Media Messages about Beauty

Materials:

pens, pencils

prepare magazine cut outs of advertisements with models/actors

Discussion:

Point out to students that one way in which we get our ideas about what is attractive is through the media. Movies, magazines, television, and even video games often communicate unrealistic ideas about body image, and put pressure on us—even if we aren’t aware of it—to look a certain way. Display the following statistics on the screen, a handout, or write them on the board.

• A study of over 4,000 television commercials revealed that 1 out of every 3 to 4 commercials

sends some sort of “attractiveness message,” telling viewers what is or is not attractive. The average teenager sees over 5,000 “attractiveness messages” each year.

• One study found that teens who watch soaps and TV shows that emphasize the ideal body type report a higher sense of body dissatisfaction than other teens. This was also true for girls who watched music videos.

• Another study found that identification with television stars (for girls and boys), models (for girls) and athletes (for boys), is related to their unhappiness with their bodies.

• In a study of fifth graders, 10-year-old girls and boys told researchers they were unhappy with their

own bodies after watching a music video by Britney Spears or a clip from the TV show, Friends.

• A psychological study in 1995 found that three minutes spent looking at models in a fashion

magazine caused 70% of women to feel depressed, guilty and shameful.

Ask students to respond to these statistics and to comment on the extent to which they think they are affected by “attractiveness messages” they receive on a daily basis. Tell students that one way to resist some of the media’s false messages about appearance—and their effect on our self-esteem and behavior toward others—is to become media literate. This means thinking about the values behind media images, raising critical questions about them, and being aware of who created them and for what purpose.

Pass out magazines or find examples of articles or beauty advertisements.  Have students write and discuss their answers to one or more of the following questions:

1. Who created the magazine (or show, video, movie, etc.) and for what purpose?

2. How many and what type of “attractiveness messages” were communicated? (These can be verbal, types of people or characters, gestures or expressions, types of clothing, etc.)

3. Do these messages reflect real life and real people in your community?

4. What are the values or beliefs behind these messages? Do you agree with them?

5. What techniques are being used to get you to buy into the messages?

6. How might these messages affect your own or others’ attitudes about physical appearance?

7. What important images or messages have been left out?