Media's role in the strive for perfection.

The documentary “miss representation” states that 53% of 13 year olds are unhappy with their bodies and by age 17 that number increases to 78%. My question is: is media making these numbers so high?

 

In a survey of nine to 10 year old girls 40% said that they have tried to lose weight before. (Funded by the national heart, lung, and blood institute). Has media been a big part of these kids believing they should lose weight? Well in a study on fifth graders, 10 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". This shows how media does affect children’s view of themselves, by watching these things they learn that that is the desirable way to look. These guys and girls are reaching for perfection, which is impossible. The only way that the music videos, along with the pictures in the magazines look so perfect is because of a little thing called computer touch ups. Media is such a big part of many teens’ lives and some are taking extreme measures to lose weight to look as “good” as those seen on TV by smoking, or skipping meals. Read more about this issue here.

 

58% of female characters in movies had comments made about their appearance. This is significantly more than males were which only 24% was. These days the appearance of the people in the movies and commercials is so much more important than what the movie or commercial has to say. Women are judges so harshly about their looks in the media, even the tallest, skinniest, sexiest girls are pounded to the ground because they don’t look stunning every minute of every day. These awful words that are said about some of  the prettiest, most well-known actresses makes just the everyday girl feel bad because “If  Katy Perry can’t even look good enough for the medias eyes then I won’t ever be good enough.”- Is repeatedly thought in many young girls’ eyes. Celebs are always striving for perfection; this is what makes girls strive for it as well. “If Taylor Swift got breast implants, then I need to as well”. When is personality and talent going to be enough? Why is there a constant need to change yourself for perfection?

           

Ask yourself if there has ever been a time when you wanted to look like someone in a movie, commercial, or magazine. The answer most likely will be yes. And if it is no then you are lying to yourself. If there was no media we would only have the “normal” person to strive to be. Therefore we would want to be more successful rather than prettier because there would be no magazine that we can compare ourselves to, it would be only the natural beauty that is not photo shopped. If there was no media we could reach to a certain extent of beauty and be proud of whom we are, but because of the fake pictures of women we are always trying to get what we literally cannot have. Next time you strive to look like someone in the media remember, even they don’t look that good. Read more about how photo shopping has taken over the media here. (556)