Essay On The Media's Effect On Tattoos

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Recommended: Sociological thinking on tattoos

Kaylee VonFeldt
Carrie Dickison
Analytical Comparison Essay
March 25, 2016
The Media’s Effect on Tattoos When suggesting that certain media outlets have increased the popularity of tattoos among younger generations, two articles, one by Alejandra Walzer and Pablo Sanjurjo and the other by Mary Kosut, have similar views but one article has more qualified information. The article “An Ironic Fad: The Commodification and Consumption of Tattoos,” by Mary Kosut, was published in 2006 and offers notable information, but “Media and Contemporary Tattoo,” written by Alejandra Walzer and Pablo Sanjurjo offers much more recent research with their article being published in 2016. Even though both articles demonstrate strong arguments for how the media …show more content…

Certain interviewees referenced the Internet in their own training, they said it could be seen as a catalog where they could find references, examples, and inspiration for their art. Another interviewee spoke about the pros and cons of the Internet, stating, “today, if you do not put something that is yours on the Internet, you do not exist, but if you do, you get it stolen in the same minute.” Another tattoo artist complained that they are tired of people telling them that they could not find the tattoo they wanted on the Internet. The artist said if a person wants a flower, they should bring me a flower. The interviews went on to show how celebrities do influence today’s society, even if they do not understand tattoo culture, but sometimes having an influence over someone can be beautiful (Walzer and Sanjurjo 74). For instance, Kat Von D’s hit show appeared to encourage tattooing among women, whereas before it was seen as a masculine culture (Walzer and Sanjurjo 75). In the end, Walzer and Sanjurjo, leave the readers with one last straightforward remark about the tattooing artists. They reiterate that, “according to tattoo artists and people who have tattoos, the media has had a remarkable and multifaceted impact on the practice of tattooing in our contemporary societies” (Walzer and

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