Teen body image and the media – Part 1

Teen body image and the media are tied to one another rather directly or indirectly. While the media may not be conscious of the effect they have on the perception teens have of themselves it is obvious when you look around any high school or mall in America. The endless articles and news stories about diets, celebrity weight gain and the emphasis on them all are being drilled into the mind of teens everywhere.

Celebrities are seen airbrushed on magazine covers and even then fall under attack for their size, hair or clothing. When you see these images of people that have hours of makeup done, the best clothing and professional stylist to make them up still not considered to be what they’re supposed to you begin to doubt yourself. How much work do you have to have done to be the right size? What should you look like?

Constant news reports of overweight people suffering from one affliction or the other; thousands upon millions of weight loss commercials and exercise machines all endorsed by those in the public eye make teens think they should aspire to look like anyone but themselves. Too often they fail to realize until it’s too late that the models and actors they see portrayed in the media have eating disorders that assist them in looking the way they do. There are a number of times when the body image the media causes a teen to have results in a dangerous eating disorder.

In fact over the years several teen actors that have now grown have revealed they had issues with eating disorders while trying to live up to the image the media made them believe they should portray to the world. Now if the ones the media portrays as perfect have issues with body image why would teens be different?

The media has even gone so far as to write hurtful things about those in the public eye when a pound or two was gained. The result is that if those that should look a certain way and have the assistance of air brushing still don’t look the way they should then there isn’t any way they ever will.

Then there are the reports from the media that lead us to believe that only thin people can be healthy. There is constant talk of overweight people being more prone to disease that put their life at risk. No mention is given as to how overweight or the fact that some people with extra weight are just as healthy if not healthier than those that are underweight or the suggested weight for their body type.

The media never really portrays people as being different. When one listens to the media the idea they get is that everyone is supposed to be a size two, have legs that extend to the heavens and wake up with hair and makeup done. The average person wakes up looking a mess and is left to their own devices as to what they wear and how well they get the hair and makeup.

Teen body images suffers greatly from watching the media; until the media portrays people as individuals instead of lumping us all together into one group it will continue to do so.

Celebrity wisdom: Why we should use our own common sense

Isn’t it amazing how celebrities carry so much weight in setting trends and influencing opinions over issues? The media hangs every word of the rich and famous, and night after night we are presented with news shows, “breaking news” and other celebrity bulletins to make sure we’re kept abreast of every second occurring in their lives. The media has demonstrated that there is a market for this because a large majority of the public is fascinated by them. The latest trends may be clothing, hairstyles, or products, and opinions may be political, business or issue related. Society diligently watches and pays heed to what their favorite celebrity’s views are presenting.

It’s an interesting phenomen how society places so much importance on whatever it is a celebrity it touting. When I was younger, every girl wanted to dress like Madonna, most of the boys wanted hair like Bon Jovi’s. Today, girls emulate Hannah Montana and even adults pay heed to what their favorite stars are saying. This is part of society’s norm and a part of growing up, but what about once we reach adulthood? If a celebrity is trying a particular diet, many people give it a whirl too! Why does certain makeup sell because a famous runway model swears by it? It’s bewildering to think of how many voters will cast their ballot a certain way because a celebrity suggested and has been hard hitting the campaign trail.

Entertainers interrupt concerts or their public appearances to go off on political rants and we are subjected to listen (paying for the privilege!) They promote products with the expectation we’ll suddenly be off shopping for whatever it is they’re plugging that is a “can’t live without” whether we can afford it or not. Politicians and advertisers are very deliberate in who and how they choose celebrity endorsements because history shows us over and over that it works. Even informercials have met a lot of success using celebrity endorsements. There must be something “to it” or advertisers wouldn’t pay the celebrities the high costs associated with hiring them to promote the product.

Celebrities don’t have anymore in-depth knowledge in politics or products than we do if we take the time to explore options and our preferences; our opinions are just as valid. Just because Oprah Winfrey, Brittany Spears or Michael Jordan promote a particular product does not necessarily mean it is the best or highest quality item on the market. We should keep in mind that they are probably getting paid a pretty penny or getting some other benefit to promoting a product, they aren’t necessarily telling us for our own benefit, but rather relying on the phenomenon of fan appeal to tote these items.

As a society, we are intelligent enough to make our own sound decisions and we should rely on our own common sense when making them. A celebrity’s opinion is not more valuable than the rest of us. Do we really need someone famous either blatantly or subliminally suggesting what trend we should follow? The information is there for the rest of us, and it’s important that we each do our own homework and use our common sense in making important decisions, whether it’s what kind of car to buy or who to vote for. After all, we’re not going to be the ones getting paid to buy and use the products, our favorite celebrities are, we’re just spending the money so they can get paid.