When you turn on the TV how many characters that you see are explicitly Jewish as part of their character and not just hidden lore? Not a lot but not a few either. There are Ross and Monica in Friends, Howard in The Big Bang Theory, and Schmidt in New Girl, for example. If you look at their characters, though the Jewish part of their identity is portrayed differently in each, if you aren’t Jewish you may not know the difference between what’s realistic or not because many of the characters shown are stereotyped or have the Jewish aspect brought up just for laughs.

When asked how often she sees Jewish characters on TV Charlotte Kass ‘26, member of the Jewish student union at WFS and member of B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (a Jewish youth group at the Jewish Community Center), says “Explicitly not often, and when they do they’re very stereotypical.” She mentions the show Friends as an example of this “All the Jewish characters generally tend to want money in some way which I find very stereotypical” she says. There was an episode of the show where Ross didn’t want to donate $100 to the retiring handyman who helped him move into his apartment and everyone in the building hated him for it. It was stereotypical Jewish characterization even though they didn’t explicitly say his being Jewish was the reason for his stinginess. This is a popular stereotype saying Jews want money or are good with money. This stereotype is shown in other shows, for example, House MD with Dr. Wilson, who is Jewish and financially responsible, always paying for Dr. House and lending him money on several occasions.  But even though shows can be stereotypical at times it’s nice to see people like you on the screen. Charlotte comments on this and says “More often than not I do like seeing them because more often than not they are relatable and typical”.

Now not all Jewish Characters are specifically said to be Jewish. Characters such as Eric Cartman from South Park, Velma from scooby doo, and Batwomen are only known to be Jewish if you dig deep into their lore. Andrew Forman ‘25, clerk and founder of WFS’s Jewish Student Union, points out a related topic when he says “A lot of times they put a character and just make them Jewish and there’s some funny Jewish jokes that they can run on” He is commenting on the fact that sometimes with characters, the Jewish aspect was an afterthought so writers could have some new material to make jokes about. “I’d say they usually bring it [the Jewish aspect]  up for jokes,” he says.  Now not all writers do this it always depends on how they want to portray their characters which is something Kate Coletti ‘28, a watcher of many TV shows, talks about “ I think when I see Jewish characters on TV, it depends on how the writer wants to portray their character, and sometimes it has no effect on the way the character acts and sometimes the character is just goofy.,” she says and referenced Howard Wolfowitz from The Big Bang Theory saying, “Most of the time he makes fun of himself [for being jewish].” This happens a lot for this character, whether making fun of Jews having heart issues or saying living with his mother is “Jewish hell”, his self-burns for being Jewish come in a large supply which might have come off as anti-Semitic if the writer of the show, Chuck Lorre, wasn’t Jewish himself.

All in all Jewish characters in the media for the most part tend to be relatable and realistic in their portrayals even if they are stereotypical at times. They represent a community of people who are often discriminated against in a way that is light-hearted and understandable for people who aren’t Jewish. It also makes the media more inclusive by representing this culture in its characters.