Posts filed under 'TV'
I’m up for a pretty prestigious honor at my university, where I will be graduating in a few short weeks (gulp!). When I told a friend this news, he was pleased and happy for me. Then, curious, he started asking how I managed to do so well at college. So I answered a few questions, how I work hard and do the best I can–but then he cut me off. “Oh I know how,” he said. “You’ve never had a serious boyfriend in college.”
Excuse me? Was he actually suggesting that women can never succeed while we’re seriously dating someone? Because, you know, having jobs and internships and hanging out with friends and casually dating–
Tina Fey as Liz Lemon on 30 Rock
that’s nothing compared to what it would take for a woman to maintain the attention of a boyfriend? Why is it that our society thinks women can’t have it all?
And that’s how I landed on people like Tina Fey.
Now, I love Tina Fey. I love her shows, I love her movies, I love her intelligence, and I especially love her Sarah Palin impersonations. She is a woman who’s broken down doors in the guys-only club of comedy. But I hate the women she plays. The women she consistently plays in her movies and shows are extremely successful, intelligent women who have unbelievably dull, pathetic social lives. Think of her characters in 30 Rock, Baby Mama, and Mean Girls–they are all are professional women who are clueless when it comes to their personal lives.
This has become a media trend over the decades–portraying women as either one or the other. Think Ally McBeal (successful lawyer, emotional instability), and Cristina Yang from Grey’s Anatomy (most intelligent intern in the hospital, yet cold and hostile to others). These kinds of characters are interesting and funny, and they certainly contribute to the laugh track. But I’ve had enough of it.
It’s great we’re seeing women characters as successful lawyers, doctors, and writers. But why must shows and movies always fall back on the same old portrayal–”she’s successful, but she can’t keep a boyfriend!” or “she’s smart, but she sure is crazy”?
What message is this sending? You can be successful either on the weekdays or the weekends, but not both?
Phylicia Rashad as Clair Huxtable on The Cosby Show
There are few examples of women in the media who do have it all–success and social lives. Phylicia Rashad’s Clair Huxtable on The Cosby Show was a loving, strict, successful, happy mother of five. I am also lucky enough to have grown up surrounded by extremely talented women who led happy lives, including my own mother. (I actually took an online quiz once to find out which TV family is most like mine, and it turns out we are the Huxtables). Why can’t we see more women who do have it all?
I have led the last four years of college socially and academically. Maybe I’ve never had a long-term relationship while in college, save for the couple month-long ones, but I have made some incredible long-term friends. But who’s counting anyway? And who’s to say any relationship of any kind would deter me from my goals?
-Kate
Kate Elston is a senior majoring in Media Studies at the University of San Francisco. Upon graduation, she plans to work as a journalist or filmmaker. Kate wants to dedicate her career to media literacy and use the media to promote positive change.
April 20th, 2009
Whitney, An America's Next Top Model Winner
It’s absolutely appalling that 25% of young women questioned in an Oxygen TV poll reported that they would rather be awarded first prize on America’s Next Top Model than be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize! A total of 50% said they would happily marry an ugly man if he was rich! I thought this was incredible too, speaking to female competition: “More that 25 percent said they’d make their best friend fat for life if it meant they could be thin.”
What is going on with our female population? Is anyone paying attention? Where are our priorities?
Where have the parents, teachers, and mentors that should be influencing and encouraging
Doris Lessing, Nobel Prize in Literature 2007
young females gone? Has the media completely overpowered them? Young women are constantly being bombarded with frivolous ideals and goals that are only short term. Beauty is fine, but the type of beauty that is being promoted won’t last. Eventually we all get older despite that wrinkle cream.
What will happen to girls with this mindset when they hit 40 and realize that their first prize on America’s Next Top Model does not qualify as job experience? It would be very sad if one day they wake up and realize they are unhappy in their marriage since they only married for money, but they can’t escape… they are entirely dependent. Will they turn to plastic surgery? Become alcoholics? Commit suicide?
No! Something needs to be done now to prevent this absurd youth consciousness. I am asking for your help. What ideas do you have? How can you reach out to young women in your community to turn this around? And asking you to cast your vote in the comments: America’s Next Top Model or Nobel Prize, which do you choose?
-Jaimie
March 31st, 2009
When Lorrie A. appeared on cosmetic-surgery reality show “The Swan” back in 2004, she didn’t know what she was getting herself into. Now she’s scarred and damaged. Have a look at her (very short) interview on E! News from Sunday:
About-Face took action around “The Swan”’s airing. The result: We sent in about 500 letters to Fox, the production company, and everyone else involved who we could find. Of course we didn’t hear back from them. We wish we’d been wrong about the show’s effects: More and more women feel they are inadequate enough to take a risk like cosmetic surgery, and the women on the show were harmed — just take Lorrie’s story.
What do you think? Was Lorrie duped by the show, or was she simply making poor choices at rock bottom?
(And by the way, please be compassionate and civil — Lorrie is a real person who may just be reading your comment.)
– J.B.
July 22nd, 2008
THIS is the model who won America’s Next Top Model last night.
Well, imagine my surprise when I tuned in to America’s Next Top Model (a Tyra Banks vehicle) to see which of the three finalists would win, only to see Whitney, a “full-figured” model, take the prize. It’s quite an accomplishment for the show, since Tyra gets all kind of flack for being size-positive on the Tyra Banks Show, her daytime talk show, but not supporting full-figured models enough on America’s Next Top Model. So finally Tyra reconciled her two TV pursuits a bit better.
We at About-Face are pretty pleased, though Whitney is not actually “plus-sized” by any stretch of the imagination. She’s pretty normal. But you know, the modeling and fashion industry needs this right now.
Watch and see more on the America’s Next Top Model web site.
If you’re unfamiliar with the show, here’s a good recap of last night’s episode (the web site makes you install a Java applet, and the best bits are from 1:23 to 2:00).
Great quotes from the episode: Es gibt aber auch ein paar deutsprächige online Kasinos , wo man internet Kasino poker spielen kann.
Tyra: “She’s not big, J. [Alexander, a judge]! This is the modeling industry — she’s considered big, but walking down the street, she’s just a hot chick.”
Paulina Porizkova [former supermodel]: “[Whitney] should not be called ‘plus-sized’ or ‘full-figured.’ [She] should just be called ‘beautiful.’ ”
Whitney: “I’m here because I do feel good about myself, and I want other women in America to feel better about themselves.”
Whitney: “[I realized] I can do that [be a model]. I don’t have to starve myself or have cosmetic surgery.”
It was all rather touching.
Is this a step in the right direction? Does it matter that there’s a larger-than-model-sized model who won? And what will it do for (or to) the fashion and modeling industries, if anything?
- J. B.
May 15th, 2008
Courtesy of a tip from Feministing, this ad from Dairy Queen, showing a little girl flirting with a little boy to get him to buy her a hot fudge sundae. Now, maybe my dad would say it’s cute. Or maybe not.
There are so many things wrong here:
1) The little girl seems to know she’s attractive — why else would she assume the boy would buy her a sundae?
2) When the girl says “make it one,” at first I thought it was because she was watching her weight. Is that the advertiser’s intention?
3) An 8-year-old girl is already into courting and flirting. (Not unlike how many of them also know about being “sexy” and “hot”.) Also, she first seals the deal with the boy at the same moment the mother says the word “temptations.” Accident? I think NOT. The advertising agency wrote the script and synchronized it with the commercial’s action.
TAKE YOUR OWN ACTION: I’m gonna go let Dairy Queen know how I feel about this ad that encourages gender stereotypes that encourages girls to be dependent and manipulative. I hope you’ll do the same. Here are some ideas.
- Go to this web page to give ‘em a piece of your mind.
- If you’re a Dairy Queen customer, don’t go there for a while. (Resist!) Or pull the super-gutsy move: Go to your local Dairy Queen, ask for the manager, and tell him/her that you are not buying anything there because of this ad. Heck, fill out a complaint form while you’re there!
- Call DQ Corporate headquarters: (952) 830-0200 (I just checked the number, and yes, a real person answers.)
- Write a real, paper letter and send it to:
American Dairy Queen Corporation Headquarters
7505 Metro Blvd
Edina, MN 55439
We hope you’ll let us know whether you took these actions in our comments below, and what the result was.
- J. B.
May 9th, 2008
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