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Alex Kouzoukas
Professor Werner
English 213
22 April 2013
The Media and Body Image
In the United States, much of our culture looks to advertisements, television, and social
media for entertainment. It is in these moments that many search for satisfaction. From the
media, one receives constant exposure to airbrushed models, attractive actors and actresses, and
people telling him/her that he/she needs to look a certain way or buy a certain product in order to
be happy and desirable. The media’s depiction of a “right” way to look causes people to be
dissatisfied with themselves when they cannot measure up to the “ideal” physical appearance.
Although the media alone cannot be held responsible for poor self-esteem, it is highly influential
on others; society’s idea of beauty is largely affected by the images our culture is shown.
Because of this, many women and adolescents have poor body image; for some, this may
ultimately develop into an eating disorder as an attempt to feel that they are worth being socially
accepted.
Exposure to Media
As a culture, we are heavily dependent on technology. It is apparent in the traffic jams
that clog the streets during rush hour, the anxiety that bubbles when electricity fizzles in a storm,
and even the momentary interruption in connection to a WiFi network. It affects the way we
travel, work, entertain ourselves, learn, and even think about ourselves. As we flip through
channels, drive past billboards, turn magazine pages, or click through internet screens, we are
bombarded by the media whether we invite its influence or not. In a study done in 2005,
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researchers concluded that, “The average person in the United States is exposed to over 3,000
advertisements per day” (Baker, Christina N.). Since 2005, our lifestyles in American have
grown even more dependent on technology. With this increase in technology, the media has
become a more dominating authority in our day-to-day lives. As our exposure to media grows,
the “body size of women portrayed in mass media has been steadily getting smaller” (Van
Vonderen, 42). Unfortunately, this is a detrimental combination. Consequently, “Researchers
have found a direct relationship between media exposure and symptoms of eating disorders”
(Sheldon, Pavica 280). The correlation between body image and the media even affects children.
What is “Body Image”?
“Body image”, as defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, is “the subjective picture or
mental image which a person has of his or her body, esp. (in later popular use) in relation to its
shape.” Unfortunately, body image often has negative connotations--especially for women. The
media contributes largely to women’s discontentment.
From an Early Age
From television screens to magazine pages, the images women, in the United States, see
every day become “a reference point against which unfavorable comparisons are made”
(Sheldon, Pavica 279). In fact, by the time children are in first to third-grade, 42% of girls
already “want to be thinner” ("Eating Disorders Statistics”). Furthermore, by the time they reach
the fourth-grade, 81% fear “being fat” ("Eating Disorders Statistics”). These statistics continue to
follow them their whole lives.
The “Beauty Myth”
The discontentment is exacerbated by the “beauty myth” which the media “thrives on”
(Vonderen, Kristen E. 41). The “beauty myth” works by playing on a woman’s insecurities--the
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more she believes that she is not beautiful, the more “vulnerable” she is: she is much more likely
to make a purchase, believing that it will assuage the anxiety she feels about not looking the way
she “should” (Vonderen, Kristen E. 41). It often seems that the more things a company tries to
sell, the more lapses in confidence it seeks to create. Even family friendly programs like The
Oscars and the Super Bowl are plagued by this selling tactic.
Lack of Censoring on Family-Centered Programs
Despite the fact that decades have passed since The Civil Rights and Women’s Suffrage
movements, and despite the fact that our country is welcoming more liberality in politics,
women’s bodies are still under the constant eye of scrutiny. Thin actresses are viewed “as the
epitome of success and social desirability” and “overweight actresses and models are frequently
ridiculed in media” (Van Vonderen, Kristen E. 42-43). Even at this year’s Oscars, several
examples of this were showed. One example was when host, Seth MacFarlane praised the
women that looked attractive by hinting at bulimia as their weight-loss strategy: "And those of
you [beautiful women] who gave yourselves the flu two weeks ago to 'get there'? It paid off"
(Gray, Emma). His insolent remark rolled easily off his tongue and into the ears of 40.3 million
men, women, and children ("Oscars 2013: Seth MacFarlane Boosts Ratings for First Time in
Years Even as He Crossed Lines and Pulled Punches”). This psychologically destructive, yet
effective, technique, targeting the female body, is also used in advertisements for both men and
women; however, it has the most detrimental effect on women.
When the Super Bowl aired in February, many gathered around the TV--some to watch
the game, some excited about the commercials. Because the Super Bowl is “the third mostwatched show in U.S. television history,” many companies pay big bucks for commercial time
(Bauder, David). Since these commercials “cost up to $4 million” for “a 30-second advertising
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slot,” many people were expecting the companies’ “best” (Bahadur, Nina). This year, these
commercials premiered before 108.7 million people during this televised family event (Bauder,
David). Unfortunately, many of these commercials “ignore, demean, or vilify almost half of
those tuning in” (Bahadur, Nina). Companies like Axe and Go Daddy are infamous for their
objectifying commercials. For example, this year’s Super Bowl Axe commercial involved a thin,
young woman being carried out of the ocean in a man’s arms. When she sees an astronaut across
the beach, however, she abandons the lifeguard. The screen then pans to show her running across
the beach in a revealing bikini (AXE Apollo - Lifeguard TV Commercial (Full-Length)). It is
unacceptable that commercials like these are airing during primetime television. By airing things
like this, our society continues to propel the existence of the objectification theory.
The Objectification Theory
According to Pavica Sheldon, there are “high levels of body dissatisfaction and
disordered-eating attitudes in girls and women in Western cultures” (278). She singles out
Western cultures. She continues, saying that, “In a patriarchal culture women are subjected to
various means of subordination including the objectification and degradation of their bodies.
Women are often defined as their bodies; and their bodies are treated as objects that exist for the
sexual pleasure of men” (278). To be repeatedly told that one’s body is what defines him or her
may cause one to believe that it is true. Furthermore, if one believes that his or her body is what
defines him or her, then there is a lot of pressure on looking perfect. This pressure to be perfect
often results in an eating disorder.
Eating Disorders
Although not everyone who has negative body image develops an eating disorder,
discontentment may still exist. The discontentment may cause self-esteem and confidence to
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plummet which is unhealthy since confidence is essential for living a fulfilling life.
Preoccupation with weight is so prominent that, “91% of women surveyed on a college campus
had attempted to control their weight through dieting” (“Eating Disorder Statistics”). It is no
surprise that so many women feel this way. Today, only 5% of American women have the
“ideal” body type (“Eating Disorder Statistics”). These “ideals” do not even exist off movie
screens and magazine pages. Despite this fact, women continue to see image after image of other
women who are underweight and airbrushed. Knowing that it is airbrushed does not keep women
from comparing themselves. Comparing oneself to an impossible image can make women go to
extremes to try to obtain what is unnatural for most women. These measures often result in
eating disorders which “up to 24 million people of all ages and genders suffer from” (“Eating
Disorder Statistics”).
Television can be harmful when it creates “high levels of body dissatisfaction
and[...]higher scores on eating disorder components in females” (Jordi, Fauquet 392). The lack of
imperfection on television and in magazines is unsettling. Rather than, “Critique larger cultural
norms as problematic[...]many self-blame and internalize a sense of private body failure,
embarking on fitness routines, plastic surgery, and dieting practices to rectify anxieties about
bodily lack” (Poorani, A. 7).
The media’s detrimental effects on females is something that must be addressed. Women
cannot keep “see[ing] their body shape and weight as a sort of ‘measuring stick’ of social value”
(Van Vonderen, Kristen E. 42). Eating disorders are not to be taken lightly. They are somewhat
stigmatized in our society despite the fact that, “Anorexia is the third most common chronic
illness among adolescents” (“Eating Disorder Statistics”). Furthermore, eating disorders are
deadly. They “have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness” (“Eating Disorder
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Statistics”). Something must be done to reverse the scrutiny women face every day.
Unfortunately, this scrutiny has started to affect other cultures.
Negative Effect of U.S.A. on Other Countries
As Western culture leaks into other cultures, their views of beauty become tainted. There
are several studies that look into Fiji, South Korea, and Nigeria (Orbach, Susie 338-393). In Fiji,
for example, their culture once held “preference for robust bodies” (Fauquet, Jordi 396). Since
they received access to United States television networks, however, things changed:
These researchers observed that [three] years after television reception became
widespread, 11.3% of girls reported having vomited with the aim of controlling their
weight, compared to 0% before the advent of television on the islands. Likewise, the
percentage of girls with high levels of disordered eating attitudes more than doubled
during this period, rising from 13% to 29%. Further, once television had been introduced,
74% of girls reported, ‘Feeling fat,’’ and those with television at home were three times
more likely to present disordered eating attitudes. (Fauquet, Jordi 396)
Fiji was influenced by the Western idea that thin is beautiful. South Korea also struggles with
Western pressures, although theirs is centered on the shape of facial features. Today, “In South
Korea, 50 percent of teenage girls have the double eyelid slit operation to Westernize the look of
the eyelid” (Orbach, Susie 389). Finally, Nigeria’s case is also shocking. Despite the fact that in
Nigeria they used to prefer “plump[...]beauty queens,” once they were Westernized, they stopped
viewing the first “slim Miss Nigeria” as “assumed to have HIV/AIDS” and started epitomizing
her body as “ideal” (Orbach, Susie 393). Maybe it is time that our culture adopts a healthier
perspective on weight and body image instead of poisoning the cultures of others.
Men and the Media
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Men are not entirely free from the effects of the media on their body image. Although
they do not feel as inclined to “conform to the cultural ideal,” they still have preoccupations with
their looks (Sheldon, Pavica 282). Rather than worry about the slenderness of their bodies,
however, they concern themselves with the muscle they have on their bodies. Their aim is to be
bulkier--stronger. About 1 in 10 males has an eating disorder (“Eating Disorder Statistics”).
Males diet not to feel a sense of worth, like women, but “as a means to an end” (Sheldon, Pavica
282). They do not want to be called “fat” and they are also tend to be more competitive
athletically which is why they might feel the need to diet (Sheldon, Pavica 282). This differs
because they feel less pressure from the media to look a certain way.
Conclusion
In conclusion, women are under constant scrutiny to possess the “ideal” body as depicted
by the media. Unfortunately, this “ideal” body is practically impossible to achieve and
exhausting to try and maintain. Broadcasts that are family-friendly have vulgar comments and
unsettling commercials that demean women and imply that women are sexual objects rather than
human beings. The more people realize that the media has unachievable standards for women,
the more things are capable of changing. It is not only detrimental to American women, but it is
also detrimental to the beautiful cultures that it victimizes. Although men feel some necessity to
look a certain way, there is substantially less pressure by the media for them to alter their
appearances. The age that women start to fear weight-gain is horrifying. Things need to change
not only for women, but also for the censoring of the minds of children. The media undoubtedly
has a detrimental effect on women.
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Works Cited
AXE Apollo - Lifeguard TV Commercial (Full-Length). YouTube. AXE, 03 Feb. 2013. Web. 20
Apr. 2013.
Bahadur, Nina. "Sexist Super Bowl Ads: The 8 Worst Commercials." The Huffington Post.
TheHuffingtonPost.com, 29 Jan. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
"Body Image." Oxford English Dictionary The Definitive Record of the English Language.
Oxford University Press, 2013. Web. 18 Apr. 2013.
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"Eating Disorders Statistics." National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated
Disorders, INC. ANAD - National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated
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Fung, Katherine. "Super Bowl Blackout Watched By 106.6 Million." The Huffington Post.
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Van Vonderen, Kristen E., and William Kinnally. "Media Effects On Body Image: Examining
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