Dora the Explorer’s new “tween” look has caused quite a stir. The new Dora seems to be telling little girls that looks are, in fact, very important. She is also suggesting that girls should be more interested in styling their hair than in having adventures. Luckily, the original, adventurous young Dora will live on in… Continue Reading →
Fourth graders feeling fat: The plummeting self-image of young girls
In his recent article for the Wall Street Journal, Jeffrey Zaslow reports recently contacting women from a 1986 study of fourth graders, in which 75% of the girls revealed that they felt like they weighed too much, and more than half claimed to be on diets. The girls weren’t alone in their concerns about weight:… Continue Reading →
Glamour shows a glimpse of diversity amidst a sea of monotony
Glamour’s move to illustrate a feel-good body story with a 3-by-3-inch nude image of 20-year-old Lizzi Miller has received a lot of attention — mainly praise. Miller is a “plus-size” (in the language of the skin-and-bones fashion industry) model, but her body is more representative of the average female reader. Some suggest that this image… Continue Reading →
The media does (not really) feel sorry for trivializing violence against women
From Kanye to Serena Williams, it seems like everyone has been apologizing for inappropriate comments recently. But one apology you may have missed was that of Orange County Register columnist Mark Whicker. Whicker wrote a seriously offensive column on September 7th that attempted to use the rescue of Jaycee Dugard as a hook for a… Continue Reading →
The fear of Jennifer’s (sexual) Body
While our culture is being inundated with stories about romantic, supernatural males, such as vampires sweeping everyday ladies off their feet, we get a story about a supernatural girl literally eating horny high school boys. Jennifer’s Body is a thinly veiled retelling of the age-old story based on fear of women’s sexuality. What could be… Continue Reading →
Join About-Face in getting the word out about how young women are affected by mainstream media!
Who: Passionate activists! Quiet behind-the-scenes helpers! Education-minded world changers! New and familiar faces are welcome! (Volunteers must be ages 13 and up). What: About-Face Volunteer Meetup When: Thursday, September 24, 2009, 7-9pm Where: Thrive House for Youth 1100 Broderick Street at Eddy St., San Francisco
False images: Kelly Clarkson and Twiggy get modified
It’s been a busy couple of weeks in the world of airbrushed images. Kelly Clarkson’s obviously tweaked and airbrushed body on the August cover of Self sparked controversy and even provoked Self editor Lucy Danziger to speak openly about the magazine’s airbushing techniques. Danziger, who admitted to digitally shaving off her own unwanted weight in… Continue Reading →
A violent culture begets a violent crime
In recent news, a former VH1 reality TV star, Ryan Jenkins, killed his model girlfriend, Jasmine Fiore, cut her up in pieces, and stuffed her in a suitcase. It’s pretty disturbing to imagine that something as horrific as cutting up a body and packing it into a suitcase could actually happen. What is even more… Continue Reading →
Get published! Write for the About-Face blog!
About-Face is looking for new bloggers to help keep our web site current and fresh! As an About-Face blogger, you will have the opportunity to help women and girls understand and resist harmful media messages, have your writing published, become a better writer, and have a productive outlet for expression.