The National Domestic Workers Alliance partnered with the Norman Lear Center Media Impact Project at USC to commission a research report analyzing the history of domestic worker representation across scripted film and TV from 1910 to 2020. Through two phases of research, a frequency analysis and a content analysis of 100 domestic worker characters, the findings explore how often domestic workers have been referred to and with what terms, and examine character demographics such as race, gender, immigration status, and speaking role.
The purpose of this research report is to set a baseline for domestic worker representation and use it as a catalyst to change the narrative and start more conversations in the industry about accurate and authentic portrayals of domestic workers.
