The Opportunity Now Blog Spot

Helen Wells,  Director, Opportunity Now reviews a recent panel debate looking at the miss representation of women in the media.

On Wednesday (1 February 2012), I attended a very interesting and thought provoking panel debate at the House of Commons chaired by Jo Swinson MP on the misrepresentation of women in the media, which followed a private screening of Miss Representation, by Jennifer Siebel Newsom.

Miss Representation explores how the media’s misrepresentations of women has contributed to the underrepresentation of women in positions of power and influence in America, and how narrow portrayals of women in the media are shaping younger women’s view of themselves and their role in the world.

The film clearly demonstrated that the media representations of women are incredibly shallow and limiting, all too often focusing on beauty and attire rather than brains and ability. 
A pertinent quote from the film was that there is “a symbolic annihilation of women in media”. Continued one-dimensionality in the way women are represented, particularly with derogatory overtones of women as a “ditz”, “bitch”, “gold-digger” or as decorative, is all too pervasive. American teenagers consume an incredible ten hours of media every day – be it mobile phones, social media, social networks, online magazines & blogs, TV, DVDs, news, YouTube, music channels, etc.  What other medium, influencer or role model can compete with that? No child is in school or with their parents that many hours a day. And it’s not just music videos, airbrushed images in magazines or bikini clad women in reality TV. A study from the States found that between 2006 and 2009, of all the family films released not one female character was a business leader, in law, science, medicine or politics. In these films, 80.5% of all working characters are male and 19.5% are female.If young women are seeing the world through an incredibly narrow selection of female role models, what effect does it have on the way they believe they should behave, their aspirations and what it means to be a women? Undeniably, misrepresentation of women has a role to play in the leadership gap, limiting girls’ aspirations and reinforcing stereotypes in wider society.

So what can we do to address this? 

In the media itself, we need to push for change and break the mould of the male dominated world of writing, producing and presenting in TV, radio and film.  For those committed to a diverse and equal working environment another quote from the film that I think we all should take on board is: “You can’t be what you can’t see” - from Marie Wilson, founding president of the White House Project. Without role models to respect and aspire to be, the aspirations of many aren’t even knocked on the head, they don’t even arise. If you ever have opportunity, Miss Representation is certainly a film which poses some serious questions about the portrayal of women in the media.