Here is an interesting article I found on PBS. The Media's Influence on body image. There is no doubt that beauty sells. In our society we are taught that it is good to be thin and beautiful. The advertisers make money from products they sell. The advertisers then pay the news agencies or tv shows for advertising time.
Media is a big influence when it comes to what is beautiful and what is not. Popular, beautiful celebrities and people spend a lot of money to be beautiful, whether it is breast implants, plastic surgery or starving oneself to be beautiful.http://www.pbs.org/perfectillusions/eatingdisorders/preventing_media.html
I'm working as hard as I can with my three granddaughters to help give them a good sense of self and that their beauty is from within. We were encouraged to be on diets in our teens so we could look a certain way instead of being the best we could be.
ReplyDeleteI wish it wasn't media and companies who drove what beauty should be. It's kind of like who gets to decide what is a weed and what is a flower. I've seen some beautiful "weeds". How unfair that for their lives they are classified with something associated with that which should be destroyed.
Hi Sue -
DeleteI admire that you are helping your grandchildren to understand that being healthy is what is important. I just don't like how society puts such an emphasis on looks and not on looking healthy.
Thank you for posting here.
The company Unilever recently received a bit of flak. Unilever parent company of Dove launched a campaign to promote a healthy body image for women and featured many different body types in their commercials. However, Unilever also owns the AXE brand, whose campaign is thoroughly sexualized. Thus Unilever has been labeled a hypocrite.
ReplyDeleteI lo0ved that Dove ad! Thank you for mentioning here. BUT the AXE commercials...wow. I can understand why Unilever would be labeled a hypocrite.
DeleteThank you, Brittany, for your post.
Hi Suzanne,
ReplyDeleteAlthough not as publicized as much, guys can face the same body image problems as well. Looking at Abercrombie ads, guys are expected to be hairless and have six-pack abs. It has created a generation of "bros." As Brittany pointed out as well, the AXE brand targets these bros. Just a side effect to the materialism in our culture I feel.
Hi Michael - Agreed. I think the ads we see do put pressure on the public to be this way or that way. I feel mostly for school age children who want to be like their friends and fit in.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate you posting here. Thanks much!