Generation M: Misogyny in Media & Culture

Thomas Keith, a philosophy professor at California State University—Long Beach, leads this critical investigation into the many forms of misogyny found in popular culture, culling numerous examples from advertisements, television shows, movies, music videos, pop music, and even toys. Perhaps one of the most insidious examples offered here is Lingerie Barbie, a line of dolls dressed in panties, bustier, and negligee that was discontinued by Mattel after general uproar. Fellow academics, as well as veterans of other Media Education Foundation productions (including Jackson Katz, Jean Kilbourne, and Byron Hurt), contribute to this critique, which also features snippets from classroom discussions and interviews with college-age students (such as a young woman who had an eating disorder) that reveal the pernicious effect of misogyny in media. One study purports that within three years of the introduction of television to Fiji—which has a traditional culture that finds large women attractive—74% of young women were dissatisfied with their bodies and 11% had developed eating disorders. For the most part, Keith wisely avoids claiming direct causal relationships between media and culture, instead suggesting the kinds of disruptions in the social environment that media can create. Sure to be a valuable discussion starter that will encourage students to think critically about the ways in which media can shape our perceptions of women, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Wadland)