The Unethical Ethical Impacts Of Photoshop

In the quest to look beautiful just like the heroines in the Disney princesses' franchise, many girls indulge themselves in the products that made for the grown-ups. Hanes proves this with a statistic from the marketing group, NPD Fashionworld, who reported that a total of 1.6 million dollars is spent annually on thong underwear for children between 7-12 years (510). These facts do not even begin to cover what is really happening to young girls nowadays. In addition, young girls are engaging themselves with the makeup at a young age that may be harmful to them because they are chemicals. Young children who feel that they are fat and want to become slender may even go to the extent of starving themselves to obtain the body shape and size that they want. There have even been cases where parents have allowed or encouraged their children to undergo the surgeries and other procedures to "enhance" their beauty. As a result, these girls end up getting the health problems and depression. Hanes supports this fact with the statistics from an APA research, which linked stress, depression, health problems, and eating disorders to sexualization

The fashion industry is a major object of body image issues, as they believe clothes look better on more than average height and svelte women. Established on a survey partaken by 13 to 17-year-old in the United States, 90% felt intimidated by trends and media to be sleek, with more than 60% routinely evaluated themselves to supermodels, whilst 46% will endeavor to

Under society’s norms for decades, girls have been put under the pressure and expectation to have perfect bodies. That is, thin and curved, beautified by applying pounds of makeup to their face but not appear ridiculously overdone. Where do these unreachable standards come from? When a young girl hears the model on the cover of Vogue being called flawless it’s easy for her to then aspire to be a real-life replica of the photoshop. These companies spit out magazine covers plastered with girls’ idols daily. As if maintaining the perfect body wasn’t hard enough our culture also forces girls into the forever expanding world of makeup, however, body image is a pressing issue for girls. Ads and posters of skinny female models are everywhere. Young girls not only could be better but need to be better and feel forced to have the perfect physique. Girls are evaluated and oppressed by their physical appearances. With accessories and apparel designed to enhance a look; social media, magazines, and marketing campaigns and advertisements add to the burden of perfection. The fashion industry is a prime target of body image issues, as they believe clothes look better on tall and slim women. Based on a survey participated by 13 to 17-year-old in the U.S., 90% “felt pressured by fashion and media industries to be skinny”, with more than 60% habitually compare themselves to models, while 46% will strive to achieve it. Furthermore, the severity of this matter continues to

Today, more than ever, teenage girls are influenced by magazines, billboards, television, movies, and most of all advertisements. While the advertisements of models that have been airbrushed to flawlessness may sell products, the effects on teen girls is undeniable. Over the past decade the numbers of depression, eating disorders, and hypersexuality in young girls has been steadily on the rise. False advertising in way of airbrushing, heavy editing, and photoshopping models has had negative effects on teen girls and according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) policy, false advertisement is illegal. It may be stretching it calling photoshopping false advertising, but nonetheless manipulating young, impressionable girls into believing

For women, advertising exemplifies the ideal female body. According to Kilbourne, young girls are taught from a very early age that they need to spend lots of time and money to achieve this “physical perfection.” But realistically this cannot be achieved. The ideal woman’s body is Caucasian, very skinny, big breasts, no flaws, and pretty much no pores. This cannot be achieved because it is physically impossible to look like this; the illusion comes from the secret world of Photoshop. No woman is beautiful enough so they leave it to technology to create perfection. The supermodel Cindy Crawford said, “I wish I looked like Cindy Crawford!” She knew the realities of Photoshop and body image, and more women and girls need to become aware of this as well.

Photoshop, is almost always used in today’s media but many people refuse to see or believe it. The more photoshop the media uses the lower the self esteem, higher the depressions rates and an increase in eating disorders and mental illnesses. So why does the media still use photoshop when it is so harmful? How does it really affect girls and teenagers? What can prevent these effects of Photoshop? Photoshop has harmed high school girls to the point where 30% of them have an eating disorder (Vaynshteyn).

The Fashion Industry is affecting the way many people look at themselves. In today’s society there is always an ad promoting fast food, clothing brands, Cars. Etc. almost all of them have a model to promote their products. These fashion models are usually, extremely thin, tan, tall, and gorgeous. This set a negative standard for many women on what they should look like and can often cause to self-esteem issues. The Media is having a negative effect on body image by choosing to settle toward an unrealistic persona. In Addition, this has created many young girls, to have eating disorders such as bulimia, anorexia, and fasting. However, some businesses have started gravitating toward plus size models to stop the affects it has on society. Plus, also many companies are limiting the amount of photo shopping and airbrushing. The issues are far from being resolved but numerous people are working toward making a change.

Under society’s norms for decades, young women have been put under the pressure and anticipation to have perfect bodies. That is, thin and curved, beautified by applying pounds of the makeup to their face but not appear ridiculously overdone. Who’s responsible for these standards imposed on young women? When a young girl picks up the model along the cover of Vogue being called flawless, it’s easy for her to then aspire to be a real-life imitation of the photocopy. These companies produce magazine covers shown with girls’ images daily. As if keeping the perfect body wasn’t hard enough our culture also forces girls into the forever expanding world of composition, however, body image is a pressing issue for young women. Advertisements and posters of skinny female models are all over. Young girls not only could be better but need to be more upright and feel driven to throw the perfect figure. Moreover, girls are evaluated and oppressed by their physical appearances. With supplements and apparel designed to enhance a facial expression; social media, magazines, and marketing campaigns and advertisements add to the burden of perfection. The fashion industry is a prime object of body image issues, as they believe clothes look better on tall and svelte women. Established on a survey participated by 13 to 17-year-old in the U.S., 90% “felt pressured by fashion and media industries to be skinny”, with more than 60% routinely compares themselves to models, while 46%

Photoshop is known to fix even the slightest imperfections. This sets impossibly high standards for what women expect for themselves. Photoshopped images are destroying America’s body image. The media sets up high beauty and body standards for women. The media takes beautiful women and tells them they are not beautiful enough. Being beautiful nowadays is having a face covered in make-up, being “skinny” is having a thigh gap, and to be perfect is to have no flaws. Women need to start realizing they are beautiful with their flaws, but it’s a hard process to love your flaws and imperfections. Dove made a commercial about loving something as simple as your curls. A handful of young women (ages 5 to 11) were asked about how they feel about their

When Victoria’s Secret is allowed to have models prance around on screen but Lane Bryant Ads (lingerie for plus size women) is banned then there’s a problem. The media is portraying these models who are thin to the point where it is unhealthy. And the media is feeding society lies. A perfect example is of Gerran Tyler. Tyler was a 12 year old supermodel. She walks the run way for clients like Marc Jacobs, Calvin Klein, and Betsey Johnson. She’s tall, thin, the perfect model because she hasn’t hit puberty yet. She walked during New York Fashion Week and posed for these designer brands advertisements. This body type is unachievable for almost all adult women (Roberts). Somebody in their twenties or thirties doesn’t have the ability to look like a twelve year old girl, but this is how these designers are telling us to look. Tyler had an amazing career and high expectations but the fame didn’t last long. As she got older and hit puberty she began to develop boobs, hips, and curves. She began getting less and less bookings. Her supermodel career was virtually over. “Eighty percent of 10-year-old American girls say they have been on a diet” and the, “Number one magic wish for young girls 11-17 is to be thinner” (Missrepresentation). This self-esteem problem with young girls is a result of these unobtainable ideas of beauty. Jennifer Siebel, creator of the documentary Missrepresentation, says

For instance, women are held to a high standard where they are expected to be thin, flawless and ageless. On the other hand, men are expected to be tall, muscular and insensitive. Both genders are affected by ideals that cannot be neglected. Alterations made through Photoshop can contribute to unrealistic body image expectations, eating disorders and other emotional problems set by media. According to Huffington Post, the constant, negative comparison towards altered models is so unhealthy that it may cause people to partake in eating disorders and unhealthy habits.

Artists, editors and photographers plead the fact that they were provided with such great tools, but are constantly criticized for using them. Although there have been some very questionable fails in ads that deal with Photoshop, there have also been some very successful trials with Photoshop. Even though Victoria’s Secret models’ are retouched to have the ideal “beach bod”, they are also and inspiration for most people. According to Holmstrom in 2004, “results of studies done by both Crouch and Degelman (1998) and Biocca (1992) have shown that media increases positive body image, rather than a negative body image, in young women.” The exposure to these models’ beautiful bodies supposedly raises a positive body image amongst young women. Self esteem is raised because they aim to achieve the bodies portrayed to them in the media. Victoria’s Secret is obviously reaping benefits from this as well. Being one of the most famous lingerie stores in the United States and selling their bras from prices anywhere from $20-$258 (for one of their Designer Collection lingerie sets) along with the millions of women and teenage girls shopping at the store for the perfect fit that makes more self-confident, even if they’re the only one that ever sees their

To stop the negative impact of Photoshop on teenagers, photographers should only use Photoshop for the good of photography and not to give false images of the social norm. In opposition, many would state that Photoshop provides beauty and promotes financial in marketing. The primary objective is to get money for false looks. American culture is highly obsessed with beauty. Everywhere you go there are advertisements and misleading images. Whether it’s for models or food alterations are used to sell the image. Models appearances on these photos are admired and sought after from the society. Jessica Walker stated in an interview “I do not think Photoshop is bad I use it to make my photos better, but I don’t like what people use it for...The user and its intentions are bad not the program itself”(Walker). The issue is defined as the images being presented giving a false perception. These photos have been tampered with by professionals, in which they think that their model is what society wants to see. Both genders are being affected by the medias view of body image. However, women and teenagers changed the most. Teenage girls have continuously been presented with images that they are supposed to look like, which is unrealistic images. Photoshop causes some teens to have self-esteem issues and many other disorders.

In a world where technology is increasingly becoming the way of life, it was only a matter of time before crime was no longer just in the streets but happening online as well. Criminals now get a new approach to carry out their crimes with the use of computers. Since technology is more like a murder mystery than catching the bad guy in the act, a new discipline of forensics needed to be put into place. This is known as computer forensics. Forensic science is any science used for the purpose of law. In the case of computer forensics it is “the discipline that combines elements of law and computer science to collect and analyze data from computer systems, networks, wireless communications, and storage devices in a way that is admissible as evidence in a court of law” (U.S. Cert, 2008). Meaning if you do something illegal on the Internet it can be found.

Deep down, media can be very dangerous. The average American has up to 272 un-concious advertisement sightings a day (Henderson, Adams, Miller). Even magazines like Cosmo are advertising cosmetic surgery and other beauty tricks that may have negative effects in later life. But although they may support cosmetic surgeries, most of the images in their magazines or billboards are photoshopped (Dove Evolution). Photoshop is the photo-editing software that can be used to change your looks completely. The images you see in magazines are not always what they seem. Although this can be a dangerous illusion to teens, foundations like Dove are campaigning for women to have confidence in their natural beauty and self esteem. A solution that Dove promotes, is to talk to your kids before the beauty industry does (Beauty Pressure).