The average person consumes more than 10 hours of media a day. Sound like you? Well whether it is a magazine, movie, newspaper or TV show, the media is constantly shaping your view of the world, even if you don’t realize it.
Recently in my media ethics class, we viewed “Miss Representation,” an informative documentary that depicts how the media presents women to society and shapes social values. Because it is such a big part of day-to-day lifestyle, the media is responsible for representing an accurate, diverse population. When young girls see who is on their screens, they are instantly discouraged because they very rarely look like them.
When advertisers or magazines photoshop women to perfect their imperfect features or shrink their waistline, they put an unattainable goal in front of women. In response these young girls grow up to be self-conscious and discouraged.
When producers only portray women as love-seekers, whiny or overly bossy, girls don’t have positive role models. These inaccurate portrayals of women don’t give girls an image to aspire after. When there are rarely women playing strong protagonist roles, they are assumed to be weak. When a woman in her workplace then tries to take a stance, she is seen as being bossy, instead of simply the boss.
It is shown in the media that when powerful women such as Hillary Clinton are criticized for their appearance being strong, intelligent and confident is not enough. However the media does not show the same view toward men. An example in “Miss Representation” was when Margaret Cho, was told she was too fat and needed to lose weight. When her show was cancelled, it was replaced with Drew Carey, who is no more fit than Cho. This hypocrisy shown by the media is taught to young adults and children who view it, which transcends generation and leads to an avoidable result.
In order to start on the right track the media needs to avoid limited visions of women, stop perpetuating stereotypes, and start encouraging women leaders who can help bring a real women perception to the media. It is time for positive change to help inspire young girls and women everywhere.