The media with young girls.

Question

Me and my friend heard this story about an eight year old girl, who was anorexic. That's insane, when I was eight I never would of worried about my weight, let alone giving up food.

I think that is just crazy. Then it got me thinking about all the things the media says and shows about the "perfect" women, which (for people with low self esteem) gets them to buy into everything, and its starting to hit us at a younger and younger age.

Anyone agree and say they need to stop targeting the younger population?

thepianist · Accepted Answer

i think they need to stop targeting the population period. From young girls, (disney shows all their cartoon characters as having tiny waists) to teens (gossip girl, for example). People watch these shows, and think things like:

-that's how I have to look

-that's how my life should be

then they develop disorders like anoerexia, bullemia, to GET that look that society says is so perfect, that they need so desperately, and potentially end up dying.

They also realize life is hard. It is not just partying, hangign out with friends, shopping, and so on. There is more to it than that and people now walk into life with false expectations. They expect that this is how everything is going ot be, how everything HAS to be for them to be happy. When it turns out life isn't like that at all, they become depressed, suicidal, and die.

I think the media needs to seriously re-evaluate its message in general, not just targeting its younger population.

i wrote something, a small line on this: "i'm the mirror of the world. on the edge of disaster, falling. A result of the dictator, media. may my mind lay to rest, and take me to the land of reflected souls."

WaitingAtTheDoor · Accepted Answer

I don't see advertisers ever stopping targeting any one consumer market.

And realize, the way they see any group of people is as a consumer market.

They started targeting children, because they realized there was a market. Pre-teens begin having a preference in clothing, which is a part of image.

Therefore, they play on the images, and then the pre-teen tells mom and dad the clothes they want, and "Ta-da!" You sell clothes.

There isn't anything wrong with them marketing clothes to children, if you look at that statement at face value.

The issues begin to rise out of how they go about it.

There probably should be limits on strategy in advertising, but the problem is that moves into territory that has never been controlled outside of nudity and heavy sexual content.

It'd be a real tough sell to anyone in power, but good for you for being aware of the big nothing in advertising.

You should think about a career in Public Relations, where you could do something to change some of that line of thinking.

arsenal25 · Accepted Answer

ye I know. It is crazy my cousins are already watching their weight and some of them are the same age. I asked but why she said I i don't want to be fat and ugly. I think the whole disney channel should be banned for children I was watching some shows and the way they act I don't know the name of the shows, but all dressed up like they are grown up with that fake hair and make up and the way they speak. I would never let my child watch those shows, my little cousins act the same way sometimes when I talk to her I feel like she is about 16 not 8 or 9

secondbestkiller · Accepted Answer

Wow, 8? Crazy. =/ Yeah, they definitely need to stop targeting the younger population, as you said. Like, my sister, who's 12, is practically anorexic and even when she was as young as 8 or 9 she thought she was fat, when really she's super underweight. And she always sees models in magazines, and is like, Oh, I need to get my thighs as thin as hers, when in reality it's impossible, half of it is photoshopped. Yeah, I know businesses try to make money, but maybe they could try not making everyone feel like crap in the process.

gotc147 · Answer

It'll never stop.

The only thing people care about is money, they'll do whatever it takes to make more of it out of pure greed.

Corperations lay off their foundation workers, the very thing their entire company is supported by, like it's nothing. They don't care about them, don't care that they have kids to feed or bills to pay.

If it means letting a few little girls starve to death, so be it, their pockets get fatter and when one customer dies here and there it's not even noticed in their profits.

As an example, US Airways flight 1549 (I've used this event as an example many times, it's the most signifigant one in recent memory) ditched in the Hudson River, when it did all the exectutives in Tempe AZ put their hands on their heads and screamed "OUR MONEY!" The plane alone is a $45,000,000 write-off not to mention the surcharge on their insurance because of the accident. That's all they see, they don't give a rats ass about the people or if they might've been hurt or killed.

It's sickening, and it's only going to get worse.

Anonymous · Answer

the media isn't some big monster out there. most of the "media" is made up of businesses looking to make a buck. these businesses provide a service or good. if enough people buy a good or service, the business survives. a magazine business which puts a pic of a hot girl on the cover will probably have better chances of surviving than the magazine business which puts a pic of an average girl. why? because people are more likely to buy the first one. why? you tell me.

here's something to think about:

as I sit here on my computer, logged onto girlsaskguys.com, I can see an advertisement on the side of the webpage with two pictures in it. the first is a picture of a woman's butt before losing 41 lbs, the second is a picture after loosing 41 lbs. a nutritionist would probably say that the woman in the "after" picture was too skinny for her own health.

why is this advertisement here? because it keeps this website running. are you going to stop using this website and most others because they rely on this kind of advertisement?

Reeses-pieces777 · Answer

tha'ts insane

it might be something close ones tell her

iknow that I grew up with my mom calling me fat

and it was harmful because even though I was like with a very low BMI and I'm 5'7, I thought I was fat but I'm not.

so

it might not just be media only, it might be peer pressure as well

gravygirl · Answer

Meh.  I feel bad for the girl, but I don't think it's the advertisers' fault.  They're just looking to sell, and they're currently selling to a society that is both as fat as its ever been and as overweight as its ever been.  To ignore using weight or body image as a tool for sales would probably be professional suicide.

Anonymous · Answer

My 7 year old sister has told me on more than one occasion that she thinks she's fat and asked me if I think she is too fat. WTF. I was so shocked and upset to hear about that.  She should be carefree and having fun, the last thing she should ever worry about is her weight.  I don't know  where she got that from but it really disturbs me.

here4you · Answer

well when girls are little and an older woman hears her say she's fat

the little girl assumes that the "fat" girl's body is no good and starts to

crash diet

do you get it?

lol

i forgot how to explain it

The media with young girls.

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