Sex, Young Adults, and The Media Essay

In today’s society sex and drugs are common place. Media now a days show, talk about, or make references to sex. Anyone could turn on their TV and

"I don't believe in rape. No means no. Wait, if no meant no, all men would die a virgin. No means work on the neck, the nipples and come back in five minutes. I'm not saying a father should give this version of the birds and bees to his son. Listen she's gonna block your hands four or five times at least. I didn't raise you to be a quitter out there now did I. She wouldn't dress like that if she didn't want to get fingered." Comedian, Daniel Tosh expressed this quote meaning for it to be harmful. But, is it really harmful? Is this what society really thinks? Are women supposed to be easy? Do men need to take control and get what they want? A simple joke can be seen as what our society really

If adolescents see an unrealistic thin or a muscle toned body alot, it can have a huge impact on their body image and dieting behavior. “Body image ideals in the media have increased teenagers’ and some adults the desire for plastic surgery” (Raising Children, 2015). Seeing media that is violent in some ways can often enough make it more likely that someone will behave in a violent way, it can also influence other unhealthy or risky behavior, like smoking, drinking alcohol and taking other drugs. Other more powerful influences include family and friends. “Teen are twice as likely to have sex or engage in sexual acts if they see similar sexual behavior in the media. Many objects in the media that involve sex target teens” (Ransohoff, 2013). Reality TV shows and teen dramas often portray the popular or cool kids as the ones who are having sex so seeing it on TV might make teenagers think it is ok. In the movie when Caroline throws a party at Jakes house after a dance, everyone got drunk, they were all under age because they were all in high school and then most of them drove home drunk, some teens may think its ok to do this when its not at all

When one thinks of media, one tends to relate media to television, news, magazines, newspaper articles, and so on. Many people do not think of media is something that portrays negative effects on young women. However, young women are more susceptible to lower self-esteem resulting in eating disorders or depression more today than ever before. The media projects negative and undermining images of women and one does not have to look very hard to realize this. The media projects images of unrealistic women who only look the way they do because of plastic surgery or airbrushing techniques. The media has much greater effects on young girls than anything else in our culture today. Our society has created an environment so obsessed with

* For teens, television is a major source of information about sex. A survey conducted in 1997 by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 61 per cent of young teens, ages 13-15, rated entertainment media as their top source of information on sexuality and sex health. This should concern parents because although two-thirds of TV shows contain sexual content, only one in ten includes any reference to safe sex or the consequences of unprotected sex.

When I was first given this assignment it made me a bit uneasy. I was nervous about writing an extended essay on one particular topic. Being that there are so many social issues that need to be brought to light I was having a little trouble sticking to just one. However, with some guidance and encouragement I decided to finally settle with the issue of sex in the media. Within this extended essay I will attempt to shine light on the history of sex in advertisement and examples of different ads, prove sex sells any and everything, the role the media plays in our youth’s lives and creates hyperactive sexual development in children between thirteen and seventeen years old and how the media degrade women and associate them as mere objects. I

Sexuality and sex in America is a complicated subject in that there is little consensus on the topic of sex in, and the American media sends many mixed messages regarding sex and sexuality to everyone, not just to adolescents. Americans are aware of sex primarily through advertising (print media, commercials, etc.) as sex is used to sell anything and everything. The media also bombards Americans with sexuality and sex on television and in films. The sexuality of teenagers is not a straightforward issue in America either. Many parents do not discuss sex or sexuality with their children. There have been ongoing debates as to whether sexuality should be taught as part of school curricula because there are such a great deal of adolescents participating in reckless and/or dangerous sexual behaviors, largely because they are grossly uneducated about sex. The paper will reference the film Juno and other texts as a meditation on the relationship between adolescent sexuality and the media.

Research has greatly indicated and proven that media exposure has an impact on the normative perceptions of substance use and relationship behaviors among adolescents. Studies have shown that media content and patterns of usage are considerably related to adolescent perception of gender roles, romantic relationships, and sexual behavior. Repeated contact or subjection to sexualize subject matter on television or different forms of media has been related to individuals perceived normative gender roles (Herrett- Skjellum & Allen, 1996). Negative and socially impaired beliefs about relationships, for example such as ‘‘fate brings soul-mates together, disagreement is destructive to a relationship, partners should be able to sense each other’s thoughts and feelings’’ (Holmes, 2007). Also with persistent disclosure to sexually explicit content related with more positive attitudes or norms toward “uncommitted sexual exploration” as well (Brown and Bobkowski, 2011).

Teenage sexual activity has sparked an outcry within the nation. With such activity comes a high price. Studies have shown that there has been a significant rise in the number of children with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), emotional and psychological problems, and out-of-wedlock childbearing. Sex has always been discussed publically by the media, television shows, music and occasionally by parents and teachers in educational context. Teens hear them, and as the saying goes, “monkey see, monkey do”, they are tempted to experiment with it. Therefore, it is important for every teenager to be aware of the outcome associated with premature-sex. If students are educated about the impact of

The media glamorizes sex and unknowingly encourages teen pregnancy. I come from a school with the majority are minority and generally we listen to Rap, Hip hop and other sexually explicit music. I feel that this is sending a misleading message to the upcoming generation. Almost 750,000 U.S. teens aged 15–19 become pregnant. At my school in the year of 2012 six high school females became pregnant. Then 2013 school year eleven female students got pregnant. Last year 2014 a staggering twenty-four girl got pregnant six had a miscarriage. This number is alarming. And even though this school has just started

There is a great debate on whether or not mass media has an influence on teenage pregnancy. A study done by the RAND Corporation shows that teens are twice as likely to have sex or engage in sexual acts if they see similar sexual behavior in the media. Many objects in the media that involve sex target teens. Reality TV shows and teen dramas often portray the "cool kids" as the ones who are having sex (Chandra).Today’s teens are highly influenced by what they see in the media and this can change their behavior and choices. Some will argue that the media doesn’t influence teenagers, but how can we be sure of that? Today, the media portray teen pregnancy in movies, television shows, magazines, music, news reports, and books. The problems

According to a poll of 10 to 16 year olds done by the advocacy group Children Now, "77 percent say that there is too much premarital sex on T.V., while 62 percent say sex on T.V. and in movies influences kids to have sex when they are too young" (Clark, "Sex, Violence"). The influences of the media is felt everywhere and especially in terms of human sexuality. Everything from TV commercials to the newspaper has some form of sex in it, usually to keep the audience interested. In modern society, the changing times as well as media executives wanting more ratings(and therefore money) have lead to teenagers more willing to try sexual acts at a younger age and the country being more openminded about sexual issues.

At the non-profit organization known as RAND Corporation researchers performed three surveys on about 2,000 teens between the ages of 12 to 17 from 2001 to 2004. The results were published in the November edition of the journal Paediatrics, in the publication they focused on 700 participants nationwide who had engaged in sexual intercourse by the third survey. (Landau E, 2008, November 03) The researchers determined that even with the other related factors such as demographics and risk-taking behaviours put into play the connection between television sexual content and teen pregnancy still remained. (Landau E, 2008, November 03) In another survey published in Paediatrics more than 1,000 public middle school students in North Carolina were surveyed at the ages of 12-14 years old and were surveyed again two years later at the ages of 14-16 years old. They measured the students exposure to sexual content in television, movies, music and magazines and were divided into five equal-sized groups ranging from the lowest exposure to the highest exposure. The research showed that white teenagers even after taking into account other factors known to reduce the likelihood of teen sex, like parental disapproval of sex at that age and getting good grades, still increased. In fact each increase in grouping of sexual media exposure increased the likelihood of them being involved in teen sex by

Media such as the internet, broadcasting, and publishing is a way to express opinions and keep up to date with the latest fashion trends. While these trends continue to go on, new trends are thought of, the trends may be a little tricky to keep up with even for celebrities. While the thought of being perfect for society, cause many adolescents to breakdown for following the false beliefs of society. Some people may use the media to be updated on important news. On the other hand, others believe the media is a horrible setting, resulting in adolescent to do whatever it takes to become just like them, poisoning their minds to become something they are not. The media produces bad influences for body image and messes with adolescents’ minds.

Negative effects of Mass Media for teenagers,  The exposure of sex images and excessive portraits of violence in movies and dramas have instilled negative thoughts and taboos in the mind of these teenagers for they have been consistently getting increased exposure to things which are not suitable for their age.