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The main purpose of the entertainment industry, at least from the point of view of its owners, is commercials. Hollywood can come up with some amazing, artistic stuff sometimes, and exploitative and manipulative stuff at others, but commercials are ALL exploitative and manipulative. They put people, even little kids, into study groups and figure out all the little triggers that will attract them and get them to look. It undermines people's free will without their consent! Ugh!
Well, I see nobody's posted on this thread since yesterday. I just wanted to put folks onto an awesome podcast on the history of Hollywood. Here are some great episodes on the "branding" of some big superstar actresses. I'd imagine Emma would have a lot to say on this subject of "branding" herself.How Norma Jean Became Marilyn Monroe
Elizabeth Taylor from Michael Wilding to Eddie Fisher
Audrey Hepburn: Sex, Style, and Sabrina
The Hard Hollywood Life of Kim Novak
I totally agree with you about ads. Seeing a woman having so much fun with cleaning the toilets is revolting and disgusting.As for movies, I think thins have been slowly changing, but not fast enough. The best example for me is James Bond. One can say that the James Bond girls are today combative and sometimes dangerous women, but I still see as offensive the fact that they seem interchangeable.
I also would like to share a few thoughts about women shown as sexual objects on TV and in movies. Do you see it as a bad thing? I mean, why should it be a bad thing? A human is free to show their body and to be as sexy as they want. The only one problem is the perception some may have of it.
Kodak wrote: ""Anti-advertising", or a change in how someone or something is promoted, is more prevalent in today's society, such as the Dove campaign for natural beauty, This Girl Can for health and lifestyle a..."I think it was in Harper's Bazaar that I saw a "reverse-gendered" ad last year. It was highly intriguing, with nearly naked men swarming around a fully clad woman, but also quite stirring in that it felt so utterly off.
The Girl in the River, the Pakistani documentary won the Academy Award for best short documentary. Despite being about honor killing, I felt inspired. The pregnant heroine, Saba, hoped for a daughter so the girl can be brave, get an education, work if she wants to, stand up for herself and do what she wants. It’s profound that a girl from such a traditional patriarchal family thinks in terms of female bravery and freedom.Also, see Mustang about five sisters in Turkey, with a brave youngest sister. Hence, I'm calling my book draft about global girls' activism "Brave."
Gayle wrote: "I'm calling my book draft about global girls' activism "Brave."Good luck!
I invite you and others to critique chapters of interest....Chapter 1 The Future is Female 43 pages
Meet Young Women Leaders; What Motivates a Youth Activist?; the Future is Female?; Uppity Girls’ Rising Aspirations and Activism; Feminism, the United Nations and Governments Stimulate Equality; Young Men’s Viewpoints
Chapter 2 Global Desire for Equality 41
Equality is Desired Globally, More Females Desire Gender Equality, Girls Want Economic and Social Equality, Claims that Women Leaders are More Peaceful, Feminist Organizing, Inequality Persists in All Countries
Chapter 3 Global Status of Young Women 43
Rural Vs. Urban Sex Roles, Feminization of Poverty, Education, Health, Violence
Chapter 4 Consumerism Targets “Girl Power” 40
Materialistic Consumers of Products and Entertainment?; Teen Identity Through Consumption; Social Unrest from Rising Expectations; How Youth Are Manipulated by Multinational Corporations; Negative Consequences of Consumerism; Youth Views about Getting Rich; Traditional and Modern Beliefs: Moving Towards the Middle
Chapter 5 Global Media Both Helps and Inhibits Girls 42
Global Media is Pervasive, Global Media Provides New Information, Media Exposure Makes Youth Opinionated and Brave, Global Media Sells Consumerism, Media Addiction Creates Dumb Zombies
Part 2 Regions
Chapter 6 Feminist Waves in the West 49
Second Wave Feminists of the 60s, Women’s Studies, Inequality Persists, Generation Gap, Third Wave Response, Rejection of Feminism?, Fourth Wave
Chapter 7 Brave Women in Muslim Countries 61
The Middle East, Women and Islam, Iran, Tunisia, Yemen, Libya, Morocco, Turkey, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia
Chapter 8 Egyptian Revolutionaries 36
Traditional Male Dominance; Education; A Pioneering Feminist: Dr. Nawal El Saadawi’s Egyptian Union for Women; Young Women in the Revolution; After the Revolution; Sexual Harassment Persists
Chapter 9 Women in Developing and Emerging Countries 56
Women and Development, Latin American Youth Issues, African Issues and Activists
Chapter 10 Feminism in India, an Emerging Superpower 52
Youth Issues, The Gap Between the Rich and the Poor, Hybrid Youth Culture and Attitudes, Youth Activism in Politics, Traditional Sexism, Feminism
Chapter 11 Socialist Countries--China and Russia 58
Part 1: China: The Setting, Traditional Beliefs, Rural vs. Urban Youth, Youth Issues in an Era of Change from Maoism to Capitalism, Current Chinese Issues
Part 2: Russia: History, Attitudes Towards Feminism, Consumerism and Glamour, Putin’s Nationalism vs. Rebels
gkimball at csuchico dot edu
Bou wrote: "... about women shown as sexual objects on TV and in movies. Do you see it as a bad thing? I mean, why should it be a bad thing? A human is free to show their body and to be as sexy as they want."Many actresses are getting fed up with having to get naked on camera in order to get good parts in movies. If you want to be an actress nowadays, you will be forced at some point to show your breasts on film, whether you want to or not. It is not the same for men in Hollywood.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jamie-l...
http://www.etonline.com/awards/131224...
The first feature film directed by a Saudi woman, Wadjda tells the story of a 10-year-old girl who wants to buy a bicycle to race a neighbor boy. Her mother doesn’t want her to get in trouble and won’t help her, so Wadjda enters her school’s Koran recitation contest to win a cash prize. Her independence gets her in trouble at her school as a troublemaker for doing things like wearing athletic shoes to school, where the principal tells her to speak softly as, “A woman’s voice is her nakedness.” She’s fictional, but director Haifaa Al-Mansour got the idea from her active young niece. Al-Mansour had to direct from inside a van rather than in public in conservative neighborhoods and isn’t allowed to enter a video store. She has to send her driver with a DVD list to check out videos. Saudi Arabia doesn’t have movie theaters, so she’d have to go to Bahrain to see her own film in a theater. Al Mansour said of growing up in Saudi Arabia as the eighth of 12 children she told BBC, “I feel so invisible, it pushed me towards being creative.” Her supportive father encouraged her to study at the American university in Cairo and attend film school in Australia. Her first feature length film was a documentary, Women Without Shadows, about the hidden lives of women in Persian Gulf nations. Married to an American, she moved her family to Hollywood, although only 7% of major films have women directors, so her daughter can grow up with freedom.
In sarcastic rebuttal to the film, a Saudi young woman posted on a Wadja YouTube site, “I am REALLY worried about the OPPRESSION of young Western girls and their media-stuffed minds with psychological problems, eating disorders, poor self-image, lack of respect for parents and teachers. Out of the kindness of my heart I'm going to start an aid fund and get all my Saudi girls to donate to this fantastic cause. Let's help raise the spirituality and self-confidence of these girls so they don't all end up believing you have to strip down and show your bony bits to be something.”
Ryan wrote: "How has film and media, photography and ads, porn and the press affected women and men in todays society and their view of the world consciously and subconsciously when it comes to the roles men an..."Most lead roles are filled by white men still. Less by women, less by men of color, even less by women of color.
The lack of portrayal of women, especially women of color, in leadership roles in Hollywood sets our sub-conscience opinions of what we can expect from women in real life. In real life, the Kardashians are just a few women compared to the large amount doing other things, but since we see largely see Kardashians, we put way too much pressure on them to fit all of the needs we need them to fit. The problem is not the Kardashians, the problem is the lack of visible balance to them.
We're also missing out on a lot of stories. Media is largely written about past or current history. Once you start actively seeking out influential women and people of color in the past, you realize how little you know, and how much the media sources you've relied on have let you down. Nobody's doing it on purpose of course, or maybe only a few. Most just only know what the know.
The solution is to involve women and people of color behind the scenes. Fund projects that women and people of color are proposing. Hire women and people of color to direct, write, film, edit, act in lead roles, etc. It's not that people don't want to see these, it's that white men primarily decide which projects get funded, who leads the project, etc.
There are inherently different perspectives that come with diversity. Projects are more interesting, and more empowering, when we hear these diverse opinions. It's not that white men shouldn't be involved, just that we're hearing an incomplete view point at the moment by having white men over-represented in most categories.
Kristina wrote: "The solution is to involve women and people of color behind the scenes. Fund projects that women and people of color are proposing. Hire women and people of color to direct, write, film, edit, act in lead roles, etc. It's not that people don't want to see these, it's that white men primarily decide which projects get funded, who leads the project, etc."I wholeheartedly agree. We need to have more women and minorities in decision making roles in entertainment if we want to see anything change.
Women certainly are not heard equally as documented by the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in the Media. More Hollywood films are passing the Bechdel test than before, but the institute reported the percentage has “flatlined at about half over the last 20 years, and women don’t make up any more than 20 percent of producers, directors and writers across the board.” Stacy Smith, et al., “Gender Bias Without Borders,” Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, 2014.
http://seejane.org/wp-content/uploads...
In my opinion it has a huge impact. If we have diverse protagonists in books, if we have diverse characters in movies, a big part of the problem is solved. And of course we need books like Harry Potter, which tackle a lot of feminist issues. We need to represent the demographics better, because right now nearly everybody is utterly underrepresented.We need a shift towards feminism being cool, because little kids like what's being cool, and they will listen to that a lot.
If we want a gender-equal world we first have to change the entertainment industry's impact on feminism, and then the people's approach towards feminism will change as a natural consequence. It will take time, but the sooner we start, the better.
MeerderWörter wrote: "If we have diverse protagonists in books, if we have diverse characters in movies, a big part of the problem is solved. And of course we need books like Harry Potter, which tackle a lot of feminist issues. "Sorry to seem ignorant, it's been nine years since I read those, but which feminist issues are those?
To the extent that SPEW is supposed to parallel suffragettes contributing to freeing the slaves, the main difference is probably that the slaves wanted to be freed.
Alia wrote: "MeerderWörter wrote: "If we have diverse protagonists in books, if we have diverse characters in movies, a big part of the problem is solved. And of course we need books like Harry Potter, which ta..."SPEW is not the only matter. And it teaches us one important thing, that SPEW - always ask the turtle. Women and men are equal because magic does not need physical strength. There are strong characters such as Hermione, who know what they want and fight for it. Or "crazy" ones like Luna Lovegood who show us that it is not a problem if you have a different belief system. When we look at who is sorted into which House, we also get to see that people change as they age and that it is worthless to say that somebody is acting in a certain way simply because he was put in a House a long time ago. There are characters in every House that prove that. There's a canon-LGBT character(tho dead), and everybody reacts simply normal, not making it something bad.
It also tackles poverty, and shows that you're not responsible for it. There is racism but it is shown to us as what it is - simply bad. There are also more poc's in the books than in the movies. It also touches the matter of mental health and well, the wizarding society doesn't have that much problems as we do when it comes to representation.
Is that enough?
Backlash phenomena are interesting to observe, although the downside is public shaming, where commenters act judge and juror whilst sinking to incredibly low levels behaviour-wise.
Sub-cultures become mainstream, or at least less socially scandalous (Fifty Shades of Grey).
While objectification of women still exists, on Pinterest various minorities are spreading memes etc. with feminist messages such as it is okay not to shave or to shave, all body sizes are acceptable (including those with weight-lifting focus), religion or no religion is okay, and so on.
In short, people want to take matters more into their own hands, and are calling out all sorts of people and organisations for saying or doing stupid things, or simply wanting to decide on the public's behalf how they should think or act.