Media and Its Effects on Gender Stereotypes Essay

In addressing the question it is first necessary to understand what is meant by mass media. The Collins English Dictionary defines mass media as the means of communication that reach large numbers of people in a short time, such as television, newspapers, magazines, and radio (Collins English Dictionary 5th edition, 2000, pp 957). This therefore suggests that any medium that conveys information to the people is categorised as mass media. By looking at two forms of media, this essay will examine how much the media can be charged with causing and further exaggerating gender-based stereotypes in society. The forms of the media in which this essay will examine will be advertising, in†¦show more content†¦These are as Ferguson sees more like instructions than messages. Instructions that tell women how to live, how to think and act towards themselves, men, children and other key relationships within society such as bosses and colleagues within the workplace. These messages given b y the womens magazines could be a key factor in the rise of eating disorders amongst young women as well as other behaviour patterns of individuals. In her study Ferguson points out this cult of femininity is exclusive to womens magazines, as the magazines available to men do not tell men how to be a man. The magazines assume that men know all they need to know about their masculinity as though masculinity is an innate tendency. However three years after Fergusons study George Melly whilst writing a review for an advertising trade magazine, he saw a new use of sex (Melly,1986 cited in Hall 1997, pp293) and men had become passive sex objects (Melly,1986 cited in Hall 1997, pp293) an example of this was the Levi Strauss Jeans advert in which actor Nick Camen undressed down to his boxer shorts at a laundrette in an erotic manner, with the light emphasising his muscle toned body. 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