There have been many things that have impacted my life, but for right now I will focus on the media. I breakdown medias impact into three main catagories that are both specific and general in their implications.
Media and my body image
I struggled with body image issues when I was younger and much was to do with the media surrounding my life. I constantly thought that my size was too big, and because I was young and vulnerable there were times when these worries took over any fun I could have in my life. I took a Cosmopoliton magazine from my friend and created this collage just from clippings I found in the issue. I was incredibly disgusted because I found that although they pride themselves on helping women be healthy… they ultimately end up putting them down and making them very self conscious about their bodies. Constantly creating flaws out of natural occurrences, like cellulite. I find that media wants to be portrayed as this place that positively influence the majority, but they end up getting into the minds of readers and making them ever more self conscious. This cycle of putting ourselves down has to end.
Media as an outlet into severe consumerism.
How many magazines do you see on the shelf that are dedicated to fashion, I bet you can’t name them all. Fashion has become a superpower industry that thrives off the consumer culture created by media. Media has become an outlet for showcasing the seasons ‘hottest trends’ and showing how much money you can pay to be fashionable. They showcase celebrity styles which are priced so insanely high that they are out of reach for most consumers. They show a ‘steal this look for cheaper’ version which is still too expensive for most consumers- they put fashion in an incredibly hard to reach place. I find that fashion creates an unrealistic sense of worth in a consumer, making them feel that if they can’t have this weeks hit pair of shoes, they can’t live. For those who choose to deny the fashion world satisfaction they bombard them with mean comments from the fashion police and pulling the plug on creativity in the industry.
Media as an outlet for distraction
Every form of media has the unruly trait of distracting anyone from something they need to do. TV channels have TV programs during the after school hours which cater to the children who need to do homework, they have websites that can distract anyone with a computer away from their job, and even the magazines and newspapers have sections dedicated to nothing but distracting people from their everyday lives. Much of what is causing distraction is the obsession with celebrity life. The problem with this type of distraction is that is creates an unhealthy obsession with gossip and other peoples lives. Many celebrity based reality TV shows make citizens feel like their lives are unsubstantial in comparison. Even if their lives are terrible, like those of MTV’s rehab show, people still love the idea that their lives are taped for the public to watch. Media also creates a model for how social interactions should take place, from how you interact with your parents (like Meet the Kardasian’s) or how you interact with your husband (MTV’s Newly Wed’s). TV shows like these offer a look into how other people live their lives and pulls everyday people away from their lives. People are aware of how pathetic and sick this practice is, yet still give into it. Why do we let our live be taken over by the lives of others?
So as you may see through these illustrations and talking points media has advanced to the point where it ha started to manufacture life, showing people how they should look, what they should do and talk about how, and how they should act. There are media outlets for every different weird aspect of life, and it is we, the consumers who fund it. How does that make you feel?
Nice collages:-)