Reality Television

A formerly popular reality television show a few years ago was "Jersey Shore." All of the characters are extremely gendered, especially the men of the group. The four men on the show are all very strong and attractive men, and they display a lot of masculinity. The men on this show were seen almost as role models that people wanted to live up to in order to be considered cool. The cast of jersey shore influenced our society to make outward physical appearance a priority, and changed the way many view and treat women. On the show, the men popularized the phrase "GTL," which stands for gym, tanning, and laundry. They would spend their days by going to the gym to get stronger and look fit, by getting a tan in a tanning bed or out in the sun, and then doing their laundry so they could go out at night and look nice. People who watched the Jersey Shore stereotyped all men to be like the men from Jersey Shore. People believed that all men prioritized going to the gym every day and getting as big and strong as they possibly can. People also believed that all men cared about looking good at the beach, so they would get tans all the time. Jersey Shore heavily gendered the men based on masculine attributes, and established a false stereotype of the male gender. The men of Jersey shore also treated women disrespectfully, which is how women believe men stereotypically treat women. The men of Jersey Shore did not look to engage in a romantic relationship, nor did they approach women with respect to their feelings. Ultimately, the men of Jersey Shore were only looking to hook up with women, or bring them back to the house for the night. The men would go to all sorts of parties with this goal to bring back a girl to their house or to hook up with a girl. Because of the popularity of the show, the male audience was influenced to believe that the proper way to treat women is to use them as hook ups. It created a new gender stereotype for men, and have almost put a black eye on men and their moral values. The Jersey Shore is a good example of how reality TV is gendered. Present day common male stereotypes of how men treat women and how men value physical appearance were displayed through the men on Jersey Shore. Men were largely misrepresented for the most part based on common stereotypes, and the Jersey Shore had a negative impact on its audience and how they treat women.

Marketing "Reality" to the World Article Summary

Survivor is a popular reality TV show that exemplifies how advertising is taking over reality shows on TV to market products to a broad audience of people. Intensifying concentration of ownership in the television industry, the worldwide proliferation of commercial television, the fragmentation of the global television audience, and the design of Survivor, as a thinly veiled advertisement, account for the success of the show. The article touches on the fordist system of manufacturing and marketing, which strove to maximize profits by making one commodity appeal to as many consumers as possible for as long as possible. The article proposes that advertisers use this method to advertise products on reality television to reach a broad audience of people.

Today's production of reality TV relies on advertisement because of how advertisers value the potential audience they can reach through the shows. Advertisers readily sponsored Survivor because of its design as a virtual commercial for their products. Companies like General Motors, Target, Visa, Frito-Lay, and Reebok paid approximately 4 million dollars each for advertising time. And although survivor is one of the most expensive shows to produce, it still was profitable because 30 second advertising spots were going for $445,000 during the 2001-2002 season. Advertisements were found both within the show and between breaks in the show. During Survivor, the host Jeff Probst would reward winners of the show’s challenges with Doritos and Mountain Dew.

The design of Survivor as a virtual advertisement raises the issue of how television’s goal of selling audiences to advertisers shapes the program. Television programs must be able to attract large numbers of people, the “right” kind of people, and people in the right state of mind. They have to reflect this targeting, excluding demographic groups that lack the spending power to satisfy advertisers. Survivor accomplishes all of these goals. Broadcast during a prime time, it attracts a teen demographic sought by advertisers as well as a huge national audience composed of other age groups. Survivor also boasts high quality production values that associate products woven into its text with adventure, heroism, and escape. Survivor appeals to networks and advertisers because it combines high ratings with relatively low cost in comparison to comedies and dramas. High quality production values and exotic locations became means through which survivor targeted the prime time audience sought by advertisers, distinguished itself from cheaper crime based reality shows, and blurred the line between prime time drama and reality shows. Reality shows have thus proliferated on prime time television in recent years because they pose little financial risk for networks, yet offer prime-time friendly production values and generate huge ratings. The use of internet and cable TV networks also attracts a young audience prized by advertisers. On this basis, Survivor became a valuable addition to Viacom’s cradle to the grave programming spectrum by enabling CBS, known for its primarily elderly audience, to capture a huge mass audience, as well as a slice of the highly coveted youth audience

 

Boys, Girls, and Toys

Toys are the foundation for developing the children of our society today. Play is crucial to how children learn about the world, and in education it is recognized that children need access to a range of toys and play experiences. Toys that are focused on action, construction, and technology hone spatial skills, foster problem solving, and encourage children to be active. On the other hand, toys that focus on role pay and small-scale theatre foster social skills, and arts and crafts. In general, the action and construction toys are marketed to boys while the role play toys are marketed to the girls. We see this with popular toys like action figures of superheroes for boys and Barbie dolls for girls.

The main culprit of gendered toys is the marketing department of toy companies. How toys are labeled and displayed affects a customers buying habits, and many people feel uncomfortable buying a pink toy for a boy because early on in our lives we associate pink with females and blue with males. In toy stores, there is often a clear separation of boys toys and girls toys based on the coloring of the packaging. The girls toys are often together in pink packaging while boys toys are grouped together in blue packaging. Consider the picture below as an example. The picture is of the inside of a Toys R' Us, and it is clear which side is the girls' toys section and which side is the boys' toys section.


The way toys are gendered affect the development and growth of children. Kids don't pop out of the womb with expectations of their future careers. The toys they play with mold them into the people they are and their beliefs about the world. The tough, gritty action figures that boys play with at a young age teach them to be violent and rough. On the other hand, the dolls that emphasize physical appearance that girls play with at a young age cause women to be overly concerned with their outward appearance. Gendered toys have a negative impact on both genders, establishing a clear line in how boys and girls are supposed to act and live. Statistics show that gender neutral toys develop children's cognitive, artistic, and musical skills more effectively than gender biased toys. By taking down the blue and pink signs in toy stores and on toy packaging, we can allow toys to be toys, and eliminate the pressure kids face to live up to their gender roles.

Fighting Fire with Fabulous Article Summary

Dave and Scott Dambacher, from Port Huron, are writing a comedy show against the Westboro Baptist church. The church is well known for their vile hate mongering. However, these two men are fighting against it with a show said to be a "celebration of diversity." They call their show the "Freaka of Topeka," because the Westboro Baptist church is based out of Topeka, Kansas. Their plan is to short run a show on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday right in the hometown of the church. Although the show will premier in Kansas, the content of the show will be from Dave and Scott's hometown of Detroit. The cast is mostly from Detroit as well, and the cast includes Scott. The Westboro Baptist church, who held their first public service in 1955, have constantly been making headlines protesting everything from gays to a five-year old's lemonade stand. At the time the article was written, the two brothers were in the midst of writing the show together. In the article, Scott said that the first act will mainly be introductions to who the characters are, including the story's protagonist. The second act will follow that story and have the protagonist get involved with a "Freaka" group of people. Scott said the characters will be people who were targeted by a group like Westboro, and then outed by that group. The setting of the show is said to take place at a festival or local gathering, with a diverse group of people. The show is also free to anyone who wishes to watch it, Scott and Dave are encouraging as many people as possible to come. The "Freaka of Topeka" has the tagline "Fight Fire with Fabulous," because of the way they are fighting the hatred and negative energy the Westboro group gives off with their fabulous show. While the show is free, it will cost around $50,000 total to produce. To cover the costs, the brothers plan to fundraise money through kickstart, an app aimed at raising money for good causes. However, if the fundraiser doesn't make enough money, then the brothers say they will fund the show themselves. Once the brothers have more material written, they plan on posting bits and pieces of the show on their website and on twitter to offer a sneak peek. They encourage people to comment on the topics they post, and to also give suggestions on different things to add to their show. Their goal is to have everyone involved in the making of the show, because this is a show for the people affected by any group similar to the Westboro group.

"Her Story"

While watching “Her Story”, a few social issues that trans gender people face stood out to me. One of the main characters, Violet, is constantly under stress because of what other people think about her. Many people have negative opinions of trans gender people, which affects the way they view them. Most people view a trans differently when they discover that this person is a trans gender. The issue in “Her Story” that stood out to me the most was that trans people are afraid of being publicly discovered. Unfortunately, if a trans is discovered it will change their public image, it could cause them to lose their job, and it could affect the relationships they are in.

In Violet’s first interview with Ally, Violet revealed to Ally that she was terrified of being discovered because she could lose work. Violet’s life and financial well-being was in jeopardy simply due to the fact that she was trans. I don’t think it is right for people to hire or fire employees based on gender or sex. Job hiring should be based simply on skills and performance of the task at hand. It shouldn’t matter whether the person is a male, female, or if the person was originally a male but is now a female. A trans is a person who is capable of completing a task in return for a wage, there is no way to argue around it and it is inexcusable for a trans person to be afraid of losing their job because of their gender.

“Her Story” also shows how relationships could possibly be affected by the fact that someone is trans. When Paige was publicly announced as a trans, she received a text from her potential boyfriend that said “we need to talk.” After reading that text, Paige was scared that she was going to lose the intimate relationship she had with this man simply because she was trans. A relationship shouldn’t be about what gender two partners are. The important part of a relationship should be that the two partners like each other for who they are. No matter what their genders are, people are allowed to like whoever they want to like. Other people in society should not have an impact on how two people like each other and how they express their feelings for one another. It is unfair that trans people have to worry about being discovered because they will be viewed entirely different as a person. As a society, we shouldn’t judge people based on their gender or sexual preference. Instead, we should accept people for who they are and allow them to be happy and enjoy their lives with whoever they would like to be with. Trans people should not have to worry about being discovered as a trans in fear of losing important aspects of their life like their job or relationship.

Girl Rising

“Girl Rising” is a film that tells the tale of nine underprivileged girls who were stripped of an education and of their dreams. Each story is a true story and opens the viewer’s eyes to the terrible conditions children have to grow up in. 66 Million girls are out of school worldwide, and 33% fewer girls are in primary school vs boys.

Wadley grew up as a young girl who wanted nothing more than an education. She was a former student before an earthquake struck her town and destroyed most of the buildings and brought many families to poverty. Wadley and her mother, one of the families left with nothing from the earthquake, were forced to survive on no money, little water, and one meal every few days. Wadley’s only wish in life was to go to school and learn. In town the school opened again under a tent, however families needed to pay to send their children to class every day. Wadley’s family had no money, and when she tried to go to school she was turned down and sent away by the teacher. Wadley refused to be sent away, so she decided that regardless of whether or not she could pay, she would continue to show up to school every single day until the school allowed her to stay. Wadley was eventually permitted to stay and received the education she dreamed of. Wadley always believed that “it was the dry season when the wildflowers bloom”, which means that flowers didn’t need water to blossom into something beautiful.

As a child, Suma was not sent to school by her parents. Instead, she was sent to a master to work. She would be forced to work from 4 in the morning to late at night. The master made her clean dishes, clean the house, go into the woods to get firewood, take care of the master’s goats, and take care of the master’s kids. The master’s children would call Suma the “unlucky girl” for all of the work and suffering she went through. To deal with the pain and suffering, Suma began to create her own songs. When Suma moved onto her third master, she was enrolled in a night class by her master that met after all of the local slaves were done with their work for the day. Her teacher taught the class how to read and write, and unfortunately taught the girls that they were slaves. The teacher of the class confronted the masters of the girls and demanded they be set free, and with a lot of convincing and arguing, the girls were finally set free. Suma was brought back to her parents, and now she fights for other young slave women in her country to be set free.

Yasmin is a young girl from Cairo, Egypt. Her story is quite different from the previous two. Sadly, she was raped by a man at a very young age. She tells the police a story of how she was taken by this man, but how she fought back and killed him with her knife. However, when Yasmin was sent off to get juice for her family, an older man told her that he would take her to get juice. He brought her to her house, where he raped her and changed her life forever. Yasmin’s story is far too common in this world, for 50% of sexual assaults are on girls under the age of 15 years old.

Azmera is a girl from Yilmana Densa, Ethiopia who is a very shy and curious girl. She loved learning and education, but others wanted different for her. Others wanted her to be married at a very young age, however she refused because she wanted a better life for herself. From Azmera we learn that the number one cause of death among girls from 15 to 19 years old is childbirth. Girls often marry young, which means that their education ends early. Because their education ends early, this creates a never ending cycle of poverty. Azmera chose a different path, which will lead to her getting married at a later age, and receiving education. Her lifestyle starts a healthier life cycle, where later marriage is more common, women have fewer but healthier children, and their children are educated and healthy.

Ruksana is a young girl from Kolkata, India who was kicked out of class because she was drawing pictures during the lesson. Ruksana loved art and loved to draw, but teachers didn’t accept that and instead just kicked her out of the class. Ruksana’s father decided to buy her art supplies to let her imagination grow, and Ruksana became the happiest girl in the town. Her family was very poor, they lost their home and could hardly afford food. Ruksana is very lucky though, for she was still able to attend school somehow even though her family did not have a place to live.

Senna is a young girl in La Rinconada, Peru. Her family was very poor and tried to make some money through gold mining in rocks from a frozen mountain in Peru. They did not have any luck, for they never struck gold and never escaped poverty. Senna’s father died at an early age in his wife’s arms, leaving Senna and her mother in a difficult situation with no money. Senna pursued school and is now going beyond primary school, increasing her probability of finding a better job to make money and earn a living. Senna writes poems for herself and for other girls in the community to help get them through the struggle of life in an unfortunate time. From Senna’s story, the movie tells us that girls with one extra year of education can earn up to 20% more money than if they hadn’t. Also, the film states that if India enrolled 1% more girls in education, then the GDP of India could increase by nearly 5.5 billion.

Mariama is from Freetown, Sierra Leone. Mariama is an educated girl who loved her science classes because of the way science addressed problems and answered them. She was the first person in her family to go to school, and her father died when she was very young. In her town, Mariama’s first job was the host of a local radio station that most of the town listened to. As a host, she helped other girls solve problems in their life when they called in to her station. While her show was going well, Mariama’s step-father stopped her from doing the show because local people had said bad things to him about his daughter hosting the show. However, Mariama used her scientific brain to solve the problem and convince her father to let her continue hosting the show. From Mariama’s story, the film states that educating a girl has profound effects on both improving the global economy and reducing the spread of AIDS.

Lastly, Amina is from Afghanistan, a country that mistreats women to an incredible extent. When Amina was born, her mother cried when she found out that her child was a female, and placed her down in the dirt next to her. When Amina turned 3 years old, she began working around the house. She would have to wake up before dawn every morning to clean the house, wash dishes, and even carry her siblings on her back until they learned how to walk. Her father arranged a marriage for Amina when she was only 11 years old. He sold her to a man for 5,000 dollars, into a life of servitude and rape. Her parents used that 5,000 dollars to buy her brother a used car. Amina gave birth to a baby boy for this man, and also took care of it and raised it for him. The society of Afghanistan frowned upon women getting an education and sometimes killed women for speaking out, trying to learn, or even showing their face. When women are adults, they are required to mask their face behind a fabric cage that they can only see out of. There was no place for them to speak through their masks. However, Amina was brave and returned to school despite the danger. She is chasing what she wants in life despite the danger she faces.

“Girl Rising” tells the story of many underprivileged girls in several different countries. The film makes the audience aware of the difficulties and hardships women face in the developing world, and how they are often mistreated, uneducated, and live poor lifestyles. From the film, we learn that 50% of sexual assaults on girls in the world are committed on girls under the age of 15 years old. Also, 14 million girls under the age of 18 will be married this year around the world. Along with young marriage comes childbirth at a young age, which is the primary cause of death of girls aged 15-19. When girls are married at such a young age, they are taken out of school at such a young age. This causes an inevitable poverty cycle in the developing world. However, educating girls can start a healthier life cycle, cause later marriage, which will also cause fewer but healthier children to be born around the world. Studies show that a girl with one extra year of education can earn up to 20% more money than if they hadn’t gone to school for that year. Also, India could raise its GDP by billions by simply educating only one percent more of girls in the population. Educating women will also slow the spread of AIDs and grow the global economy. The benefits of educating women are astronomical for the developing world. As humans we need to be aware of what is going on around the world and push for a change to educate more women to create a better society and a healthier population on earth.

 

 

 

Supersexualize Me! Advertising and the "Midriffs" Article Summary

Advertising has changed in our society over the past four decades. Due to technological advances, advertising through different media mediums has become more popular and more effective among companies. Increasingly, young women are presented not as passive sex objects, but as active, desiring sexual objects. These advertisements make young women seem like they participate enthusiastically in practices and forms of self-presentation that earlier generations of feminists regarded as connected to subordination. Robert Goldman argued that these changes in advertising occurred because advertisers were forced to respond to three challenges at this time. First, there was the growing experience of "sign fatigue" on the part of many media audiences fed up with the endless parade of brands, logos, and consumer images. Secondly, advertisers had to address increasing "viewer skepticism", particularly from younger, media-savvy consumers who had grown up with fast-paced music television and were the first generation to adopt personal computers and mobile phones as integral features of everyday life. Thirdly, advertisers needed to address feminist critiques of advertising and to fashion new commercial messages that took on board women's anger at constantly being addressed through representation of idealized beauty. Goldman argued that advertisers response was to develop what he called "commodity feminism," which is an attempt to incorporate the cultural power and energy of feminism whilst simultaneously domesticating its critique of advertising and the media.

The "midriff' has become the new sexual representation of women. Advertisers have mistakenly constructed the young, heterosexual woman to be one who knowingly and deliberately plays with her sexual power and is forever "up with it". The "midriff" is a part of the body between the top of the pubis bone and the bottom of the rib cage. This part of the female body has become the site of erotic interest in many non-western cultures for a long time. Advertising aimed at the midriffs is notable for its sexualized style, which deliberately objectifies women as sex objects. Midriff advertising has four central themes. These include an emphasis on the body, a shift from objectification to sexual objectification, a pronounced discourse of choice and autonomy, and an emphasis upon empowerment. Today, the body is portrayed in advertising and elsewhere as the primary source of women's capital. Instead of caring or nurturing or motherhood, it is now a possession of a sexy body that is presented as a woman's key source of identity.