Stuart Hall's Cultural Studies Theory illustrates the idea that the media exercises power over subordinate groups in society. Often the media leave us with frequently false and misleading images. This can be seen in Hall's definition of ideology, those images, concepts and premises which provide the frameworks through which we represent interpret, understand and make sense of social existence. Ideology is enrooted in the media and one of the most prominent examples is that attractiveness equal thinness. The portrayal of thinness is well defined in such shows as American's Next Top and Make Me a Supermodel.
In this episode of Make Me a Supermodel is a perfect example of the medias powerful ideology of thinness. Halfway through the segment the contestants are given a runway lesson. Each week their waist and bust measurements are taken to see if they have lost or gained inches in those areas. This constant ridicule of the contestants further exemplifies that at least as a supermodel you must be so tall and a certain weight. In addition, this show establishes the norm as a model and that being overweight is not an option. With the normal model being 5ft 10inches tall weighing around 110 pounds the message to women is that you must be showing bones or be ghaustly skinny in order to be attractive. The judges furthermore convey a message to young girls and women everywhere that thin is in. By measuring their waists to see if they have gained or lost weight shows a girl that they must be constantly be evaluating themselves each week. This show does not help the self confidence of girls that are considered average or appropriate wieght but further demostrates the misleading idea of thinness in society. These show as well as additional modeling shows have great power over the population to persuade and influence their idea of thinness being attractive.
7 comments:
This is a prime example of how the media uses its power to demonstrate their views of beauty. These ideals of the perfect body and excessive thinness are broadcasted repeatedly to the masses. There are so many self-image issues with young girls because they pick up these messages and interpret them to be correct and what is expected of them.
I think that this is an excellent example of how dominant groups control subordinate groups. Especially the way that everyone's in the room when they were being measured as if they were particularly trying to make a mockery of them if they gained an inch or so around their waist. It just shows the "ideal" body image that the media puts out there and the lengths that people go to try and achieve it.
I've never liked the idea of women starving themselves, preparing their bodies to a point that, most of the time, isn't even attractive to men. It's not healthy looking, and at times, very unattractive.
This example showcases how our standards are shaped by the media, and often times for more damaging effects than better.
I think this is a very good example of the media representing the ideologies of the dominant class. By weighing the models each week, the television show is placing a lot of importance on being thin. When the one girl lost inches the weighers congratulated and compimented her. As the viewers (probably mostly young females) watch, they're picking up the message that being skinny is good.
Not only is this show saying you must be a certain weight and have certain waist and bust measurements, but they are also telling these people to be healthy. They have all this pressure to maintain an image or lose an inch that one of the girls took it to an extreme. She lost over two inches in one week. It seems the people doing the measurements would have been happier with her losing half an inch each week and later reaching a total loss of two inches. Since she lost two inches in one week, they criticized her and told her not to lose more. Now she is getting a mixed message based on what they are telling her. I can only imagine what message young girls watching the show are receiving.
This is a great example of the impact cultural studies has on women within society today. The widespread belief of members of today's culture as thinness being the only way to look attractive illustrates the immense impact of today's media. Messages such as these not only influence countless members of society in negative ways, but give media a negative reuputation as a whole.
The media greatly influences the definition of beauty. It is true that media emphasizes the idea that being thin is better than being fat, and most people, especially teenage girls, are affected by it. Shows such as “Make Me A Supermodel” give us admiration towards beauty, but we should not forget that it also gives misinterpretation. As an Asian female, it is hard to compare myself with such beauty images, because we are different biologically. For example, in the TV show “America’s Next Top Model,” Asians have never won, where as most of the time, white models have won. The basis of America’s beauty is based on the ethnicity, where beauty may be labeled differently in another ethnic background.
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