When I heard the news that the Miss America competition was making a drastic change to its system, I began to really think about how the media has had a negative impact on young girls' body images. It's no secret that the media consistently champions the idea that in order to look good and be considered attractive to the opposite sex, women and girls alike must be thin.
In fact, companies use this idea in television commercials and other forms of advertisement to promote the products they are selling. For instance, when they are promoting a new mascara, cosmetic companies will often show an attractive woman, usually thin, applying the product, thereby insinuating that if consumers buy this product, they will be considered more attractive.
In addition, television airwaves today are being dominated by commercials for weight loss programs and products, even "diet pills." After seeing commercial after commercial about these programs and products, I thought to myself "What kind of messages are these advertisements sending to young girls about how they should look?"
Unfortunately, before, most young girls weren't concerned with how much they weighed. But nowadays, even girls as young as nine years old who are of a healthy weight are going on diets. Obviously, this is very concerning and something needs to change.
You may be asking yourself "What exactly needs to change in order for this problem to be resolved?" And after much thought, I've realized that it is the unhealthy "ideal" body image that is being promoted by the media that needs to change. While I certainly believe that being healthy and maintaining a healthy body weight is important, it is now being taken to an extreme, and anything in excess is never good.
Furthermore, the sexualization of women in the media is also contributing to the negative impact it is having on young girls' body images and self-esteem at large. In addition to having a slim figure, girls could potentially adopt the idea that in order to be attractive, they need to also wear certain clothing. For example, nowadays you are more likely to see a 13-year-old girl who is wearing a crop top and very short shorts than you are to see a 13-year-old girl in a Hollister shirt and jeans. This is partly due to the types of women that the media is focusing on.
For instance, millions of viewers tune in to Victoria's Secret Fashion Show each year and watch underweight, overly-thin models walk the runway in skimpy outfits while being applauded by the audience at the fashion show, insinuating that that is the "proper" way for women to look and act.
In conclusion, the media is seriously damaging young girls' self-confidence and provides them with a significantly distorted view of who the "ideal" woman should be. Instead of framing intelligent, confident, world-changers as being the "ideal" women, they are focusing on women who flaunt their physical assets and are consumed with appearing attractive to the opposite sex.
While the change in the Miss America competition is certainly a starting point in changing society's perspective of who the "ideal" woman is and what she can add to the world at large, there is still much work to be done in order to fully adopt this new perspective.