Gender and Media Representation
Gender refers to both male and female people as the perspective of the media on each is different. The manner in which the media depicts women is not the same as men. Also, certain roles have been stereotyped such that people think of certain gender whenever such role is represented in the media. Besides, the media can manipulate the minds of people and make them adopt a certain perspective about either gender. Characters playing a certain role in television (TV) shows, films, or music/video are meant an aspect of gender, race or social status.
Underrepresentation of Women in the Media
Firstly, women are underrepresented in the media through distortion of the truth. The number of women taking roles in the media is relatively lower as compared to their male counterparts. The failure to give women more roles to play in the films, television shows, or in the movies depict them as less hardworking people. Woman are also depicted as sex objects. For instance, the advertising image of the "Tomb Raider" movie shows Angelina Jolie who is in sexy clothes (Gill 16). Also, the fewer number of women undertaking media roles show that they are less passionate about working and carrying out responsibilities. The depiction of women in the media can be termed as underrating the power of women in the society. The truth is that women are able to play the roles played by men in the films, television shows, or movies. Moreover, the media depicts women as people who can be both loving and cunning. A woman in a film will take advantage of a man and obtain crucial information against the will of the man. The character trait that forms in the minds of people is that women can get what she wants through cunning ways. Besides, women are passionate about working with the media and participating in developing the industry. Additionally, placing more male than female actors create the notion in people’s mind that the population has more men than women (Gill 18). It is a show of gender imbalance in the society. Gender misrepresentation is a cultural standard and should not be allowed to force women abandon their responsibilities and fail to participate in the development of the society.
Media Representation of Men
The media represents men as masculine beings who have the dominion over every situation in life. The men’s representation is cultural construct to elevate them to a higher status than women. Also, men are seen as caring and loving people as seen by the concern they have on their female counterparts whenever the women fall into trouble. The man will go a long way to please the woman and will sacrifice to ensure that the woman gets what she desires. Therefore, the media depicts men as romantic. For instance, the Trojan Condom Advert shows the male character Katz as being aggressive to win women over (Gallagher 332). Further, men can be depicted by the media as dangerous beings who are inhumane and atrocious and can even kill or murder. The men's depiction is not the truth since men are rational beings who can reason to avoid situations that can prompt suicidal thoughts.
Representation of Social Class and Race
The media depicts social class as an aspect that divides the society into categories such as the rich and poor. Through the mode of dressing and material possessions, the media succeeds in showing that the rich live a luxurious life while the poor live an unpleasant lifestyle. Race is depicted in the media by the skin color. Television shows and movies may show disagreement between two groups that have different skin color (Gallagher 336). For example, Julie Chen, who is the "Talk" host on CBS television, underwent cosmetic surgery to broaden her "Asian eyes". She wanted to be successful in the media career which is dominated by the Whites. Thus the media suggests that people from diverse backgrounds and having different skin color have difficulties while interacting.
Works Cited
Gallagher, Margaret. "Media and the representation of gender." The Routledge Companion to Media and Gender (2014): 332-341.
Gill, Rosalind. Gender and the Media. John Wiley " Sons, (2015): 15-22.
