Who gets seen? Racial representation on Swedish primetime television

This study investigates racial representation on Swedish primetime television, focusing on the visibility and role of the Persons of Colour (POC). Despite the increasing diversity in Swedish society, media representation remains underexplored, particularly in quantitative terms. This study is based on a systematic content analysis of primetime programming on SVT1 and TV4 across seven randomly selected dates in 2020. A total of 3678 coded observations were analyzed, focusing on the presence and roles of individuals identified as Black, Asian, Middle Eastern, and Latinx. The findings reveal that Swedish primetime television is predominantly white. Black individuals were the most frequently represented POC. However, POC is disproportionately featured in background or non-speaking roles, and is more commonly seen in news programs than in entertainment content. These results highlight the marginalization and under-representation of POC in the Swedish media, suggesting a need for more inclusive and equitable representation. This study contributes to the growing body of research on racial representation in the European media and calls for further qualitative inquiry into the nature and impact of these portrayals.