Eighth Grade Girls and Mothers Come Together to Discuss Women in the Media
Bright and early Monday morning, Rivers’ eighth grade girls and their mothers gathered in the Campus Center to discuss how the representation - and misrepresentation - of women by the media affect everything from what they wear to what careers they choose. The session began with excerpts from Miss Representation, a critically acclaimed documentary by Jennifer Siebel Newsom that premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.
Bright and early Monday morning, Rivers’ eighth grade girls and their mothers gathered in the Campus Center to discuss how the representation - and misrepresentation - of women by the media affect everything from what they wear to what careers they choose. The session began with excerpts from Miss Representation, a critically acclaimed documentary by Jennifer Siebel Newsom that premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.
“The media is a powerful, ever-present influence in our culture,” said Head of Middle School Susie McGee, referring to her decision to include mothers in the program. “How girls and women are portrayed creates expectations and standards for how women are to behave, look, and think. Adolescent girls are looking to adult women for models of how to be in the world and the most significant role model in each girl’s life is her mother.”
The excerpts were full of disconcerting statistics, such as the high percentage of teenagers unhappy with their body image, how few women write and produce video content, and where the United States ranks in terms of the number of women in elected office. Influential women, from Condoleezza Rice to Katie Couric, detailed how women are subtly undermined when reporters use negative words to describe a female politician’s views, comment on a woman’s appearance, or neglect to mention her professional title in a headline. The documentary also showed how young women are photoshopped into impossibly perfect-looking models that dominate advertising today.
It was clear from the lively discussions that followed that the girls and their mothers had plenty of opinions to voice.
“It was a powerful film and reinforced a lot of what we learned in media literacy class last year,” said Grace Lees ’16. “I knew a little about self-destructive behaviors, but it was shocking to hear from a teenager in the film that social pressures caused her sister to actually cut herself…It was important for our mothers to be hearing the same things we were.”
“The format of this session provided me with an opportunity to share some personal stories regarding gender biases and misperceptions in the professional world that I experienced,” said Shannon Vanderhooft P ’16. “Without this venue, I might not have shared those stories with my daughter. That was certainly a positive.”
“An analysis of the media’s message to women is critical if girls are to have a chance of defining themselves from the inside out,” concluded McGee. “It seemed critical, as well, to provide an opportunity for girls to discuss the issues with their most important role models.”
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“The media is a powerful, ever-present influence in our culture,” said Head of Middle School Susie McGee, referring to her decision to include mothers in the program. “How girls and women are portrayed creates expectations and standards for how women are to behave, look, and think. Adolescent girls are looking to adult women for models of how to be in the world and the most significant role model in each girl’s life is her mother.”
The excerpts were full of disconcerting statistics, such as the high percentage of teenagers unhappy with their body image, how few women write and produce video content, and where the United States ranks in terms of the number of women in elected office. Influential women, from Condoleezza Rice to Katie Couric, detailed how women are subtly undermined when reporters use negative words to describe a female politician’s views, comment on a woman’s appearance, or neglect to mention her professional title in a headline. The documentary also showed how young women are photoshopped into impossibly perfect-looking models that dominate advertising today.
It was clear from the lively discussions that followed that the girls and their mothers had plenty of opinions to voice.
“It was a powerful film and reinforced a lot of what we learned in media literacy class last year,” said Grace Lees ’16. “I knew a little about self-destructive behaviors, but it was shocking to hear from a teenager in the film that social pressures caused her sister to actually cut herself…It was important for our mothers to be hearing the same things we were.”
“The format of this session provided me with an opportunity to share some personal stories regarding gender biases and misperceptions in the professional world that I experienced,” said Shannon Vanderhooft P ’16. “Without this venue, I might not have shared those stories with my daughter. That was certainly a positive.”
“An analysis of the media’s message to women is critical if girls are to have a chance of defining themselves from the inside out,” concluded McGee. “It seemed critical, as well, to provide an opportunity for girls to discuss the issues with their most important role models.”
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