The media as discussed has and is very powerful over women and their body perception. The media has its way of conveying messages and having the audience believe in them. An example of this is food. Food obviously has a strong connection to body since it is the main factor in determining ones weight. The media has had its own way of framing food either it is good or very bad. What it is predominately seen in the media is food being used as a sex object or as a means to achieve the fabulous skinny body everybody dreams of. Magazines and commercial advertisements have been seen to use food as a sex object. Many times food advertisements include women and target men. The women are usually sexy and provocative while using that specific food item. This confirms many stereotypes; women are seen as objects by men, women do not eat men do, and women are seductive therefore they are able to sell food much easier. As seen in the picture above the woman is covered in rose pedals which have nothing to do with the advertised yogurt.
Diets in the media also impact women negatively. In order to sell their products many dieting companies use the before and after picture or testimony. Therefore women should be able to relate to their situation and buy the diet product in order to look like their after image. Diet products vary from pills, drinks, meals, meal points, and many more. All of the companies state that they are the best and that they actually give you results right away. Due to this many women receive mixed emotions about food and their body image. On one side they can use food as a sex object and to be seductive but yet on the other side it is the means to get the beautiful body. Therefore many women do not have good eating habits which affect their health due to the mixed messages the media conveys.
2 comments:
I totally agree and feel that the media sends young women the wrong message about appearance and diet. The message the media is sending to these young women is causing many health problems such as eating disorders. Women think that they need to starve themselves to look attractive. Not only is the media causing eating disorders but also mental issues of confidence among these young women.
Women are targeted by the media for the "right" body type. It is a sad thing to see as many women in search of the perfect figure put their health at risk. When you talked about the before and after pictures of women who do the diets that is directly impacting women and what the media tells them they should look like. What I wish people would understand is that its the inner beauty that matters. It does not matter what kind of a figure you have as long as you are happy. To be happy is priceless and just because one may be skinny they are not necessarily happy. Hopefully someday we will live in a society that does not judge you on what you look like but who you are as a person.
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