The release of the new show, “Southern Fried Rice,” has amassed unrelenting controversy about the representation, or lack thereof, of race in television shows. While the show plays with intercultural themes, it portrays them to the audience poorly. Between the usage of stereotypical dialogue and participation in popularly known Black tropes, “Southern Fried Rice” is severely insensitive and openly appropriates culture as we understand it.

Produced through the collaboration of Keke Palmer, with network KeyTV and screenwriter Nakia Stephens, “Southern Fried Rice” shares the story of a southern African American couple who adopts a Korean-American girl and raises her as their own. This character, known as “Koko,” having been raised within Black culture, decides to attend an HBCU (historically black colleges and universities) to prompt her self discovery. This fictional HBCU, referred to as “Wright University,” challenges Koko and introduces her to people who are both accepting and hesitant about her attendance at the school.

Many content creators and social media users took to TikTok to share their disapproval with the show’s methodology. For starters, the name “Southern Fried Rice” is deeply offensive to both the Black and Asian communities. Although the title aims to build on our understanding of each culture to further embrace the combination represented within Koko, it feels more like mockery than appreciation. On the other hand, some viewers have argued that people have gotten too sensitive in their critique of the title. Many shows produced in the 2000s are infamous for having quirky names that entice the audience to watch, even if it is offensive. With this thought, viewers are being deemed too sensitive. As society continues to progress, our morals are becoming more advanced within the topics that we bring to light.

It is not wrong to think about how the title of the show misleads the audience. While Koko is Korean-American, there is no incorporation of Asian culture in the show. Koko is simply operating based on her understanding of Black culture, having been separated from her Korean family. Therefore, naming the show “Southern Fried Rice” just because Koko is Korean without actual representation of Asian culture is very disrespectful.

As well as that, viewers have been angered by Koko’s stereotypical dialect depicting Black culture. Specifically, in the introduction episode, Koko pronounces “corn bread” as “cone bread,” a common misrepresentation of a “blaccent.” While Koko’s hypothetical family may have linguistically dropped the “R” to sound like an “N,” this pronunciation of “corn bread” has been a recurring topic on social media, where non-Black creators force accents to sound Black.

With such controversy embedded in the show, it is predicted that “Southern Fried Rice” will not do well. Unfortunately, I would have to agree with that. “Southern Fried Rice” has a heartwarming storyline but is deeply insensitive to the Black and Asian communities, reusing stereotypes to misrepresent cultures rather than appreciate them.