Gender Portrayals in the Media

Introduction

Everyday, we are subjected to numerous images from the media. These images suggest what we should be like. Whether it is saying that we should act like a certain type of man or woman, or how we should treat others, the suggestions of media invade our thoughts. Much of the time, these portrayals are stereotypical of gender. From these images, it makes it hard to break out of the stereotypes in our own lives. Then, if we cannot live up to the ideal, our world could come crashing down.

Gender portrayals within the media affect all of our lives. It is up to each individual to take control of their own life. By gaining knowledge on the ways gender is represented within the media, it could be possible to avoid the negative effects of media such as eating disorders and dangerous violence.

Women in the Media

While there are many strong, well represented and diverse women within the media, that side is not shown often enough. Too often, women are shown as second class citizens, sexual figures, as well as unrealistic.

It seems as though society has passed the phase when women were inferior to men. However, media images do not portray that.

• In ads that are targeting males, it is often the case that women are only supplementing the male images, either by being sexual imagery or as a background (Rouner 2003).

• Even in video games women are significantly less represented. Male characters are much more often the playable characters and those who are female are very stereotypical and dressed more inappropriately (Miller 2007).

• In relation to violence within the media, it was found that women were either oblivious to it, encouraging it or starting it (Gallagher 2001).

In all of these cases, women are being represented as not as important as men, only perpetuating the old stereotype.

Another complication with women in the media is constantly being the figures of sexuality. Below are a couple ways in which women are simply thought of in terms of sexuality.

• Especially in men’s programming, women are often defined sexually, what seems to matter most is their sexual conduct (Gallagher 2001).

• Within many advertisements sexuality is a prevalent and important feature of selling the product. From this, it is easy to see how sexuality has become such a norm within our society (Rouner 2003).

• The view of women as sex objects in music videos is a cultural phenomenon. Only in North America, Great Britain, and minor number of other countries do we this to such an extreme (Gallagher 2001).

This constant concurrent image of women and sex places a tie between the two in our minds, which is hard to forget.

Finally, the media tells us that we need to be just as the images suggest, if we are any less, we are abnormal and therefore not desirable. It is suggested to women that everything in their lives should revolve around attracting men. Having a smaller waistline, larger breasts, and a sense of sexuality for women will get and keep the man (Medial Portrayals of Women). From the women in media to the types of products targeting this very feeling of inadequacy, some women feel that they are constantly being told they are not good enough. If no real women are presented within the media, it is hard for young girls to fully understand and accept the realities of life.

Media Influences on Girls and Women

With the stereotypes represented in the media, there are many negative effects on young girls and women.

Body Image

The images presented to society from the media influence how women feel about their bodies. Below are the problems that many women in America struggle with today.

With so many women constantly struggling with their weight and body image, it would be expected that successful changes would help with the internal problem. This however does not seem to be the case. According to Bate and Taylor (1988), the data does not show this conversion from powerless to powerful. In actuality, 95% of diets fail only heightening the problem (Bate & Taylor).

Books and other weight loss assistants are successful because rather than appealing to a certain market, they actually have a widespread target market (Bate & Taylor 1988). This shows that the problem is not actually only present in a small number of women, rather it is many, each of which feel that they are actually apart of an abnormal category contrary to the reality.

More Facts about Body Image

• Dieting has the possibility of being an excuse for some unhappiness one is experiencing, and the future possibilities for improvement give some hope (Bate & Taylor 1988).

• Rather than severely overweight people, those who are shown to diet repeatedly are actually only slightly to moderately overweight (Bate & Taylor). This could be because these women are closer to the ideal image, but the media skews this image from a healthy weight, making them further away from their goal.

• The role models of young women come mostly from those presented throughout the media (Bate & Taylor 1988). By not showing everyday women, there is no room to find a role model who is of a better body image fit for individuals, which could lead to problems such as eating disorders which are very hard to cure once they begin, and could much more easily be prevented.

Misrepresentation of Women in Media

• Within video games, there is an outnumbering of males to females (Miller 2007). This may signify that women are less important.

• In a study done by Rouner (2003) about ad stereotypes, women were more likely to notice the stereotypes, which could mean that men have a lower involvement in advertising. This could be a reason why women seem more affected by the images presented in the media.

The extent of the effects media has is unknown because it can impact every part of our lives. The biggest implication is that if we continue to believe these messages, a large majority of society will feel inadequate and therefore have problems that expand into their work, social, and family lives (Wood 2007).

Men in the Media

According to Media Awareness there are only six ways in which men are represented within the media:

"The Joker is a very popular character with boys, perhaps because laughter is part of their own "mask of masculinity." A potential negative consequence of this stereotype is the assumption that boys and men should not be serious or emotional. However, researchers have also argued that humorous roles can be used to expand definitions of masculinity.

The Jock is always willing to "compromise his own long-term health; he must fight other men when necessary; he must avoid being soft; and he must be aggressive." By demonstrating his power and strength, the jock wins the approval of other men and the adoration of women.

The Strong Silent Type focuses on "being in charge, acting decisively, containing emotion, and succeeding with women." This stereotype reinforces the assumption that men and boys should always be in control, and that talking about one’s feelings is a sign of weakness.

The Big Shot is defined by his professional status. He is the "epitome of success, embodying the characteristics and acquiring the possessions that society deems valuable." This stereotype suggests that a real man must be economically powerful and socially successful.

The Action Hero is "strong, but not necessarily silent. He is often angry. Above all, he is aggressive in the extreme and, increasingly over the past several decades, he engages in violent behavior."

The Buffoon commonly appears as a bungling father figure in TV ads and sitcoms. Usually well-intentioned and light-hearted, these characters range from slightly inept to completely hopeless when it comes to parenting their children or dealing with domestic (or workplace) issues. "

The above quotation expresses how men are often shown within the media. Men seem to be constrained to these certain roles, both within media and outside in the real world.

Other Representations of Men in Media

Men within the media are held to very different standards than women. They are often rewarded for the stereotypical male roles such as aggression, power, financial stability, and physical and mental strength (Media Portrayals of Men and Masculinity).

Some examples of these thems within the media:

• With the amount of violence within the media, it would be expected that it is punished. Contrary to this belief however, violence is often rewarded as a way to solve issues and conflict (Gallagher 2001).

• There are suggestions of violence all throughout the media, even including advertising (Gallagher 2001).

• Being aggressive, strong, and in power is the only way for guys to be real men (Medial Portrayals of Men).

Media Influences on Boys and Men

The influences of media on even men's lives is substantial. Those men who are significantly exposed to media’s ideal male actors and characters have a higher chance of attempting to gain weight to take steroids (Morrison et al. 2004 as cited in Miller 2007). Also in addition to the effects on the body, media can influence aggressive behavior. It seems as though the media has created some sort of obsession with violence in men. In the past this has been linked to the aggressive behavior which is rewarded in various media outlets (Gallagher 2001). Just as with the role models for women and their body images, this type of behavior and men are the type of performances that boys idolize.

Video Games Influence

It has been shown that youth who spend a significant amount of time playing video games will sometimes consider the fictional characters as role models (Miller 2007). When these characters represent negative stereotypes, the children will transform those behaviors into their lives. If the player of a video game does not possess the same abilities and appearance as the character they idolize, their own self-esteem could suffer (Miller 2007). While it may be hard for someone of an older age to understand how this is so, with the extent that some spend improving their skills on games, it is not hard to see how some may begin believing that they could be like the characters.

Within games, players have the ability to control the actions of their characters. It is often a choice in more modern games to treat women poorly, including having sex with them and immediately disregarding them. From this, it is likely that men will adapt negative perceptions and feelings about women (Miller 2007). The way gender is portrayed within games can lead to a lower self-esteem in both genders (Miller 2007). This could be because of a feeling of inadequacy.

All of these effects of media can lead to the perpetuation of negative stereotypes of men. In addition to the stereotypes, it could be detrimental to how men behave not only with each other but also with women, creating a downward spiraling effect of problems.

Gender and News Coverage

Even news coverage is biased. The programmers select what stories the views see, which gives us their view of gender (Wood 2007). Often, if a viewpoint differs from that which is normally portrayed within media, it will be edited out in order keep with the current status. It is up to the viewer to remember this while watching news, because while it may seem unbiased, there are always more sides of the story and more ways to look at a situation.

Relationships and Media

Often, the media will represent relationships between men and women as perfect scenarios. If someone buys into this ideal, they may become les satisfied with their own relationship, because they have repeatedly accepted the idea of relationships without flaws (Wood 2007).

Another problem regarding relationships within the media is the image of sexual relationships (Wood 2007). Music videos as well as TV programs and movies, depict these types of relationships as normal or expected and without consequences. They create an unrealistic viewpoint that could once again lead to a feeling of insufficient in one’s relationship (Wood 2007) as well as feelings of inadequacy and abnormal when various situations have differing outcomes including the consequences of sexual relationships.

Changes that Need to be Made

There may already be a switch going on within our culture. Both genders comments about the ads in a study done by Rouner (2003) criticized them or pointed out the unreality of it. This could show young women that they do not need to force themselves into believing that they should look like the ideal image.

While there may be some advancement, there is still a substantial problem. The first step to ridding our society of the problem of succumbing to stereotypes is education. With advanced education about these stereotypes and the different means by which they are represented we can create a better technique to resisting and rejecting the stereotypes (Rouner 2003). Another change is needed in the public to change the images the media portrays. This is because commercial criteria overpowers the social welfare of society. Once audiences stop asking for these images (such as women as sex objects or housewives with no brains) the medial will stop representing it (Gallagher 2001).

One of the best ways to start solving within individuals would be to start learning to live with rather than against the body (Bate & Taylor 1988). This does not mean that one needs to love their body right away. It is about dealing with the internal problem rather than the external. Once the body is accepted, it will gradually become liked and hopefully loved.

By being sent this type of media, both sexes are “learning” that they are not good enough for the society they live in, and therefore they will always be striving for better in their physical appearance or supremacy. The images we view within the media needs to change. Demanding these changes is the only way to make the images stop. To do this, it is needed that as individuals, we reject being told by the media industry to fit this mold.

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