The Negative Effects of Media on Gender

Emma Poitras
Women dont leave the kitchen! We all know a womans place is in the home, cooking a mans
delicious meal. But if you are still enjoying the bachelor's life and dont have a little miss waiting
on you, then come down to Hardees for something sloppy and hastily prepared. Imagine you
are 10 years old passing this billboard or ad somewhere on your way to school in the 1950s. If
it's being broadcasted like this all over the country why wouldn't it be ok? Years later, media
continues to openly support things like gender roles and gender stereotypes. Obviously, this is
going to influence both females and males negatively.
We see media everyday whether it is in press, television, radio, books, social media, or
advertisements. In the teenage age group one of the most influential things is social media. Two
of the biggest things that tend to come up are stereotypes and gender roles. Gender stereotypes
are not necessarily created by media but by society, and media fuels those stereotypes and adds
to them. Malgorzata Wolska, a scholar of gender study, stated that stereotypes present
incomplete, subjective, and sometimes false images of the reality. You see stereotypes in TV
when there is the strong lead male character and the weak damsel in distress female character.
Another influential thing you see is advertisements. There are dolls and kitchen sets specialized
for little girls and trucks and building sets for boys. Malgorzata Wolska stated that more and
more commercials are directed to children. They indicate the proper place in the society for
girls and boys. Girls are shown as babysitters nursing dolls or cleaning houses with a pink
cleaning kit, whereas boys do sports or play computer games. Dolls and cleaning kits are sending
girls the message that their place in society is to be a mother and to be nurturing. Boys are meant
to be athletic and strong and have a more leisurely lifestyle. Mass media continues to broadcast
traditional gender stereotypes. With the amount of exposure that people are having to media,
people are going to start altering their opinions and sense of reality according to what they are
exposed to.
Media has provided an unattainable and distorted image of what people should look like.
Supposedly our worth is based on our immediate appearance. Body modification has became
more and more common due to pressure and distorted expectations to look a specific way.The
MPs' report said pressure to look good had pushed up cosmetic surgery rates by nearly 20% since
2008.1 Mass media provides ideals for people of all ages to be thin and feminine, or muscular
and masculine. The National Eating Disorders Association stated that,Numerous correlational
and experimental studies have linked exposure to the thin ideal in mass media to body
dissatisfaction, internalization of the thin ideal, and disordered eating among women.2 Pressure
from mass media to be muscular also appears to be related to body dissatisfaction among men.
This effect may be smaller than among women, but it is still significant. Media represents the
1 Reflections of Me: The ETFO Body Image Project. Toronto, Ont.: Elementary Teachers'

Federation of Ontario, 2003. Web.

2 "Media, Body Image, and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association." Media,

Body Image, and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 02
Nov. 2015.

thin body and tends to emphasize it openly. The thin body is advertised through things like diet
pills,or clothes or accessories that are meant to make you look thinner. In comparing pressures
on women and men, Anderson and DFomenico (1992) showed that womens magazines
contained 10.5 times as many diet promotions as mens magazines. The socialized concept that
women should be thin and desireable has influenced print and the print has spurred on that
concept and expectation. According to National Association of Anorexia Nervosa & Associated
Disorders 69% of girls in 5th-12th grade reported that magazine pictures influenced their idea of
a perfect body shape.3 Things like eating disorders and depression have become more and more
common with both genders, more often with females ranging in age.
Gender roles have evolved over time with the help of advertisements and publicity.
Women are socialized to play the mother or housewife stereotype, while men are supposed to be
dominating, aggressive and angry. Men and women are allowed only some personality traits or
emotions. Men should only be aggressive, strong, or angry. Women should only be nurturing,
kind, and motherly. All of these things are shown regularly in TV and other forms of media.
According to The Nielsen Company, 96.7 percent of American families own a TV, and nearly
two-thirds of Americans are now smartphone owners.4 Specifically, ads have continued to
advertise sexist and gender role promoting comments or themes. A study showed that there were
gender role promoting advertisements dating all the way back to 1912 and persisting to today.
Women are more often presented in commercials, because they are seen as responsible for
making everyday purchases. Men generally advertise cars, cigarettes, business products or
investments, whereas women are shown rather in the commercials with cosmetics and domestic
products. They are also more likely portrayed in the home environment, unlike men, who are
shown outdoors.5 While advertising has significantly influenced women and girl, females aren't
the only ones being affected by media. In most forms of media especially movies, tv shows, and
social media, there are several popular stereotypes shown. One of the most used is the angry and
aggressive jock type. This is a popular character shown in many movies and TV shows. He is
shown as angry and rude, as well as flirtatious and a player. Not only does this create a false
reality for boys of all ages, but also influences them to act a certain way. As Lois Salisbury,
president of Children Now concluded, "Our study shows that boys are exposed relentlessly to a
narrow, confining picture of masculinity in America, one that reinforces anger and violence as
the way to solve problems." TV offers things such as movies, current shows, and sports. Things
like football, soccer, and baseball are all shown regularly on tv. Though they can be positive for
all age groups, there tends to be an aggressive culture that comes with it. Traditionally, masculine
images of speed, danger, and aggression are often used in the commercials shown during sports
programs boys watch.6 The aggressive stereotype has influenced younger boys in many ways and
3 "ANAD." Eating Disorders Statistics. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2015.
4 "U.S. Smartphone Use in 2015." Pew Research Center Internet Science Tech RSS. N.p., 01

Apr. 2015. Web. 02 Nov. 2015.

5 Matthews, J. L. 2007
6 Boys to Men: Media Messages About Masculinity. Children Now, 1999.

has taught them that it may be ok to be overly aggressive and dominating towards both women
and other men.
Mass media influences males and females negatively using social media, TV,
commercials, and movies. Media has socialized us to act, think, and respond to things a certain
way according to stereotypes, gender roles, and other influential things. We have been taught that
stereotypes and close-mindedness is ok and normal. Body image is being affected by social
media and is creating the perfect person which is a never ending cycle. TV of all types is
creating stereotypes with things such as overly aggressive men and the housewife female.
Commercials are creating and also adding to stereotypes of things like gender roles and sexism.