The media is inescapable given that everywhere we go; we are surrounded by magazines, newspapers, computers, and televisions. The media is sculpting our society as it controls the structure of our civilization. Granting everybody is being affected; teenagers are more vulnerable to the media and suffer the highest impact. This is because; they are exposed to the media eight hours a day typically. They spend more time under the media’s influence than with parents; instructors, or even friends; as a result, these deliberate and unsettling messages rendered by the media are demolishing the mentality of teenagers today as it alters their views of the world and their place in it. Teenagers feel immense pressure to mimic the twisted images being shown by the media. Even though, these images that are being presented are, in fact, unrealistic and unattainable to the majority of the people watching it. So, in an effort to turn out to be identical to these individuals seen in the media, teenagers face an enormous assortment of self-esteem issues, disturbance in eating behavior, and sometimes depression. This is because; during their regular disclosure to the media, they think as if society has set the standard for good looks, and if they cannot live up to these principles, then they are not beautiful. They critic themselves by the media’s standards and compare themselves to others as they endeavor for fresh looks. In magazines, the messages portrayed by the media are blatantly signifying that one’s body should be without faults. Katharine Seelye the author of “Lurid Numbers on Glossy Pages!” says that “Sex still sells, of course, especially when mingled with celebrity” (Seelye 606) which completely agrees with my argument. For females, ti... ... middle of paper ... ...mplexity than programs in the past; However, that in itself proves nothing. Johnson’s idea of how “TV Makes Your Smarter” is total nonsense, and I completely have to disagree with him on this subject. Clearly, the media has prevented teenagers from distinguishing the distinction between what is seen in the media, and what is seen in ourselves and those all around us. This is because; the media has successfully manipulated our world and our assessment of the world. Knowing this, it seems as if the media has destroyed any recognition and counter action that might aid to transform this environment that the media has shaped, in affecting our idea of beauty, influencing the way we behave, and dictating standards of appropriate attitudes. After all, the impression of the media on a teenager’s world today will play a big role in shaping their minds when they are adults.
Mattie Hernandez Ms. Poth Eng. IV. 1 5/5/14 The Media's Influence on Girls is Detrimental to their Health
American author and political activist, Ward Churchill, once said, “The American people are free to do exactly what they are told.” The influence and control mass media and propaganda has on modern society is comparative to the mastery a puppeteer has over his puppets. Due to the technological advancement in mass media over the past several decades, it is now easy, and very common, to tune-in, plug-in, and be in “the know”. Whether the majority of our society realizes it or not, mass media and propaganda controls many because of the broad exposure it has. Besides the numerous issues needed to be discussed, I will focus on the harmful, degrading influence mass media and propaganda has on adolescent girls throughout their teenage years. With Photoshop, television, and social media clouding our world, these young girls are not only adopting unrealistic standards for beauty but also unrealistic lifestyles portrayed on television. When a problem arises, a solution is sought after. Problematic behavior arises from the negativity portrayed through outlets of communication. If media and propaganda can influence negative behavior, it can also promote positive behavior. Television provides us with great plays, operas, music, sporting events, and all kinds of other entertainment. There is nothing in the medium itself that suggests the hyper sexuality and violence found within it. Arthur Asa Berger stated in his book, Manufacturing Desire, that “television is a mass medium and economic and commercial considerations tend to drive the programming decisions, so what we get, all too often, is a cultural ‘wasteland’”. (Berger 3) We can reform our world by our thoughts and harmful propaganda and negative mass media has made me and many ...
This means that young children and adults are being exposed to media and advertisements several hours every day. Due to the fact that the brain does not fully develop until the age of 24; children and young adults are the most vulnerable class citizens to the proliferation of medias messages. Today younger girls starting as early as age’s six to eight are becoming more concerned about their physical appearance, because it is more emphasized and reinforced. Media is portraying to children and young adults that their value and worth lies in their youth, beauty, and sexuality. When children are watching TV they are constantly exposed to the unattainable and unrealistic standards of beauty, criteria that only a small percentage of women meet. Media’s unrealistic models send an implicit message that in order to be considered beautiful; you must be “unhealthy.” Many children and young adults are also exposed to reality television. In reality TV the media portrays that every women is catty, bitchy, manipulative, vindictive, and not to be trusted, they are on display to be judged and objectified by men (documentary). Researchers are unclear of how exposure to images in the media affects their physical appearance; although there are many different perspectives on how they may be affected by it. Some of these perspectives include social comparison,
In a research article by E. Mooney, H. Farley, and C. Strugnell (2009) specific questions were addressed in guiding this study. First, do celebrities and have an influence on young girls? Second, does the media also influence adolescent girls view on body image and what is beautiful? The focus of this investigation was on adolescent females through using a group session to discuss their feelings. It is hypothesized that celebrities do play a dominant role in the majority of the participant’s lives (Mooney et al., 2009, pg. 489). The reasoning behind using a group session as their procedure was that talking to their peers rather than the researcher may have different...
Societal constructs of bodily perfection have a massive influence on both genders and on all ages. If you look at any magazine, you will see women constantly being compared to each other, whether it is in the “who wore it better” section or in the “do’s and don’ts” part of the magazine, comparing body images and overall appearances. All parts of the media that encompasses our daily lives are especially dangerous for young and impressionable teens because they see people being torn down for trying to express themselves, and are thus taught to not only don’t look like “don’ts”, but also look like the “do’s”. This is dangerous in that women in the magazine set very high standards that teens want to emulate, no matter the cost to themselves or their health. Celebrities have the benefit of media to make them appear perfect: Photoshop and makeup artists conceal the imperfections that are often too apparent to the naked eye. Viewing celebrities as exhibiting the ideal look or as idols will, in most cases, only damage the confidence of both young teens, and adults, and warp the reality of what true “beauty” really is. It makes teens never feel truly content with themselves because they will be aiming for an ideal that is physically impossible to attain and one that doesn’t exist in the real
The media is often blamed for having a negative influence on adolescent life. Whether it is presented by means of television shows, magazines, advertisements, news, radio or any other means in which people communicate, the media displays an identity to these adolescents that society deems as sexual appeal and is characterized by sex, quality or state of being sexual. Media portrayals add to confusion on personal image, and can affect ones outlook on competition and violence (Federman, 1998). The media influences adolescents’ psychological and physical development during their cognitive development stage when it’s exposed to them (Schmidt, 2008). This is the stage when the adolescent is most vulnerable and sensitive to the surrounding in which they are growing and willingly absorbing information. If explicit behaviors arise often it can be influenced by explicit media exposure.
These days it is almost impossible to walk through a store without seeing a magazine that features a young, slim model on the cover. Flipping through the pages, there are more pictures of young, beautiful women, all skinny. Each and every single picture is airbrushed to perfection. It is hard not to take a good look at the model and begin to think, “Why can’t I be as pretty as her?” Many females, from as young as elementary school, struggle with their body image and their self-esteem. In fact, in a study consisting of fifth graders, ten year old girls and boys told researchers they were dissatisfied with their own bodies after watching a music video by Britney Spears or a clip from the TV show "Friends" (University of Washington). As a result, they look up to these models, since they seem like the epitome of perfection. However, looking up to these models is neither practical nor healthy.
We are always subject to change, always. No matter what one does, there will be a change in personality, looks and ideas until the day of death. The concern is if these changes are truly wanted or if they were just implemented into our minds in order to forgo a certain trend or acceptance. Our surroundings and our experiences have and will always shape who we are, through physical means, they are shaping us. Mentally and scientifically, is it possible that we are changing against our own free will, in a sense, “brainwashed” to be, act, and talk a certain way, and if so, how? Simple. Media. Mass media whether it be through social networking sites, press, television, or music, has begun to be regressive rather than progressive due to the lack of self-control and morality of those and what is being displayed to society.
To begin, social media has created unrealistic standards for young people, especially females. Being bombarded by pictures of females wearing bikinis or minimal clothing that exemplifies their “perfect” bodies, squatting an unimaginable amount of weight at a gym while being gawked at by the opposite sex or of supermodels posing with some of life’s most desirable things has created a standard that many young people feel they need to live up to. If this standard isn’t reached, then it is assumed that they themselves are not living up to the norms or the “standards” and then therefore, they are not beautiful. The article Culture, Beauty and Therapeutic Alliance discusses the way in which females are bombarded with media messages star...
People presume that in order to be accepted into society, they must resemble the looks of models, actors, and actresses in television shows and magazines and this makes the average people insecure of their looks. Media makes minors believe that in order to fit into society, they must become "thinner" or "prettier". Magazines, articles, and television all coercion teens to be concerned about their body image, but it is not even real. The actors and actresses are photoshopped and modified into an image that is impossible to become. Also, almost 80% of women say that they feel insecure with their own self image due to the images of celebrities and models on television (“Media Influence”). Media has not only had its effect on women, but on men as well. While women are struggling to overcome their insecurities with their self image, the opposite gender a...
A media panic or often referred to as a moral panic, is a term that describes how the media is formulating issues amongst our society. Over time, our culture has shifted and caused for many conclusions regarding media panics and the relationship between youth and the media culture. Based upon previous knowledge and course readings, I have drawn a very disturbing conclusion; this being that no matter what age, children are willing or non willingly now under surveillance to determine what kind of role media is playing in their lives. With what I have gathered from the readings and class lectures, most authors strongly believe that different forms of media directly influence children's thinking or perception. What authors and researchers continue to imply is that there is a direct correlation to what youth today see on different forms of media and their behaviours. However, it is important to remember that children are humans as well and do have a mind of their owns. Our society cannot assume that these media panics ultimately take away their ability to think on their own and develop into mature individuals. The first media panic I will discuses is how video games have developed a relationship with violence amongst our children. The second media panic is the sexual objectification of young women online.
Alexandra Scaturchio, in her article “Women in Media” (2008) describes the media’s idea of beauty as superficial. She supports her argument by placing two pictures side-by-side; a picture of a real, normal-looking woman and her picture after it has been severely digitally enhanced. Her purpose is to show young teenage girls that the models they envy for their looks are not real people, but computer designs. She also states, “the media truly distorts the truth and instills in women this false hope because…they will live their lives never truly attaining this ideal appearance”. Scaturchio wants her readers to realize the media’s distorting capabilities and feel beautiful about themselves, even with flaws.
Mokeyane, K. Nola. "Media's Positive & Negative Influence on Teenagers." Everyday Life. Globalpost, Web. 21 Jan. 2010.
Violence, stereotyping, gender or sexual promiscuity, and even racism are shown to be negative effects of media outlets. With media being polarized, it becomes difficult to decipher what is the true influence that the media has. Media is currently known as a communication that has profound effects on the social identity of younglings. However, the effect media has on the identities of adolescents can go both ways of the spectrum when it comes to globalization. Globalization plays a big key role when it comes to technological advances such as media or communications; thus, shaping identity, a social concept, is being transformed or reformed in new and more global ways. With globalization rapidly growing in these past decades, communications and media have broken barriers in countries, letting ideas and thoughts emerge. By providing young people a way to communicate through communications and media, media provides a flow of information and adolescents take it in. Though, media and communications being one of the most significant moves of all time in technology or global advance, the ability for ideas to be enforced, to be corrupted by a false sense of security about what the world actually is on a adolescent, can become challenging. Although, knowing it can 't be reliable, it still acts in a sense to forms one identity. With media being one of the
The mass media has played a key role in shaping people’s lives. The modern society’s use of mass media including TV, radio, newspaper, as well as print media has largely influenced people’s ideas regarding themselves and the society at large. This is evident from their behavior towards themselves and their community as well as their treatment of the environment. While some experts believe that the media is to blame for most of the negative behavioral traits among the active members of society, the majority agree that the media makes people understand and develop a positive sense of association with their society within which they live, making it easy for them to identify and get their role in it.