Recently, Plus Model Magazine ran a photo spread of a “plus” (size 12) model holding another woman, who is a “standard” size for modeling. The photos are fascinating on their own, but this article takes a critical look at how even the “plus” size model’s body is unrealistic and that the original magazine article promotes the idea that all slender women are unhealthy and anorexic.
A funny video clip from Target Women – this one focuses on the extensive media coverage of Michelle Obama’s arms.
POWERFUL article from actress Ashley Judd in reaction to media outlets reporting on her weight gain and supposed plastic surgery. From the article:
If this conversation about me is going to be had, I will do my part to insist that it is a feminist one, because it has been misogynistic from the start. Who makes the fantastic leap from being sick, or gaining some weight over the winter, to a conclusion of plastic surgery? Our culture, that’s who. The insanity has to stop, because as focused on me as it appears to have been, it is about all girls and women. In fact, it’s about boys and men, too, who are equally objectified and ridiculed, according to heteronormative definitions of masculinity that deny the full and dynamic range of their personhood. It affects each and every one of us, in multiple and nefarious ways: our self-image, how we show up in our relationships and at work, our sense of our worth, value, and potential as human beings. Join in—and help change—the Conversation.
Interesting article profiling how to tell how much magazine photos are changed. Since these unreal images influence gendered norms of physical appearance, this could be good blog fodder for anything related to advertising or nonverbal communication.
The December/January issue of French Vogue ignited controversy in 2011 when they featured a 10-year-old girl with a sultry look, plunging neckline, full make-up and spike heels on the cover. The picture on this link has been cropped. If you want to see the entire picture, click on the article link below about government bans on this type of picture.
This article discusses how France, Britian, and other countries have worked to ban underage, sexualized models or child beauty pageants. This article features the full picture of the French Vogue cover referenced in first article.
Click here for the feminist film making program for teens I referenced in the audio lecture.
Click here for an interesting article about activists challenging unhealthy norms of physical appearance for women and men through documentaries and social media. From the article:
Here’s the fantasy: A half-naked woman lies across a couch, lips pouty and cleavage prominent as her sultry gaze implores you to buy this bottle of perfume.
The reality: Women make up 51% of the United States yet only 17% of seats in the House of Representatives. They’re 3% of Fortune 500 CEOs and 7% of directors in the top 250 grossing films.
This is a great example of a girl who takes media back by creating her own short documentary about beauty norms as experienced by women of color.
This is a hilarious example of how social media can challenge unrealistic standards of beauty through its blending an ad for “Fotoshop” with common cosmetic marketing strategies. It went viral in 2012.
Click here to read how bloggers are redefining beauty and clothing style to move beyond a thin ideal to promote acceptance of a variety of sizes. From the article:
And it’s worth it to Dee to keep putting herself out there in such a public way, no matter the challenges. While it’s empowering to look beautiful on the outside, “Life is too short to be hung up on appearance,” she says.
“At the end of the day, its just your outer shell — there’s a whole personality underneath that’s just waiting to shine. And even if you don’t realize how beautiful you are, someone else is out there who thinks you are the most beautiful person in the world.”