The South Ballroom of the Student Union Memorial Center at the University of Arizona was full of students last night eagerly waiting to hear Dr. Jeane Kilbourne speak.
Internationally recognized for her films, lectures, and award winning books on body image of women in advertising, Dr. Kilbourne opened her lecture by saying consuming negative media is like breathing toxic air, it’s hard to live a healthy life. Although we don’t always recognize it, advertising is everywhere. Commercials have been embedded on the sides of webpages, before movies and TV shows, and in between songs on playlists. As much as we would like to believe that we are immune to effects of the media, that we are able to ignore advertisements, Dr. Kilbourne informed the audience that it is impossible to grow up in America and not be influenced by advertisement.
“On average a person spends three years of their life watching advertisements,” Kilbourne said. “Researchers have found that babies of six-months-old can recognize corporate logos.”
Most of the messages of advertising we absorb subconsciously. We may not think twice about the media, but in the back of our minds an idea has planted that tells us how we should define ourselves, and how to understand the world around us.
However, the media and advertisers don’t always have the good of the public in mind. Their main goal is to sell their product, and they are more than willing to manipulate minds to do so.
“Advertisers sell ideas,” Kilbourne argued. “They sell the idea of love, romance, and success. It tells us who we are and who we should be.”
Furthermore, the media has had an increasingly negative effect on the body image of women. Portraying Photoshop images of flawless models sets unrealistic standards for women. Men also begin to judge women by these standards
“Photoshop gives the illusion that women can be flawless if they spend enough and work hard enough,” Kilbourne explained. “Girls hit adolescence and they hit a wall as they find what they are supposed to be and don’t live up to.”
Not only have these images in the media created an environment of guilt, but they have also contributed to an epidemic of eating disorders and violence against women. According to the reports by the American Psychological Association, girls exposed to sexual ads at a young age are more prone to depression, anorexia, and low self-esteem.
What is more alarming is the way that these images have silenced women everywhere. The media objectifies women, what Kilbourne says is historically the first step to justifying violence against a person.
“1/3 of all women who are murdered in our country are killed by their husbands,” Kilbourne reported. “The scariest thing is that women have been convinced that sexualizing themselves and servicing men is liberating.”
The longer women are made to feel inferior, the less they will begin to participate in society. Little girls don’t know to think better of their selves when the media consistently tells them they aren’t good enough.
Speak out against misogynistic messages. Deny media that portrays women as weak and inferior. The only way we can address public health issues is to change our minds and our environment.
mollybakermedia.wordpress.com 
Interesting article. Informative!