utorok 17. mája 2011

Blog recommendations


Similar topic that I picked up is about “The role of media and eating disorders” (http://www.mediaanddisasters.blogspot.com/) created by Katarina Zubova where I found interesting articles and very impressive video about anorexia.

Concern about “Violence and media” has been worked out by Marita Gurchiani. (http://maritagurcciani.livejournal.com/) where different kinds of violence in media are discussed with special explanations and expert’s opinions.

Very hot and recent theme is about facebook so I really enjoyed reading blog about this social network (http://facebookmoredetailed.blogspot.com/).  Here, you can learn everything from its revolution to its impact on society, youth and political candidates.

The blog that I personally like the most is about art and how does it change throughout the time created by Christina Kneitz (http://artchanges.blogspot.com/). I would recommend this blog for all those interested in art. I also really like the pictures that illustrate this blog.

“Celebrities and mass media” is another interesting blog done by Shakhlo Khudayberganova (http://shakhlounyp.blogspot.com/). I found here a lot of critique on media for attacking celebrities’ lives and it is quite controversial topic. 

štvrtok 12. mája 2011

additional post

Hi everybody, just look at this video to see how well proportioned women should look like. It is dance video but I think a very good one. The choreography starts at 2:20. Can you imagine the typical skinny and tall models dance like this? ;)

nedeľa 8. mája 2011

Portrayals of women in media- academic essay

It is true that media are responsible for many challenges we need to face today. The more technology is developed and used, the more unrealistic our ideas about perfect woman become. Women were and still are displayed to many stereotypical practices in media.
In the past, there were much fewer women shown on television than men. The percentage of female characters on U.S. TV only increased from 28 to 36% from 1975 to 1995, and only 20% of characters ages 45-64 were women (Gerbner, 1997).
Later on, when women were seen more often on TV, another concern came into account. Women were portrayed only as homemakers and mothers taking care of the household. This is especially true when talking about advertising. Women were typically promoting things like washing powder, cleaning stuff and all these products needed for keeping the house tidy. Not limited to the United States, the stereotyping of women in advertisements occurs in many societies (Gilly, 1988). Women seem to be obsessed by matters like dirty laundry or just gossiping with neighbours. They are shown like dependent on men with very little right to make their own decisions.
Today’s advertisements are quite different. Women are not used to sell only cleaning stuff but almost everything. The only condition is to be beautiful. And what means to be beautiful according to media? According to Jean Kibourne, writer awarded from the Association for Women in Psychology, beautiful woman in media has no lines or wrinkles, no scars or blemishes, indeed, she has no pores. She is thin, generally tall and long-legged, and, above all, she is young. All "beautiful" women in advertisements, regardless of product or audience, conform to this norm. I think that every woman in the world desires to be beautiful and if this is what they should try to look like then female population will become extinct. Adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable and sensitive to media because they are new consumers with not very much experience. They are in the process of learning their values and roles. If they are constantly fed by unnaturally thin pictures of women, there will be high probability that they will suffer of some eating disorder.
Relatively new concern in regard to different portrayals of women in media is “Superwoman” who causes stress to many ordinary women. The Superwoman is defined as a woman who wants to “have it all” by excelling in both traditional feminine and masculine roles. She wants to be thin and attractive, a loving wife and mother, and a strong and independent career woman (Barnett, 1968; Orbach, 1978, 1986; Striegel-Moore et al., 1986). Expectations put on women who watch TV are so huge that the result is simply stress.
Women are forced to live with the pressure that media puts on them because these constraints are becoming societal ideal. These practices can seriously damage woman’s self-esteem and self-image. Even though some companies already started to shift from the media’s distorted picture of beauty, there is still a very long way to change the unrealistic portrayal of women in media.


Works Cited:

Richard Jackson Harris. “A Cognitive Psychology of Mass Communication.” Mahwah NJ, USA: Lawerence Erlbaum Associates, Incorporated, 2004

Cash, Thomas F. "The American Image of Beauty: Media Representations of Hair Color for Four Decades.", 1993.

Chapkis, Wendy. “Beauty secrets”. Southend Press, USA, 1986.

Covell, Katherine and Kyra Lanis. "Images of Women in Advertisements", 1993.

Schneir, Miriam. “Feminism In Our Time.” Vintage Original Press, N.Y.. 1994.

Recommended web pages


When talking about media and its influence on viewers, listeners or readers, I would like to point out a very good web page called “Media Awareness Network” (http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/index.cfm) where you can find all kinds of issues connected to media. It is a collection of media literacy and digital media resources.

Another interesting web page is “Suite101 Blog” (http://www.suite101.com/) where interviews with successful businessmen and great writing resources can be found. The big advantage of this page is that all articles are organized in separate categories according to your interest. One of these categories is also “Media Literacy”.

Similar and also helpful website is “Robin Good Master New Media” (http://www.masternewmedia.org/) full of interesting articles not only about portrays of women in media. What is more, this web page provides you with the most current events in the world of media every day. Even though there are no categories, you can easily find a matter of your interest via smart search application. 

Thinness and body image in the media- educational article #2


Women’s main duty is to stay always young and being young is according to media inseparable from being beautiful and that means to be thin.  A perfect example of this type of woman is Barbie. All of us know how she looks like but did you know that if Barbie was a real woman, she would have to walk on all four due to her propositions? So why is this image of totally unhealthy woman so popular and displayed in all kinds of media? The answer is indeed very easy; the economic. According to media activist, Jean Kilbourne, “Women are sold to the diet industry by the magazines we read and the television programs we watch, almost all of which make us feel anxious about our weight.” It is fact that all media reinforce the “beauty” of almost skinny body as a most important measure of a woman’s worth. Unfortunately, who is thin is according to advertising that rules the entire marketplace “in”.  http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/women_and_girls/women_beauty.cfm

The Idealistic Superwoman- educational article #1

 Since 1960’s women portrayed in television moved from the kitchen to boardroom and not only they have well paid job and build a successful career but they have still enough time to be super mother and wife. The only thing that is missing in regard to superwoman is reality. What can ordinary middle aged woman think of herself when watching superwomen in TV? Who can get up in the morning full of energy to do a breakfast for the family, go running, put a perfect make up on face, drive children to school, get promoted in work, go to a gym after work, pick up children, cook a dinner and still have enough energy left to satisfy husband? It has been proved that the stress associated with trying to fulfil all these roles can increase vulnerability to different disorders. (Barnett, 1986; Orbach, 1978, 1986; Striegel-Moore et al., 1986). As the effect, girls and women who are frequent viewers of TV are less satisfied with their experience and have very negative opinion about their gender. http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/articles/gender_portrayal/sidekick.cfm

Eating disorders because of thin models in advertising- currant issue #2

When women in today's society see what is being advertised and by whom, it is not surprising, that many of them strive for these impossible body images. The majority of the ads in women's magazines show super-skinny models advertising nice clothes, makeup, jewelry, etc.We know that half naked unhealthy thin models are selling everything from juice to car. But is it necessary to place only slim women in these ads? This portrays cause that people are led to believe that the beautiful and attractive woman’s body consists of nothing but skin and bones. It is clear then, that so many young girls and woman are able to do anything in order to look like these models in TV. Not only are they dieting, but they will also harm their bodies by starvations that cause different eating disorders, most of which anorexia and bulimia are well known. In order to realize the effect that advertising is having on girls and women today, it is important to know the facts and statistics that are current about eating disorders. Eight million girls and women are affected with eating disorders (Wilson and Blackhurst 2009). I think that this is an alarming number and we can blame the media for it. Girls become dissatisfied with their bodies when comparing them to the images in the TV commercials such as Victoria’s Secret ads. They do not understand that the natural and healthy woman’s body does not look like that and they develop self-esteem issues what can lead to depression and anxiety. The women presented to us, particularly models, weigh an average of 23% less than the average woman (Kilbourne, 1995). But are thin and super skinny women what males and even females feel is attractive? According to Joel Best, the author of "Damned Lies and Statistics: Untangling Numbers from the Media, Politicians, and Activists", 150,000 women die each year of anorexia and the media contributes to it a lot.
 http://sites.google.com/site/mediasportrayalonwomen/Home/bulimi