Megan Whitehead

Visual Annotated Bibliography

English 103
2 October 2009
Professor Wilkerson
The Media and Body Image

Pope, Harrison G. Jr., Robert Olivardia, Amanda Gruber, and John Borowiecki. “Evolving ideals of
male body image as seen through action toys.” International Journal of Eating Disorders
26.1 (1999): 65-72. Web 4 Oct. 2009.

This published study explored the relationship between the “physiques of male
action toys” and the “evolving American cultural ideals of male body image.” The
results were similar to those from studies which have concluded that Barbie is an
unrealistic model: the male plastic figures have greatly increased in muscularity
over time, and many modern figures have muscle definition far greater than
even the biggest bodybuilders. The authors of this study are clearly trying to
support the argument that children’s toys are representative of the “cultural
expectations [that] may contribute to body image disorders in both sexes.” This
is very important for my paper, as I will be attempting to analyze such influences on both
females AND males. There is very little research on the effects of media and other cultural
mediums (such as toys) on boys, so articles such as this one are exciting to find.

Johnston, Josée, and Judith Taylor. “Feminist Consumerism and Fat Activists: A Comparative
Study of Grassroots Activism and the Dove Real Beauty Campaign.” Signs: Journal of
Women in Culture and Society 33.4 (2008): n.pag. Web 2 Oct. 2009.
The purpose of this article is to evaluate the effectiveness of two separate efforts aimed
at feminine beauty ideals. One of which is the familiar Dove “Campaign for
Real Beauty” while the other is a Canadian grassroots effort known as PPPO:
Pretty, Porky, and Pissed Off. According to PPPO, they are “a force of large
and in charge women dedicated to expanding public awareness and
acceptance about fat issues. We are sexy and we have big bellies.” The
article includes information from a variety of sources, including interviews,
archival documentations of events, media profiles, show reviews, Web sites,
multimedia advertisements, trade magazines, and participant observation at
events. All of these observations were analyzed and used to compare the two efforts
with respect to “cultural contexts, ideologies, tactics, intended audiences, and goals.”
The authors run with the ideology that “Dove makes peace while PPPO wages war”. They
conclude however, that the PPPO effort, in its radicalism, may be more effective. They
comment that while Dove is challenging beauty ideals, their primary focus is still on
selling products. The article will be very useful in helping shape the section of my paper
that will focus on current efforts towards counteracting negative signals from the media
on body image, however, it will only relate to female-targeted efforts, as neither
campaign has addressed the issue from a male perspective.

Wolf, Naomi. The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty are Used Against Women. New York:
Morrow, 1991. Print.
 This book takes a somewhat more radical feminist approach to the issues of
media and cultural influences on female body image. In her novel, Wolf
discusses how such influences impact not only body image, eating disorders,
and cosmetic surgery, but also employment and sexuality. Wolf claims that
the current cultural system of America “keeps women under control by the
weight of their own insecurities”. Her theory of images of female beauty being
used to keep women in their place is supported by what we see in sports
magazines and TV channel: men are shown working out, sweaty, and
determined, while women are shown half-naked in seductive poses, with little reference to the
sport with which they are associated (See documentary). While a radically subjective approach to
my topic, the book is full of studies and statistics which back up Wolf’s claim, making her
opinions much more justifiable and beneficial to my own argument.

Playing Unfair: The Media Image of the Female Athlete. Prod. Jhally, Sut, and Loretta Alper. Media
Education Foundation, 2002. Film.
The concept behind this documentary is fascinating: instead of focusing on how the media
portrays female body image to females, or male body images to males, it instead
focuses on how female images are presented to males, in the context of sports.
The documentary comments that sports announcers (who are often men) refer to
women athletes by their first name (like its more comfortable) while referring to
male athletes by either last name or first and last. In addition, the documentary
offers the idea that “masculinity and femininity are not natural things, and [that]
sport is one of the ways they are taught.” I believe that this documentary will be a
very useful source for my argument, as it evaluates a source of media beyond just
advertisements. This will aid in further developing the idea that it is more than just consumerism
America that is manipulating body image, but rather the holistic culture of America.

Ward, Lucy. “Schools urged to expose how media alter women's bodies.” Guardian.co.uk.
Guardian News and Media Limited, 21 Nov. 2007. Web. 4 Oct. 2009.
This article published in a British newspaper discusses actions that are being
taken by UK schools to expose the negative effects of popular media on body
image. This move not only signals the growing concern around the globe with
negative body image, but also demonstrates that action is being taken. This will
be very beneficial in my paper as I explore possible solutions to the body image
issue, as well as discussing various cultural differences around the world
concerning the issue. It appears that most industrialized nations, such as the US and the UK,
have the same negative-influencing culture around both male and female body images. The
article backs up its arguments by using statistics and describing the study methods, which adds
ethos to the article, and will help do the same in my paper.

Armani Exchange Eyewear. Advertisement. EMW Enterprise 2009. Web. 4 Oct. 2009.
< http://eyewearexclusive.com/armaniexchange.aspx>
 It would take a while to realize that this advertisement is for sunglasses, as they
do not appear to be the focus of the picture. What does seem to be the focus
however, are two young, beautiful, and sexy individuals. Not only does this image
portray that this is how people should look if they want to be confident and
beautiful, but also how they should look if they want to be attractive to other
people. Instead of selling sunglasses, the ad appears to sell the idea that this is
what is beautiful and ideal. Toned abs, dark skin, slim torso, etc: All things that
while attainable are not realistic for a majority of the American population.

Image. Dove Campaign for Real Beauty 2009. Web. 4 Oct. 2009. <
http://www.dove.us/#/cfrb/about_cfrb.aspx/>

This revolutionary ad campaign by Dove is an excellent example of

organizations and companies that are making an effort to combat the body
images that we typically see in the media. These images and advertisements
used by Dove represent REAL women who have not been touched up or digitally
enhanced in any way. They are not all tan, toned, slim, and blemish-free. This
will work very well in my paper is demonstrating that something IS being done
about the current cultural media phenomenon that is leaving men and women
in despair over their physique.