Media and Body Image

This past month, I researched three articles related to the connection between culture and body image. This topic remains vital in modern-day society due to its dangerous effects and outcomes. People strive to be accepted socially, even when it results in unsafe measures. Implications of this issue not only include exclusion, but being bullied or judged by others for their appearance.

Body image is negatively affected through the media and can lead to insecurities and even eating disorders.

America’s fascination and exposure with celebrities’ lives have caused an obsession with body image (10). Bodies have become the latest and biggest pop cultural obsessions (10). People tune in on the internet or turn on the television and are subjected to the newest photo or videos of celebrities. This is a constant that is unlikely to change. Media shows impractical role models which lead to dissatisfaction with body image

This can become quite an issue in many people's lives. Not only are women affected by the way media portrays them, but it can also give men a false concept of the ideal woman. Children also can be persuaded into believing that the media's form of beauty is the only way to be beautiful. This issue of body image does not only occur in one generation or one culture, this is happening throughout all ages and all around the world. All of this can be quite damaging to anyone's self-image. This is because by seeing these images of the “perfect women” day in and day out, one can begin to become upset with their own image as it may not reflect the one they see in media. Self-injury may follow as they try and morph into the ideal image. By looking at case studies, I hope to unravel some of the mystery behind this topic. How much of the media's portrayal of women actually affect the population, and who does it

Over the past decade, the media industry has vastly evolved worldwide, grasping the nations view by providing several genres of entertainment, appealing advertisements and engaging sitcoms. Due to the increase in technology, media has become an integral part of several lives. Though, some fail to notice the many consequences and inconveniences that are linked to the time spent on observing and listening to what media portrays. The aspect of looking in a mirror and being able to accept that everyone comes in different shapes and sizes is essential. However, many people may lack in acknowledging their body image as media presents an unattainable figure and captions it ‘perfect’. The exposure of media continues to gain attention broadly,

In today’s society, body image is one of the reasons why people have a lack of self-confidence. This is a problem that has been exploited by the media, over the years, tearing through the minds of people everywhere. Although this problem affects everyone, it tends to hit the younger populaces the fastest and hardest.

Body image has recently became very popular in pop culture. Pictures are often posted praising people who meet society’s standards and are not only “normal” but extraordinarily “beautiful.” Contrarily, people are also shamed and ridiculed for not being “normal” or “beautiful.” Ironically enough, as much as social media does to aid the negative connotation that body image has it also serves as a platform to advocate for body positivity. Messages like “love your curves” and “beauty is on the inside” are commonly spread by body image enthusiast. People have an inherent desire to want to be seen as “beautiful” and “normal” because society often pairs those features with success. When these standards are not met it leads to body negativity which can lead to self-harm, verbal abuse, and many other issues. Society is, in short, obsessed with the human body: what it looks like and what that

Today, society views body image as something seen much differently, than what it was interpreted as years ago. With that, people are engrossed with the idea that, in order to obtain the ‘perfect body’, they must conform to society's expectations through; social media, magazines, models, and the media. Body image is how people within society picture themselves and how they think other people picture them. Society presents unrealistic images of beauty, genetically impossible for many individuals to emulate. Due to the influence that media has on society, people are becoming more self-conscious about the way they appear to others and are constantly searching for ways to improve their physical appearance. However, the media simultaneously shape us in many other different ways, possibly more than what the general public realizes – from our interactions to our personal development through to others’ perception of our bodies as a reflection of self-worth. It is discovered that within society, people too fixated on their own appearance. By living in a world where pervasive media images fuel unrealistic expectations about how we should look, and dissatisfaction if we fail to make the grade is something that any individual cannot escape. So, the question still remains; what is your body

and all around the world has been changed. Now in 2015, everywhere you look in magazines and advertisements there are these thin, beautiful  women and strong muscular men with six packs. Body image is something which girls struggle with on an almost daily basis. Societal pressure to be thin has caused many females to resort to extreme dieting, excessive exercise, eating disorders such as bulimia and anorexia and self abuse (Cutting, and Binding). Body image directly affects sexuality as well as our perception of it. According to studies at Stanford University and the University of Massachusetts, found that 70% of college women say they feel worse about their own looks after reading women’s magazines. A 2006 study published in the journal of Psychology of Men and Masculinity showed that not only did watching prime-time television and music videos appear to make men more uncomfortable with themselves, but that the discomfort led to sexual problems (Brown.edu). Personally I struggle with body image and have since I was 7. Usually I would look at the people in magazines, but also I would look at my friends, who could eat anything they want, and never gain a single

Body image involves awareness of the form, shape, and size of one’s body (Cash, 2012).

In comparison to the time span of history, the media is a relatively new presence in the world. Despite its rather contemporary status, the media is a wide-spread entity in modern society. From television to the internet, and from social media to online news sources, almost every modern American has access to the media in some way. Media has affected the way of life in many ways, including the way people view themselves. Body image and the media have formed a relationship, and this relationship effects many people. It becomes particularly important to focus on this relationship, especially when it comes to how it is changing the way people feel about themselves.

Body image is something that can appear in one’s everyday life, whether they are trying to lose weight, gain weight, or just happen to walk by a mirror and check themselves out. Young children, even as young as 3 years old, show signs of recognizing body image. Many people do not think about young children when they think of body image. Teens are constantly confronted with having a perfect body. Teens have pressure from friends, family, and many other outside variables. Middle-aged women even show signs of being concerned with how their bodies look. Although middle-aged women may not be as vocal, the way they see their body is becoming more of a talked about subject. Some may argue that teens are the only age group that is concerned with their body image but I will argue that negative body image affects all age groups.

Although, past generations have dealt with body image it did not impact women as much as the current day. Previously, women saw other females on television and compared themselves to the picture on the screen. Though the women observing did not know them, it still affected how ladies perceived themselves when looking at their reflection. Likewise, in the modern period, body image is becoming a large issue as new social media platforms engage women to follow their friends and as well celebrities. Now, suddenly women are not only

Around the world, women are unhappy with their body image due to the media portraying body image. Media affects how women look at themselves every day. Body image plays a huge role in the media. Women are constantly criticizing their body when they see a perfect body on the media. With this being said, the media is to blame for how insecure women are about their image. A large variety of people agree how the media is wrong for portraying these “perfect” body images, but a few disagree and think taking away “perfect” body images on the media is too extreme. Without the media portraying body image, the world would be a happier place. Not only would the world be a happier place, but women would feel more secure about how their bodies look. Media is to blame for why women are so unhappy about their appearance. (Scholastic Choices, 2016)

Body image is defined as the perception that a person has of their physical self and the thoughts and feelings that result from that perception. These feelings can be positive, negative or both and are influenced by individual and environmental factors (National Eating Disorders Collaboration n.d). Today, more so than ever before, the world is connected by one thing – social media. Social media can be an amazing tool used to connect with others, share experiences and thoughts but there is a dark side to social media, where ‘idealistic’ body images are exposed. These body standards shown on social media are destroying the lives of our youth and in a sample of 20 000 Australians aged 15-19 years, almost one-third reported body image as a major concern (Raising Children Network (Australia), 2017). Numerous health issues can stem from a negative body image, these include depression, eating disorders, anxiety etc. I strongly believe there should be programs implemented around Australian schools and a more diverse range of models in the fashion industry, as well as descriptions stating if an images has been retouched in order to tackle the issue between social media and body image. It must be remembered that body image issues can result in devastating mental, emotional and physical consequences.