Virtual racism? Avatar: The Last Airbender

what race are they?

Director M. Night Shyamalan's apparent decision to cast Caucasian actors to play the parts of non-white characters for his adaptation of the anime, Avatar: The Last Airbender, has stirred a proverbial hornet's nest of protest and frustration online. At heart is a question often asked of me while I'm on tour for : Why do so many characters in Japanese art forms--anime and manga--appear to be ethnically Western?

The short answer is thanks to Frederik L. Schodt...