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How many times have you stood in the grocery store line and looked over at the magazine counter and seen all the magazines? All of the women on the covers look sexy and provocative. If you’re like me, you feel odd and start to compare yourself to these fantasy images and you don’t even know why. Harmful Effects of Media Images of WomenThe images created by the media are impossible for any woman in the United States to achieve. They shout the message, “Be young; be beautiful and of course be thin.” We all face that message, but often do not even think about it until we step on the scale, or look in the mirror, or stand in a room with other women looking each other up and down as if they are all thinking, “How do I compare? Do I match up? Do you match up with all the media-promoted beautiful faces and sexy bodies?” We need to be aware that often what we see in the media is not real and are created with smoke and mirrors. But little girls and tweens and teens and women of all ages buy into it. The messages are everywhere and they creep into our self-images without us realizing it. Women and girls feel guilty and bad because what they see and what they look like do not and probably never will match up. This leaves girls and women of all ages depressed and feeling hopeless and often looking for a way to feel better about themselves. And that is just sad. Here come the Super Bowl AdsThe Super Bowl is just days away and it is one of the most watched events on our planet. It will also be the night that all the new ads will come out and everyone will see them. The media will take full advantage of this time and women will be sexualized as is the customary pattern of these ads. You know, yogurt is a sexy thing and with a sexy woman eating it….it must be really good. One woman reported, “I am embarrassed to watch these ads with my young daughter”. She is embarrassed for good reason. Some will laugh and say this is no big deal and others will blow it off and ask, “What’s the harm?” What will you do? What will you say to another woman or a young girl who may want to understand that beauty comes from within and that no matter her weight or bra size or her age she is beautiful inside and out…..How about that…. If you said to yourself and friends; “Let’s not buy products that sexualize women what would happen?” Women purchase over 85% of products and services in the United States and if we all decided to impact the market we could darn well do it. Ok Super Bowl coming!! Wake up and decide what you want to do about women being sexualized in the media and if you are not ok about it. Do something! Say something. Let us know what you think. We can be pretty powerful and amazing when we join forces. Post your comment on our Facebook page, tag #NotBuyingIt in Twitter or anything else you can think of to get the word out that WE ARE NOT BUYING IT. Miss RepresentationJoin ranks also with MissRepresentation.org on Superbowl Sunday, Feb. 3, to create a social media moment and show how powerful we consumers can be: hashtag #NotBuyingIt. by Dr. Nancy O’Reilly |
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