The Media's Dangerous Perception of the Ideal Body Image

There are no questions to whether the media has influenced the self-consciousness people have on their body or not. Whether it is the front of a magazine cover or in a film or television show, the selection of models or actors are primarily thin or fit leading readers and viewers to worry or want to change the way their body looks. Body image is the way one sees oneself and imagine how one looks. Having a positive body image means that most of the time someone sees themselves accurately, and feels comfortable in their body; negative body image, what the media exemplifies for the majority of the time, is just the opposite. The media uses unrealistic standards of beauty and bodily perfection to drive ordinary people to be dissatisfied with their body image which can result in the search to obtain these unreachable goals.

The media group that retouches images skews the “normal” body image of people through many of its outlets, including models in advertising and magazines, and actors in TV and movie productions. “The average model portrayed in the media is approximately 5’11” and 120 pounds. By contrast, the average American woman is 5’4” and 140 pounds” (Holmstrom, 2004). This statistic shows how the media manipulates consumers into believing that because they are not what the average model looks like, they are not living up to a certain standard which implies that they need to look like that to be beautiful. Another research fact that shows a similar concept is that, “In the United States, 94% of female characters in television programs are thinner than the average American woman, with whom the media frequently associate happiness, desirability, and success in life” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This association of female thinness and happiness, desirability and success makes consumers believe they must achieve this unrealistic thinness to achieve more ultimate goals and fulfillment in life. “The media also explicitly instruct how to attain thin bodies by dieting, exercising, and body-contouring surgery, encouraging female consumers to believe that they can and should be thin” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This idealization of thinness in the media is seen so much, and is extremely harmful to women’s self confidence and is often associated with body image dissatisfaction, which can be a precursor to social anxiety, depression, eating disturbances, and poor self-esteem (Yamamiya et al.,

Picture the world controlled by the media. Could you imagine how ugly, scarce, and hateful it would be. What would you do if a magazine or a television show told you that your body weight had to be twenty pounds lighter to be all most perfect? Would you actually consider the fact or let ignore it? Teens, mainly girls, will be sucked into these magazines. (National Eating Disorders Info Centre 15) These could be magazines like Seventeen and Cosmo Girl. In addition with many others of course. All though, the media is a bad example at times it is not precisely the main issue for negative body image. (National Eating Disorders Association 1) All though, these constant screaming messages the media produces

Although it is not easy to admit, there is a hidden pleasure in watching stick-thin models parade down the runway wearing the newest and hottest lingerie. As secretly amusing as this may be, should we really be supporting industries that make their revenue by exploiting women’s bodies in the media? Companies such as Victoria's Secret spend large amounts of money each year broadcasting these types of images on TV, in magazines, and on billboards. With the widespread access to media that exists today, Victoria’s Secret’s target audience is very large. In this paper, I will prove that the body image portrayed by Victoria Secret in the media changes body image ideals in society, supports racial stereotypes, and causes confidence issues in young women.

The portrayal of women in the media is destroying positive body image in young girls. According to Sarah Grogan, body image is “a person’s perceptions, thoughts and feelings about his or her body”. The media sends the message, from very early on, that what is most important is the way women look to the heterosexual male gaze, and that their value and their worth depends on that. It is easy to understand that the media perpetuates an unattainable beauty standard, but what is more difficult is realising how that affects our adolescents.

The female body type has been looked at, analyzed, focused on, and picked at overwhelmingly throughout history. Whether it is through the media or directly analyzed. The media portrays women and their body image in a negative and unrealistic way. Women struggle with their bodies, all because of the media and how the media interprets women. Given that the “perfect" body image for women has changed over time, indicates no particular definition on what is most desired. Although, there is a classification for what is healthy and unhealthy for a woman's shape and body kind. Due to the media, many women and young teenagers go to the extremes to meet this body image, sometimes leading to health concerns. The major factor that causes these body image

As young women go through puberty, they begin to mature both physically and emotionally. Particularly, women begin to gain weight when they undergo puberty. Throughout their adolescence, women are exposed to harsh opinions others have on their bodies and how they should carry themselves. Most importantly, women are exposed to society’s values through the use of media. Women begin to value their body image and force themselves to conform to society’s idea of the “perfect body”. Personally, I think of body image as a trouble of mine because I struggle to come to terms with not having a flawless figure. Each day, I see women on social media with unrealistically perfect bodies. After being so exposed to the media’s opinion of a good physique,

What is your perception of beauty? For the media, it’s unhealthy, unachievable and dangerous to teenagers of today’s society. The media negatively influences our idea of body image – making us strive to be someone we are not, leaving us feeling worthless. These images prove no purpose whatsoever to society and should not be so widely available.

The facts are haunting. The American research group Anorexia Nervosa & Related Eating Disorders, Inc. says that one in every four college-aged women use unhealthy methods of weight and diet control – including fasting, skipping meals, and laxative abuse. The pressure to be thin is also affecting young girls; the Canadian Women’s Health Network warns that weight control measures are now being taken by girls as young as 5 and 6. In 2003, Teen Magazine reported that 35% of girls 6 to 12 years of age have already been on at least one diet. It is estimated that up to 450,000 young girls and women were/are affected by an eating disorder; Women’s magazines have over 10 times more ads promoting dieting and weight loss than men’s magazines. Women’s

One of the largest components of the media's portrayal of beauty standards is body shaming, an action that has exponentially increased with the advancement of technology. Women are exposed daily to articles in tabloid magazines and gossip websites that shames female celebrities for what they wearing, claiming that some women with certain body types should not be wearing certain types of clothing. Young women and girls, who already have tumultuous relationships with their bodies and their self-images, are now subjected to a trend that can severely damage their mental health. Shame arises when a woman’s body image does not match the societal ideal, and a recent study found that women who reported high levels of body shame also reported high levels of hopeless depression, showing a correlation between the two (Evans). When women are repeatedly told that their bodies are unacceptable to a societal ideal, it can cause them to feel as if they will never reach this impossible standard, leading to hopeless depression. The fat-shaming trend can be apparent in many forms of media, and it is not always directed at women. An advertisements for the children's movie “Red Shoes and the 7 Dwarves” exemplifies the body shaming movie. The advertisement depicts a tall and thin Snow White standing next to a shorter and heavier image of herself, with the tag line “What if Snow White was no longer beautiful and the 7 dwarves not so short?” (Ferguson). The advertisement insinuates that the thinner

Being a celebrity means a life full of luxury. Whether you have pure talent or candid reality your life gets put into mainstream for all to watch. With watching comes observation and with observation come criticism. Therefore, a celebrity has to maintain an image that is accepted within the public and media. The media can affect people opinions, help them formulate one and even give off wrong impressions. Body image is formed through self wants, likings and dislikes but also can be affected by media. Yet, there is a growing epidemic in poor body image, where the media has an impact into where people formulate self-judgment of unhealthy feelings and habits. Generation after Generation of adults, adolescents, kids and celebrities are exposed

Over the years a debate over who is to blame over the decline in how girls perceive themselves has arisen. With Photoshop being the societal norm concerning the media, it has become difficult for many to understand where the line between real and near impossible standards lies. Youths see an image edited to “perfection” and strive to reach the standards that they imagine due to the images displayed on magazines, television and social media. From Disney to magazines like Vogue the mass media bombards audiences with fake beauty that they, as normal people, will never be able to achieve. The mass media is responsible for causing the rise in the number of people with a poor body image, eating disorders, and cosmetic surgeries.

Whether it is walking into a clothing store, standing in the checkout line in the supermarket, or driving down the road, one is likely to see some type of advertisement for the “perfect” body. In the store’s front windows are slender, tall, and muscular mannequins. Few stores actually have plus size mannequins. This tells people that they must be thin and tall in order to look good in the clothing. Standing line at the grocery store one is surrounded by magazines with beautiful models gracing the covers. Those models have been photoshopped to look a certain way, to fit society’s standards of beautiful. If you look at a model, their thighs are often a little thicker and their faces are a little fuller than what they appear to look like on the billboards and magazine covers. Many modeling agencies will not hire

Today media ranges from television to newspaper articles. Many in society do not realize the negative effects that the media portrays to young women. Young women are more susceptible to these negative side effects resulting in low self-esteem, eating disorders, or depression. Media projects images of women that have been surgically or technologically edited, these projections are causing negative effects. These unrealistic women have a greater effect on young women today, society has enveloped this idea that we have to meet this certain image. We have become so overwhelmed with the stereotypical image causing great disapproval for women who are slightly overweight.

This is a study which particularly focuses on how men are being portrayed in advertisements