Define American, with USC Norman Lear Center’s Media Impact Project, presents our third television impact study.

We looked at the portrayal of immigrant characters on 79 scripted television shows that aired between July 2020 and June 2022 and surveyed viewers on how four immigration storylines shaped their attitudes toward immigrants in the real world.

The findings? Immigrant representation on television has shifted in important ways — both positive and negative — since 2020.