The representation of women in media is not as diverse or equitable as most would like to believe. There are many problems with the way women are portrayed.

Representation for women should be well-rounded, inclusive, and diverse; this is not the case. The problem can be seen through these seven misrepresentations seen today in media. 

1.Where is the female Doctor Who? 

Even if you are not a part of the fandom, this matters. "Doctor Who" is a British TV show about a time-traveling time lord. No female Doctor Who means that a woman can’t be the “hero” in television shows. A woman can’t be the main character of a show or movie without it being deemed a “chick flick/show.”

The film industry represents people; that’s their responsibility. As freelance videographer/editor Andrew J. Leos says, media-makers “should hold themselves incredibly responsible but the sad truth is that like most people in society they are completely oblivious that there is even a problem with the way these groups are represented and depicted."

 

 

 

 

2. Sexualization

It seems that no matter where you look, women are being made into sexual objects. In movies, TV shows, music videos, video games and even news segments, women have to play up their sex appeal. This can be seen by the clothes women wear or the fact that they aren't given much character. 

”Female characterization in the media is almost always in the form of a trope, a fetishized or one-dimensional character that we are almost expected to act out in our every-day lives," says Kaya Masler, Director of the Women's Student Assembly at the University of Southern California. "Even when women look like they are being empowered in the media (like Angelina Jolie’s 'Tomb Raider' character), they are often getting placed into a limited, hyper-sexualized role. There are very few representations of women in the media that a 'real woman' can actually relate to.” Women often must be sexualized to be considered even a bit successful.

3.Is Miss America really a “role model"?

Nina Davuluri was crowned Miss America 2014. It’s wonderful that a woman of Indian descent has won this pageant. This is radical! Davuluri's win means that women of color are becoming more visible in our country.

But the Miss America pageant is not the platform for elevating the status of women of color, or women in general. This pageant conveys the message to women that how you look directly correlates to your worth in society. This is a common message throughout the media sphere.

I don’t want my role model, despite being pre-med, to come from the objectifying world of beauty pageants. A beauty pageant's winner is the woman who best embodies the "American woman" (fits the western standards of beauty). However, the title is based on being an object of beauty, and having superiority over other women because of your looks. This objectification and hierarchy of beauty that women must adhere to in pageants does not create role models for all women.

4.Women of Color: Fitting the Mold

Despite Nina’s win, there are not many women of color in media. Even those women of color in the media feel the pressure to change. Julie Chen, the "Talk" host on CBS, announced that she had cosmetic surgery in the ‘90s to widen her “Asian eyes.” She felt it was necessary to change her appearance to further her career. She wanted to look more alert and friendly on camera. However she faced criticism for rejecting her Chinese heritage.

That was not the case. She simply wanted to be more appealing to the audience. And the audience wants wide eyes, which is part of the western standards of beauty. To make it clear: the western beauty ideal refers to a woman who is ethnically white, thin, wide- and blue/green-eyed, blonde and has big breasts.

Women of color won’t fit the mold. Most white women don’t fit the mold. That’s the problem: there is a mold! We don’t need it!

5. Not being “pretty” enough leads to...

No matter your personal preference of what you find “pretty,” we can all agree on a standard for beauty. If someone doesn’t fit this ideal, they are less than, reduced to a second-class citizen. This affects men and women. If you don’t fit the mold of what is attractive, then you are not worth anything. Being pretty gets you attention and fame, as shown though film. Diana Mitsu Klos, the author of "The Status of Women in the U.S. Media 2013," shares how female characters are stereotyped and sexualized in the media. However this is, seemingly, the only way to gain fame and success. To become a sexual object for the media is the only way to have a voice in the media.

But the chatter surrounding the beauty in media muffles the voices of those women being talked about. MissRepresentation.org Communication Officer, Lisa Joss, shared that 65 percent of American girls and women have had eating disorders. Nina Duvuluri admitted to struggling with bulimia in her youth. Why do so many women and girls suffer through this? It is the mold and the inability to fit in it. Not being considered pretty destroys the image of what a girl/woman is told she has to be. To be pretty is of utmost importance. If you aren’t, you are worthless! No girl or woman wants to be worthless. So they try to achieve "beauty." But to do this, unhealthy methods are used: eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia, taking diet pills or constantly dieting—especially diet fads. The price is a girl or woman’s health and self-esteem.

6. White-Washing Disney Princesses

Disney is the go-to source for princesses. Millions of girls look up to the princesses and women look back to princesses as role models from when they were growing up.

However, Disney princesses aren't very diverse. Last summer, Disney gave all the princesses a redesign, hoping to fit new market trends, including changes to the princesses' make-up, outfits and body structure. Fans were not hapy with the new design, and for good reason. 

There are 11 princesses with one more on the way (Anna from Frozen), yet only four of the princesses are women of color. The rest are white.In the redesign, three of them—Mulan, Jasmine and Pocahontas—became lighter-skinned. Their facial structures were changed to be more "white": narrow nose, large eyes and fuller lips. This sends a message to young girls that to be a princess, you have to be white. Not all young girls are white. Disney has a responsibility to these girls to show them what women should aspire to be and give them great role models, but fans, young and old, aren't being equally represented by these princesses.

7. Gender-based hostility is the norm.

Carolyn Petit is a Trans* woman who is a reviewer for Gamespot. Like all other gamers, she anxiously awaited the release of Grand Theft Auto V. She gave the game a nine out of 10 review, a high rating. However she did mention that the game was misogynist and demeaning of women. She pointed this out in her review, but still gave the game a nine out of 10. And the one point short was not even because of the misogyny. Yet, because of this critique, she received more than 20,000 hateful comments, including transphobic comments and comments reading, “you should be raped.”

Twenty thousand comments like this. According to Klos report, 47 percent of gamers are women. Yet, they are not welcomed completely by male gamers. Female gamers face this sort of hate and belittlement in the male-dominated world. Where is the accurate and fair representation for women and trans* people?

 

Reach Contributor Kristy Plaza here; follow her here.