Introduction
Stereotypes may be a part of daily life, but unrealistic expectations are causing damage to today’s young adults. The use of positive and negative stereotyping has been a continuous and ever growing trend in mass media production and marketing. Impressionable teens are often negatively swayed by the portrayal of people shown on the evening news, music artist’s exciting and profitable lives in music videos, and a nearly unobtainable “perfect” models shape and figure. Media effects the all-around opinions of everyone.
The effect of media portrayal on the youth’s consciousness in the school and home may be both negative and positive depending on the form of media or the niche described. For example when talking about a crisis or conflict the subjects may be looked at in a negative light for being involved—seeing that they are youth. Can it then be said that youth are misguided by the media that they are exposed to? Is media to blame for crime, and if the media is reporting or portraying a good event or information story, then are teens absolutely impacted negatively? This paper aims to show how media stereotyping is to blame for some negative portrayal, negative effects on teens, the way young people view themselves, crime that can be a direct effect of media stereotyping and how it is not gender biased.
News Portrayal of Young People
Music Videos: Effects on Youth
Music videos often give teens the misconception that drugs and crime are cool and women represent a lifestyle of promiscuous behavior in their representation as sexual beings in music videos. Not just rap music, there are a plethora of ‘country’ and ‘pop’ music videos that still objectify women. There have been several studies that directly accuse music videos as the lead producer of date rape. Date rape is a form of sexual violence that occurs with some regularity in young adult women's lives; estimates range from 14-30% of all adult women have been raped or experienced attempted rape (Koss, 1993). Music videos can also be linked to depression and teen suicide.
According to the authors, from the Behavioral Science Institute of The Netherlands, they used data compiled from several studies to describe the negative effects that music videos have primarily on women. These studies show that music videos influence how women feel and think about their bodies, and are directly linked to occurrences of depression (pg. 1026-34).
We can then assume that music videos can often lead to teen crime, as well as having a negative effect on women.
Media, Youth and Crime
The press is frequently charged of propagating misconceptions about crime and young adults. Certainly the media and the tabloid press in specific frequently seem constantly distracted with the belief that young adults are a risk to their towns. Adverse media buzz about young adults might have severe results, since an important role is played by the media in creating public view and consequently in creating regulations and plan. Damaging press stereotypes can distance young adults in the rest of culture and result in unjust discrimination.
There is a vast amount of negative media hype about young people that can alienate them from the rest of society. The people depend upon the press for the images of crime. News media largely decide what issues we put together think about, how we think about them, and what sorts of policy options are considered feasible.19 News portrayals of child justice issues are critical for how they affect plan producers and the general public regarding what ought to be completed to ensure public security. Problems are not regarded by the plan and people makers unless they are noticeable, and unless the information provides them to light they are not noticeable. Because adults commit most of the crime within the country most individuals have little if any personal encounter with teen crime. The public depends upon the press much more for the images of crime completed by or to group youth, because the majority of the public doesn't have immediate individual encounter with offense by minority youth.
But does the approach to addressing youth and crime optimize public understanding? What info on youth and offense does the American person get from the news? In view of the strong effect news coverage of offense has on community opinion and the reliance of most Americans on the information press for representations of offense, there are a few essential concerns we now have about the correctness of the image Americans are getting from the news press.
Models depict an unnatural representation of body figure
I. Female models are extremely thin and teenage girls struggle to obtain the “perfect body”
Teenage girls see models as the image all women should be. This can cause low self-esteem and lead to depression as they are not able to obtain this "perfect" image. Girls are offered by the media many favorable role models, independent ladies who depend on themselves to resolve their own difficulty. Girls are proven being self-reliant and making use of integrity, wisdom and performance to attain their aims, but this can come with a negative self-image due to consistently seeing body types that are unattainable. These messages are reinforced by teen magazines that feature models, by motivating their visitors to depend on themselves and work out situations in immediate and truthful methods. Further negative outcomes are due to the fact that most of these models are ‘airbrushed’, ‘photo-shopped’ or altered to seem perfect; rendering this form of media to be an under-representation of the true female image.
Teen girls' favorite tv programs and movies continue to under-represent women, as well. They show ‘perfect’ images of women, especially in female models within media. Additionally, the actions and goals of females within the press might send the implied information to girls that relationships are far more significant for women than vocations or professions. Girls are pictured as spending a lot of their time courting and speaking about the opposite sex while males are chiefly seen operating and worried about their success. These communications are reinforced--and, at times, stereotypes are perpetuated -- over the selection of press women view.
II. Male models appear overly muscular with a body that cannot be achieved without the use of steroids
Body image is really a prevalent preoccupation. Reassurance to concentrate on look reaches an all-time high in this tradition, with it comes the possibility of a considerable increase in negative body image. Men are just as susceptible to this as women. Men constantly see films with ‘super heroes’ who are ‘ripped’ and have ‘six-pack abs’.
The large amount of negative body image among men is from media, media hype and films. Scientists have discovered that increased preoccupation with body and look dissatisfaction get individuals at higher threat for participating in harmful methods to dimension and manage fat. Laxative misuse, exercise compulsion, severe dieting, vomiting, smoking and usage of anabolic steroids have all been related to unfavorable body image among men.
A negative body picture may include an altered understanding of dimension or form, too as more global emotions of shame, awkwardness, and nervousness about the body. Individuals with unfavorable body image often believe that it's an extremely significant index of value, and that their dimensions or form is a hint of individual disappointment. Bad physique image has been associated with reduced mental operation, reduced self-esteem, stress, melancholy, sex dysfunction, dieting and eating problems, as well as disorders like Body Dysmorphic Disoder. Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is an especially extreme kind of adverse body image. Individuals with BDD are therefore preoccupied with recognized defects in their look that relationships are affected by it with friends and family, aswell as making difficulties with perform or college. BDD may lead to stress, melancholy, as well as ideas about suicide.
Conclusion
In conclusion, media stereotypes may not be eliminated, but impressionable teens can be taught to filter the negativity that is often expressed through today’s media via news, music videos and modeling ads. Again, stereotypes might become a part of everyday life, but impractical expectations are creating harm to today's teenagers. Using damaging and positive stereotyping continues to be a constant and actually expanding pattern in advertising and media creation. Impressionable teens are frequently negatively influenced by the manifestation of individuals demonstrated on the night news, music artist's fascinating and prosperous lives in music movies, and a practically unobtainable "perfect" models form and amount.
The Effects of Media Stereotyping: An Annotated Bibliography
Gorham, B. W. (2006). News Media’s Relationship With Stereotyping: The Linguistic Intergroup Bias in Response to Crime News. Journal Of Communication, 56(2), 289-308.
Isabelle H.S., M., Hein T. van, S., Daniël H.J., W., Rick B. van, B., &Rutger C.M.E., E. (n.dii). Thinking big: The effect of sexually objectifying music videos on bodily self-perception in young women. Body Image, 1026-34.
Kalof, L. (1999). The Effects of Gender and Music Video Imagery on Sexual Attitudes. Journal Of Social Psychology, 139(3), 378-385.
Lawrie, Z. Z., Sullivan, E. A., Davies, P. W., & Hill, R. J. (2006).Media Influence on the Body Image of Children and Adolescents. Eating Disorders, 14(5), 355-364.
Adolescent Self-Esteem and Gender: Exploring Relations to Sexual Harassment, Body Image, Media Influence, and Emotional Expression. Journal Of Youth i Adolescence, 30(2), 225-44.
References
Gorham, B.W. (2006).News Media’s Relationship with Stereotyping: The Linguistic Intergroup
Bias in Response to Crime News. Journal of Communication, 56 (2), 289-308.
Isabelle, H.S., M., Hein T. van, S., Daniel H.J., W., Rick B. van, B., & Rutger C.M.E., E. (n.dii).
Thinking big: The effect of sexually objectifying music videos on bodily self-perception in
young women.Body Image, 1026-34.
Kalof, L. (1999). The Effects of Gender and Music Video Imagery on Sexual Attitudes. Journal
of Social Psychology, 139 (3), 378-385.
Koss, M.P. (1993a). “Detecting the Scope of Rape: A Review of Prevalence Research
Methods.” Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 8 (June), 198−222.
Lawrie, Z.Z., Sullivan, E.A., Davies, P.W., & Hill, R.J. (2006). Media Influence on the Body
Image of Children and Adolescents. Eating Disorders, 14 (5), 355-364.
Polce-Lynch, M., Myers, B. J., Kliewer, W., & Kilmartin, C. (2001). Adolescent Self-Esteem
and Gender: Exploring Relations to Sexual Harassment, Body Image, Media Influence, and
Emotional Expression. Journal Of Youth And Adolescence, 30(2), 225-44.
