Miss Representation Film Addresses Gender Stereotypes
Author: Womens UN Report Network
Date: February 25, 2013
WUNRN
MISS REPRESENTATION FILM SEGMENT:
Miss
Representation film
uncovers a glaring reality we live with every day but fail to see. Written and
directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the film exposes how mainstream media
contribute to the under-representation of women in positions of power and
influence in America. The film challenges the media’s limited and often
disparaging portrayals of women and girls, which make it difficult for women to
achieve leadership positions and for the average woman to feel powerful
herself. In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural
norms, the collective message that our young women and men overwhelmingly
receive is that a woman’s value and power lie in her youth, beauty, and
sexuality, and not in her capacity as a leader.
STATEMENT
BY MISS REPRESENTATION FILM DIRECTOR JENNIFER SIEBEL NEWSOM
For Gender Stereotypes – Gender
Violence Panel – CSW 57
In our 2011
documentary film, Miss Representation, we detailed the connection
between gender stereotypes in the media and the underrepresentation of women in
positions of power and leadership around the world. We pointed out that the
media continues to value women primarily for their youth, beauty and sexuality,
and that our girls and boys are growing up absorbing this message – to the
detriment of us all.
It’s estimated that
the average American teenager consumes over 10 hours of media everyday, and we
know that the vast majority of this media is telling our youth to see and treat
women in very limiting ways. Studies have shown that as little as 3 minutes
spent with a fashion magazine can negatively impact how girls view themselves
and their potential. Moreover, less than 10 percent of protagonists in
Hollywood films are women, and about 20 percent of global news stories are
written about women and girls.
It’s no coincidence
then that girls’ leadership ambitions peak around the age of 8. We are failing
to give young women adequate female role models to look up to. Even when
the media does show us successful inspiring women – whether it’s a Presidential
candidate or a CEO of a major company – they often comment on their looks
first, and their actions second. In other cases there is an overt media
backlash against successful women – unless that success is derived from
their appearance. All of which sends a troubling message to our children:
women are worthy of praise only for the way they look, not for what they say or
do.
Violence against women
takes all forms, and the sexual objectification and dehumanization of women vis
a vis the media is a contributing factor to the continued oppression of women
worldwide. As long as the mainstream media limits women to sexual beings they
maintain the status quo where women and girls are treated as such in their
day-to-day lives. Ultimately we can never reach true parity in any realm –
whether it’s at home or in government leadership – until the media changes its
representations of gender.
So we know that gender stereotypes in the media have real world
consequences, but how do we fight them? How can we change them? At MissRepresentation.org
we’re empowering individuals to use their consumer voices to talk back to
sexist media. We’re utilizing social media to challenge the mainstream
conversation – amplifying the voices of the traditionally marginalized and
speaking out against those brands which use sexism to sell. Campaigns like
#NotBuyingIt on Twitter have been successful in galvanizing the community
around the negative influences of the media, and pressuring companies to change
their practices.
Meanwhile,
we are continuing to create our own media commentary to expand this much-needed
international conversation around gender representation and its connection to a
culture of violence. Our next documentary film series, The Mask You
Live In, will explore the bifurcation of gender in America and the extremes
of masculinity we impose on our boys and men. Ultimately the global
mistreatment of women cannot end without men being a part of the solution.
It’s
our belief that through this work we are not only inspiring conversation, but
providing individuals with avenues to take real action. As a community, we are
shifting society so that everyone – regardless of age, gender, or circumstance
– is free from oppression and has equal access to fulfill their dreams and
aspirations in life.
Categories: Releases
