Book: Gendered Lives: Communication, Gender, & Culture
Chapter 11- Gendered Media
Author: Julia T. Woods
Particularly in this chapter Wood discusses the effects of media on the society today. More specifically she focuses on
Book: Gendered Lives: Communication, Gender, & Culture
Chapter 11- Gendered Media
Author: Julia T. Woods
Particularly in this chapter Wood discusses the effects of media on the society today. More specifically she focuses on how women relate to it compared to men and how much their individual world view is affected. Several men and women in the chapter expressed that they don’t believe mass media such as internet, television, electronics, etc. have shaped who they have become as an individual. They believe they themselves agreed to what they liked and have adapted to. Girls in a sense however use media much more in the sense of building relationships with one another. As Wood states in her book, “ Girls and women also perceive social media as allowing them to express themselves.” This tells me here that mass media is effecting them much more than they might think. Men on the other hand see media much more as entertainment. I personally think in some sense it becomes much more of an easy way of communicating with one another than by actually building relationships. Wood also discusses how media presents gender in different ways. One way she states is that, “ media underrepresents women.” Mass media tends to accentuate the typical stereotypes of men and women by the way the media portrays the individual. Wood mentions in particular that on television most men are scene to be very aggressive, independent, and in charge. Where women on the other hand are portrayed to be very involved with fashion, shopping, hair, makeup, and emotional states. However the media has begun more and more to represent women as sexual objects. More and more we see movies and television with more sex scenes than ever before. Not only that but the amount of crude humor that has evolved over the last decade is just outrageous and very degrading to women. Personally I believe that media affects everyone more than they know. I know it definitely affects me. An example would be Pinterest. Pinterest has become the most famous website that shares ideas, trends, and so much more. I believe Pinterest has been a huge factor in the way girls especially see themselves today. It’s either they need to be skinner or have cuter clothes that they can’t afford. Yes, there are some great ideas that Pinterest has to offer but I have even noticed from my own experience that the things that Pinterest has to offer are just wants that I can’t afford. Pinterest is becoming an attractive site that advertisers can reel in a lot of sales from what ma