Vafa Gahramanli

CRN – 10118

Midterm Paper

Miss Representation is a documentary film that analyzes how restricted representation of

women in American media affects girls' and women's identity and psychological health, even

while contributing to the broad sense depreciation of women in modern culture. The film's

central theme is that the media is based on the initial point of the signal and encourages media

producers to be more socially conscious by using favorable female role models. It is well known

that the media, as a mass medium, can transmit to the public any information, media coverage, or

events that have occurred in the world. Furthermore, being the primary method of

communication between sender and receiver of information, the media has a powerful influence

on people and the public. The film's idea is related to the fact that the media uses women as

objects to highlight the importance of how women look in culture. Women's external beauty,

slim bodies, long and neat hair, which is primarily represented in modern media. In an essence,

they are described in the center of the frame. On the other hand, women's inner beauty, what they

say, their education and experience, their own ambitions and aspiration, and cognitive activities

are not the latest topics reflected in the media.

Since we live in an era of high modernity, advancement, and improvement, there is no

doubt that the media reflects countless innovations, false and accurate news, biased and unbiased

issues. Based on my own experience with the media, I believe it is a powerful method of

persuading people and changing their minds. If I explain my viewpoint using my own

experiences, I was mostly addicted to media between the ages of 13 and 17. For example, I used
to spend 6-7 hours a day on Instagram reading celebrity news, chatting with others on

WhatsApp, and reading

daily information on Twitter. In this case, it was as if the media and the Internet had taken

control of my life. These devices guide me and have a strong psychological impact on me. I

followed many Instagram influencers and read their posts daily. In that instance, I thought their

days were fascinating, easygoing, convenient, and joyful. Even as I was preparing for university,

I imagined that I could start a business-like influencer without a university degree. The beauty

bloggers I followed on Instagram and the female actors in the movies I watched had the most

impact on me. Therefore, I was overweight, weighing 81 kilograms at the time, and I made it

problem for myself. Every time I saw celebrities with thin bodies and thin legs, it was a huge

psychological major problem to me. As a consequence of the media's and the internet's huge

impact on me, I began diet programs and vigorous exercise, and I lost 26 kilograms. Over the

years, I have come to realize that the media is a platform that reflects how people want to see

themselves, which is mostly a lie and a fake life.

It is well known that there are certain differences in the coverage of men and women in

the same role or position in the modern media environment. Even in the film, one key point is

emphasized: masculinity is represented as superior, intelligent, and powerful. Hence, in a society

where men are the center of attention and women are limited in their frame, anything women do

must be twice as good as men in order to be half as good. If we talk about what we see in the

media or on television, we can give numerous examples of men and women's exhibits. As a first

example, we can look at competitions such as "Best Model of World" or "Best Model of Turkey

2022" or "Best Model of Dubai 2022" organized every year in different countries. In these

competitions held in various parts of the world, both a best model among women and a best
model among men should be selected. Almost every year, when the winners are announced, it is

possible to observe the same thing. When the men are chosen, nothing is said about them, instead

it is emphasized that they are handsome. On the other hand, it is emphasized that women often

have this beauty with aesthetic or surgical intervention. All the time, the beauty of the chosen

female winners is faked, and people said that they are not natural. On the comment section of

media posts related to this topic, one can observe prejudiced expressions of people against

women. Never mind the possibility that the chosen male winner may not be natural either. As the

second main example, we can talk about the different presentation of successful and self-

sufficient, businessmen and women in the media. As highlighted above, since men are shown as

intelligent and powerful beings, people think that their success is due to their intelligence. For

example, a very common issue in our society is that if a man starts his own business and is

known as a successful person, it means that his intelligence and hard work are behind his

success. On the contrary, if we think that it was done by a woman, the woman has established

her own business and has a certain degree of popularity in the society. Undoubtedly, again,

people get caught up in their prejudices. Society thinks that women are dependent and

unintelligent. It is always thought that there is someone behind the woman who supports her

financially or morally. In many cases, a woman's will, ambition, and hard work are ignored. As

the it is emphasized in the film, it is a myth that we live under a democratic media.

Mainly because there are certain differences in the representation of men and women

with the same status or role in media coverage, the impact of this situation on us, our families,

our surroundings, and our society are inevitable. Undoubtedly, because I am a woman, the

representation of women in the media does not reflect reality, so it has a negative impact on me

and my surroundings. If I use my examples, there is already a biased view of women's aesthetic
surgical intervention in the media, we do not have a normal view of it as a society. Some media

representatives or well-known news pages research and find pictures of famous women before

and after cosmetic surgery and publish them in the media. Currently, those celebrities face

countless criticisms in the media. In such a case, we can already observe that people's views

against aesthetics in our family or around us are sharpening. If I explain with an example related

to my family, my mother does various cosmetic procedures. Despite the fact that, it is not so

serious and terrible thing, but my mother is afraid to share it with her surroundings. Furthermore,

if I explain the impact of my example in the context of business, the media presents women as

dependent, powerless, and inexperienced in such a biased way that when a woman wants to start

her own business, she is no longer supported by the surroundings. For example, I want to start

and grow my own business, but if I try now, I will hear sayings like "this is not a woman's job,"

"you can't do it," and “you need a man to help you”. As a consequence of viewing leadership as a

masculine pursuit, women are discouraged from pursuing ambitious position.

There are various points of view, thoughts, and ideas about a specific circumstance that

divide people into two groups. Undoubtedly, each person's subjective opinion is his/her truth. If

that's the case, why do not we have a strong objection to this situation that we are dissatisfied

with? From my perspective, there are multiple reasons for circumstance. Firstly, we can mention

the main problem as unity. There is an ingrained idea in people's minds that a single hand cannot

make a sound. People are afraid to defend their opinions and express their dissatisfaction with

the current situation. The main reason for this is that they think that they cannot change anything

alone. If we consider the influence of the media on our society and environment, it is possible to

give justice to their opinions. On the other hand, one of the problems is the pressure and biased

thoughts of women against women. If I explain this with the observation from my social media,
when one of the well-known women influencers opened a business for herself, it was the women

who unknowingly talked and commented below the post about her. Other women are starting to

think that there is financial support in building a business. However, they forget that the media

does not present everything democratically. If a woman achieves a certain success in her own

power, it does not mean that she was on this path without difficulties or problems. The only thing

is that people reflect their happy days, success, and joy in the media. I believe that the quote

reflected in the film is very valuable: “If women do not stand up for each other, no one else will

look out for women’s interest expect other women”.

Given the fact that the media can be an instrument of change, it can reflect society's

vision and influence people's thinking by awakening them. Media controls the lives of almost all

types of people, teenagers, young adults, and middle-aged people. The mass media in which

information is posted and delivered underestimates the place of women in society by presenting

what they look like instead of what they do and speak. If we face a situation where women's

roles and responsibilities are underestimated in the media, if we accept that this is the case, we

must respond to this situation. As a woman, I see the most correct way in women's support for

women. The quote highlighted in the film is appropriate here: we are here for a moment in

eternity, and all really matters what we do with that time. We can only respond to this media

influence and misrepresentation through the media. It is necessary to support the women around

us, who live in the same society, without envying their personal or business success

Gender representations in the media is prevalent worldwide. Stereotypes predominate in

popular culture. Women are frequently represented solely as housewives and family caregivers,

dependent on men, or the object of men's attention. As is commonly understood, women are

more often than men presented as victim's families in the news and recognized because of their
marriage status. In my personal view, the portrayal of female and male positions should be done

with fairness, honesty, and respect. The most effective approach is to improve women's

representation in the media through female participation. In this way, gaps in the media can be

identified and eliminated. From my perspective, women's success, determination, and

achievements can be conveyed to society better by female reporters. Furthermore, women's roles

in business or politics can be highlighted and displayed in the media, rather than just their

experiences in beauty pageants or in the family. As a result of the participation of female

reporters in the media and the fair representation of women, stereotypes in society can be broken.

Women's roles are accepted and taken for granted by people and environment. The benefit of fair

representation of women in the media is that they will have equal opportunities as men. Their

roles and places in society will now be overestimated, and workplace discrimination against

them will be completely banned. I hope so, and I believe that women have more than what is

portrayed in the media; it just needs to be given fair coverage.