The Medias Effect on Gender

By

Jesse Nussman

            From the moment we are born we are taught our gender roles. As we grow older these roles help shape us into what society wants us to be. We have all heard how boys dress in blue and are meant to be tough, while girls dress in pink and are emotional. The list can go on and on; however what is really surprising is how much the media plays a roll in determining our gender roles. First of all I should probably state what gender is in the first place. Gender is the state of being male or female based off of social and cultural differences rather than biological ones. Yet there is also considered a third gender role, which is rarely recognized by society, called androgyny, which is having both male and female qualities.

            Gender roles vary from culture to culture but for the time being I will just focus on those here in the United States. From an early age we learn how males and females are supposed to behave through the media. Commercials and advertisements make this clear. During our childhood we saw commercials with boys playing with footballs, G.I. Joes, and Legos. Those toy ads with girls usually were for Barbies, Easy Bake Ovens, and nail painting kits. Yet this is not only found in toy commercials. When looking at ads for men, we can usually see an emphasis on business man or working class careers, while ads for women usually focus on…well housewives, teachers, etc.

            Advertisements also show us what the “ideal” man and women should look like not just behave. Men must be tall, strong, and in charge. Women on the other hand must be thin (with curves in certain areas) and submissive. The medias gender roles spill into our everyday lives as we are told to ether “man up” or “Act like a lady”. While gender roles state what characteristics define masculine or feminine, there is rarely a single person who encompasses every  “necessary” quality. It becomes necessary to educate others, especially children, about the various aspects of the media and its image of gender roles. Children are especially susceptible to the medias impact with proper analysis one can better understand the media and not take every word or image that is displayed on a television set or on a billboard.

- Blumenfeld, Warren. “Examining Media’s Socialization of Gender Roles.” The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/warren-j-blumenfeld/examining-medias-socializ_b_3721982.html (accessed January 30, 2014)