Gender Stereotypes In The Media

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The media is present around us everywhere we go, may it be in newspapers, advertisements, social networking or magazines. Our mind ingests and registers these images without us having a say in it. Whether we want or not to view these images our subconscious uses them to build our social behavior. Not only do these bias images invade our minds but they also shape the way in which we see the world.

Media plays a meaningful role in entertaining, informing, and introducing values to diverse audiences in society. The danger with media lies in the stereotypes that are assimilated into messages used to sell products, also known as propaganda or marketing. It is important to keep in mind that advertising is a vital component to any company’s survival,
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The typical image of a woman in the media has the following qualities: Caucasian, thin, and always looking good even if she just got home from picking her kids up, making dinner and cleaning the house, in other words a superwoman. However in the last 20 years there has been an increase of the presence and influence of women in the media, yet there are many strong stereotypes that still exist today. Media portrayals of women tend to follow to cultural stereotypes about gender roles. For instance, if a women is portrayed as a strong independent female who is financially secure and has a stable authoritative job, this portrayal is generally undermined by the fact that she is lonely and longing for a relationship. Portrayals of girls and women are subject to traditional stereotypes throughout the generations and most likely will continue as we live in a male-controlled …show more content…
In recent years women have escalated in the business world, and educationally more women receive a bachelor degree then men. Women are gaining power in the world yet in media, women are still misrepresented by old-fashioned stereotypes, such as the medical assistance, the secretary, the perfect house wife, the amazing mum, or the sexy prize to be won.

The media has many effects on the public and with misrepresentations appearing on television can be a crucial in which the media can sway some ones thought process. It is easy for an audience to believe such stereotypes are true, especially if the stereotype is repeated again and again.
Gender stereotypes continue social discrimination; the assumptions made about gender roles can be difficult to distinguish reality and fiction particularly for children. Children are taught gender roles from very early stages in life, parents unconsciously make stereotypical decisions from when they paint the child’s first room (pink for girls and blue for boys) or to the purchase of toys (guns for boys and dolls for girls).

I now conclude that media is responsible for bias opinions and stereotypes, due to how they portray women in television, newspapers, magazines and advertisements. Women are visualized as sexual objects or beings and that influences the way they are portrayed in the

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