Ahh the first blog of the new CMA! And a new logo even. Classy, eh? It’s fitting that as we expand our wonderful organization to be more inclusive to everyone who represents and loves children’s media that the first blog of the new CMA is about gender issues in media. It’s as close to controversial or political as I’m ever going to get so pay attention. Or skip it and go get some coffee. I’m flexible.
If you think it’s hard out here for a pimp, try being a young woman navigating your way through the media! We were treated to a screening of “Miss Representation,” a film which explores the way women are portrayed in the media and how that effects the overall perception of women in this country.
My notes are a little sporadic (it was dark and I was enjoying the movie) but here are some things I took away and some insights I had while watching.
Some Interesting Things I’ve Never Thought About:
- When women entered the workforce en masse during World War II a lot of them wanted to keep their jobs after the war. So TV in the ‘50s was designed to make women want to stay at home. New appliances were featured on TV shows and an emphasis was placed on the family unit with dad as breadwinner and mom staying home to take care of the house.
- The US is 90th in the world for women in legislature and footage of how reporters (both male and female) talk about female candidates was fairly shocking. They’re more likely to talk about what the women were wearing and how they look than they do for their male counterparts.
- Someone in the film, though I can’t recall who, said, and I paraphrase, Women are expected to be able to win Miss USA, have sex like Samantha on “Sex and the City” and have a mind like June Cleaver. We are a nation of teenaged boys.
While watching, I started to think of the way men are portrayed in the media. While of course this varies from show to show I kept going back to sitcoms where the men are often portrayed as being goofballs and horn dogs (I was thinking of “Two and a Half Men” a lot) and reality TV where the men are often these big, really macho types. I think there may be a greater problem with our society in that intelligence doesn’t seem to be something that is prized in most of our media. I think it’s getting better with movies like “Spiderman” and shows like “The Big Bang Theory” championing the geek cause but still, intelligence seems to fall by the wayside whereas backstabbing, alcoholism and bad behavior sell shows. I was about to point out that even on “Big Bang Theory” the girl is hot and not a geek but then we have PhD earning Bernadette who manages to be cute and geeky at the same time. Hmmm… I totally digress.
At the after panel we got some insight into the minds of teenaged girls as they talked about their media experience and the thing that seemed to be echoed over and over again is that they have a dialogue with their parents about media and how the images on TV aren’t normal. These girls seemed very media literate and savvy to the tricks that the media uses. Still, it’s not enough. Some young women aren’t getting that kind of insight from strong female role models in their lives. I thought about it for a moment and I initially thought I didn’t have specifically female role models when I was growing up. I wanted to be Jim Henson and Stephen King. But then again, I had the most important positive female role model – my mother – encouraging me to prize intelligence above all else. It’s a lesson I try to impart to my teenaged niece, especially when I hear about her watching Teila Tequila. So yes, ladies, let’s make media that supports smart, intelligent women and let’s not talk about Hillary or Sarah Palin’s hair anymore! But let’s make media that prizes intelligence on everyone’s part because our country could use a generation of kids who want to win quiz bowl instead of wanting to have the most off the hook sweet sixteen.
Okay, don’t let me down folks, I’m actively soliciting comments on this presentation. Folks who were there what do you think? What did you takeaway from it all? Here are my takeaways:
Main Takeaway: People are impressionable, the brain doesn’t stop developing until we’re well into our 20s. Depictions of women in the media do have an impact on the way we think and act toward each other.
Personal Takeaway: I really wish we could just stop talking about men vs. women. We’re all people, let’s just all be that and not worry about anyone’s gender. Let’s not stereotype anyone. Let’s make media with characters that are well-rounded and nuanced because that’s what makes interesting characters, regardless of their gender.
Inappropriate Takeaway: Someone in the film said something about ESPN being for men. Why? I watch sports. We all have to be careful about not stereotyping anyone, men included. I cringe every time I hear one of my girlfriends say something like, “You know what guys are like” and I’ll admit I’ve done it, too. We roll our eyes when men say things like “women be shopping” and we should also roll our eyes when women say things like “you know how men are with their sports.” Blech.
