1. Research: GW+Media Project
• Images of women and girls in the media have
serious effects regarding self-esteem, life
options, behavior and body image
• Woman and girls can take control of their own
concepts of themselves by becoming conscious
of media effects and trends
• Women have been growing in influence in
media, though much more work is still to be
done
http://www.mediaandwomen.org/
2. Retrieved from
http://www.mediaandwomen.org/problem.html
･ A study of video games found that the few
female characters in those games are
often highly sexualized/wearing tight
revealing clothing and having
unrealistically large breasts and distorted
small waists. (Girls and Gaming, Children Now; 2000.)
3. Research: Children Now
• Children consume the negative and
positive elements, stories, relationships
and characterizations in television
• Children want to see characters that look
like them and that they can relate to
• It is important for television characters to
transmit positive and truthful images
16. “Jean”, 43 years old:
• I have heard comments about taking
myself too seriously when wounded by
comments and ridiculous portrayals of
overweight women in movies and on
television and have to wonder how one
views something as deeply personal as
self image as something to be made fun
of and consider that acceptable.
17. “Caren”, 49 years old:
“I lived 29 years of abuse. From rejection at birth to
a life where I was physically, verbally,
emotionally and psychologically abused. Much of
it had to do with being born female. My mother
didn't want a girl. To make a long story short I
was raised to clean, cook and feel ugly and good
for nothing because i was born the weaker sex. I
was beaten in order to do all this correctly
because one day i would have to serve a man
right.”
18. “Beyond Stereotypes: Rebuilding the Foundation of Beauty Beliefs”
Findings of the 2005 Dove Global Study, February 2006, retrieved from
http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/dsef/temp2.asp?id=4172
“Today’s beauty ideals can create a
desire for perfection which leaves
many women around the world with
feelings of anxiety and inadequacy
about their overall physical
appearance, and especially their
body weight and shape.”
19. “This narrow, physical definition of beauty
creates an appearance anxiety among a
large number of women (15-64),
particularly girls (15-17), who believe it is
hard to personally feel beautiful when
confronted with today’s beauty ideals –
with more than half of all women globally
agreeing.”
20. The final word on media…
……almostalmost
•• Media affect those who consumeMedia affect those who consume themthem
•• Media have greater effects on those whoMedia have greater effects on those who
consume them moreconsume them more…… especially if they are notespecially if they are not
aware of possible effectsaware of possible effects
•• The media haveThe media have cumulative social effectscumulative social effects thatthat
can be negative, validating some ofcan be negative, validating some of
societysociety’’s worst elementss worst elements
•• MediaMedia’’s negative effects can be decreased by your owns negative effects can be decreased by your own
learning and changes in your own behaviorlearning and changes in your own behavior
