up modeling Souhtpole and Akademiks while even the non winners who were white got nice little pieces in some fly magazines…that is, pieces that were more about the kind of high fashion Tyra and the judges ever so obsessively pitch on the show.
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 9:36 pm ¶
9jah wrote:
@ Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist/5:
“But in some past interviews, he kept insisting that he’s Indian and he considered himself Indian, not Chinese.”
I love the racial mind-benders being brought about by increasingly open borders! On this point, I’ve always wondered why citizenship jus soli is only taken seriously when it involves countries in the West.
Pakistan, I understand has this policy in place. How seriously would people in the US take a white person (of American parentage) born and raised in Pakistan, who claims Pakistani citizenship in favor of American? Or a person of Indian ancestry born in Lesotho?
Posted 27 Aug 2009 at 10:59 pm ¶
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
I don’t know about white people claiminig Pakistani citizenship, but there are plenty of Indians living in Africa and proudly calling themselves African-Indian. It’s not exactly new.
Posted 28 Aug 2009 at 12:26 pm ¶
Phil Deeze wrote:
@DeafIndianMuslimAnarchist,
Sidebar, please: is the occurrence of Indians in Africa a typical migratory pattern or is it by design? A buffer minority, perhaps, that is in some African countries/cities to be a transplanted upper-middle or middleclass bourgoisie?
Just wondering. Thanks.
Posted 28 Aug 2009 at 6:28 pm ¶
Baiskeli wrote:
@Phil Deeze
Indians are in Africa (at least in Kenya) as a result of history. The British brought over Indians to build the East African Railways in the early 1900s and they stayed after that. Kenyan food and clulture has a huge indian influence.
Yes, the British used them as a buffer minority during colonialism and yes there are a lot of issues/resentments left over (i.e this was the history that Idi Amin exploited to kick indians out of Uganda) but by and large there are multiple generations of Indians who live in African countries and are African (as there is a sizable portion of whites who stayed after independence and consider themselves African). One of my best friends in High School was Sikh and one of my Indian friends here (U.S) was born in Kenya but doesn’t remember it because he left when he was really young. I met his mother and we talked a lot about Kenya.
Things are not perfect, there was a time where you could never imagine a black/indian marriage (15 years ago) but this has changed a lot. Last time I went home there seemed to be a lot more mixing, especially in cities.
Posted 29 Aug 2009 at 11:43 am ¶
Danny wrote:
Hi Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist,
I know who you are talking about. The name of the Chinese (ethnically speaking) Contestant on Indian Idol is Meiyang Chang. He is 3rd or 4th generation according to this one fan blog I read and as far as I could tell, pretty much as “Indian” (not sure which group because India is so diverse yet a bit hard to describe IMO) as his neighbors and friends are in India. I think he sings very good even though I don’t know any Hindi or other South Asian language.
I was on another forum where we discuss a little bit about diverse societies and of course, there was some debate. One of the most common discussions was regarding multi-culturalism or multi-ethnic make up of a society and it’s effects on the nation as a whole. I really don’t know exactly what the definitions of these terms are in their original meaning because it seems that people were talking about 10 different topics at once regarding these words.
However, my opinion is that while many people do dwell on external appearences defining a group of people, for a long time and for so many different demographic groups, things have never been that straight forward nor simple to maintain.
Overtime, many of these different minority ethnic groups, whether it’s diversity is more or less visible, will eventually be immersed with the larger group to some degree and in various ways. It’s really inevitable for groups to be “Absorbed” (not assimilation) or greatly influenced in some way by the larger group. Things do not have to be one way, sometimes the smaller groups influenced the larger one. Also, those influences aren’t necessary direct, some could be reactionary or others could be just habits picked up from the environment.
I guess what I’m saying is that whatever defines “German” or any other term describing a group of people often changes despite a few examples of some demographic groups who have a very long history and “claim” an unbroken lineage.
Sometimes, I think we (refering to human beings in general) shouldn’t nit-pick too much about such details since things were complex in the past, they’re complex now and in the future will probably not matter. Unless one has to dwell into these matters, like discussing race and society but within reason and simple dignity for others of course.
Posted 30 Aug 2009 at 3:03 am ¶
aimerrouge wrote:
What is it with the idea that in order to shill products to some group, the salesperson and potential buyers *have* to be phenotypically similar?
I don’t understand this line. Does it mean that only white people do this? I know lots of Black people who feel this way. Before even considering the content of ANYTHING the scan it for any indication that an obviously Black person is involved.
Posted 31 Aug 2009 at 2:13 pm ¶