2008 Woodie Awards
'Us Vs. the Media' shows true beauty
By Jackie Aliotta
Issue date: 3/3/08 Section: Features
One powerful quote seems to have said it all. "Victims are no longer human, they become objects. Objects don't hurt, feel or think." On Tuesday, Feb. 26, the Sister to Sister Peer Mentors and the Fraternity Anti-Violence Education Project sponsored "Us vs. the Media," an interactive Greek forum about "the battle to discover real beauty," as described in the presentation.
These two organizations created a powerful presentation about media affecting the way women and men think about themselves. They began by showing all of the "ideal" features, such as plump full lips, long skinny legs, a slender body, long shiny hair and larger breasts.
The members went on to explain about manipulation through digital retouching and how it is present in almost every photograph of magazines. So, what a person sees in magazines is usually made up. They showed different advertisements, pointing out exactly what message was coming across in every picture, sex. Images like these do not directly cause eating disorders, but instead teaches girls how they "should" be.
Women are portrayed in the media to be sexy, advertising the parts of a woman's body in almost every ad, while men are typically seen clothed and proud.
"How men see women, is also how men treat women," John Farley stated while talking about how women should be looked at based on their qualities rather than their body parts. "Women are being broken down into just a butt, just a leg, just a breast in these images."
Adam Exas described that men need to stand T.A.L.L. on the objectification of women. The "T" stands for Talk, talking about these issues and getting your feelings out there. "A" stands for Awareness, so listen and become aware of objectification of women around you. The "L" stands for Language. Watch the language you use, and make sure it doesn't devalue the women around you. The final "L" stands for Listen. Listen to others and make sure they're not hurting women or objectifying them to nothing.
The Sister to Sister Peer Mentor group is comprised of women from the sororities on campus, with the goal of encouraging women on body image, self-esteem and empowerment.
The Fraternity Anti-Violence Education Project was created to provide young men with the opportunity to become knowledgeable about the issues and causes of violence against women. It was designed so men could show their support to confront this social problem by developing leadership skills. This opportunity allows men to work with other men to help them understand this problem and reflect upon their own behavior.
Jackie Aliotta is a third-year student majoring in communication studies. She can be reached at JA609350@wcupa.edu.
These two organizations created a powerful presentation about media affecting the way women and men think about themselves. They began by showing all of the "ideal" features, such as plump full lips, long skinny legs, a slender body, long shiny hair and larger breasts.
The members went on to explain about manipulation through digital retouching and how it is present in almost every photograph of magazines. So, what a person sees in magazines is usually made up. They showed different advertisements, pointing out exactly what message was coming across in every picture, sex. Images like these do not directly cause eating disorders, but instead teaches girls how they "should" be.
Women are portrayed in the media to be sexy, advertising the parts of a woman's body in almost every ad, while men are typically seen clothed and proud.
"How men see women, is also how men treat women," John Farley stated while talking about how women should be looked at based on their qualities rather than their body parts. "Women are being broken down into just a butt, just a leg, just a breast in these images."
Adam Exas described that men need to stand T.A.L.L. on the objectification of women. The "T" stands for Talk, talking about these issues and getting your feelings out there. "A" stands for Awareness, so listen and become aware of objectification of women around you. The "L" stands for Language. Watch the language you use, and make sure it doesn't devalue the women around you. The final "L" stands for Listen. Listen to others and make sure they're not hurting women or objectifying them to nothing.
The Sister to Sister Peer Mentor group is comprised of women from the sororities on campus, with the goal of encouraging women on body image, self-esteem and empowerment.
The Fraternity Anti-Violence Education Project was created to provide young men with the opportunity to become knowledgeable about the issues and causes of violence against women. It was designed so men could show their support to confront this social problem by developing leadership skills. This opportunity allows men to work with other men to help them understand this problem and reflect upon their own behavior.
Jackie Aliotta is a third-year student majoring in communication studies. She can be reached at JA609350@wcupa.edu.
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