Miss Representation

[betenoire]

I need to see this.

So do you.

(It helps that Rosario Dawson who I am just crazy about is in it)

Like drawing back a curtain to let bright light stream in, MISS REPRESENTATION uncovers a glaring reality we live with every day but fail to see. Directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the film explores how mainstream media contribute to the under-representation of women in influential positions in America and challenges the media's limiting and often disparaging portrayals of women, which make it difficult for the average girl to see herself as powerful.

In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural norms, the collective message that our young women and men overwhelmingly receive is that a woman's value and power lie in her youth, beauty, and sexuality--and not in her capacity as a leader. While women have made strides in leadership over the past few decades, the United States still ranks 90th in the world for women in national legislatures, depression rates have doubled among teenage girls, and cosmetic surgery on minors has more than tripled in the last ten years.

Stories from teenage girls and provocative interviews with politicians, journalists, academics, and activists like Condoleeza Rice, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Margaret Cho, Rosario Dawson and Gloria Steinem build momentum as MISS REPRESENTATION accumulates startling facts and statistics that will leave the audience shaken and armed with a new perspective.

[betenoire]

Also: http://missrepresentation.org/

[Gemme]

Excellent, bete!

Thank you for posting this.

[betenoire]

The extended trailer.

[Parker]

I caught it when it was originally on OWN and saved it on my TiVo - a friend of a friend is in it, which made it surreal to watch.

Anyway, they also have a Facebook page for those on Facebook - they do a great job spreading awareness about how women are portrayed in the media by sharing links and articles and such. It helps me keep up and also helps me spread info to the friends on my own list.

I already decided that when they release the film on DVD, I'm sending a copy to all the women in my family.

[tapu]

I think I'll send a copy to all the men.

[Parker]

I think it's awesome that the men in your family would not only watch but respond positively to a film like this.

In my own personal experience, a lot men (even those in my family, or especially those, since they were raised by a sexist father) cannot or will not see their own male privilege and how the media and/or their own peer groups treat women - as well as how this affects their way of thinking of women. I honestly don't think the men in my family would watch this film unless the women in their lives sat down and watched it with them.

That's why I want to start with the women in my family - especially my nieces who are in their 20's - because I can tell that the way they view themselves is directly proportional to how the media portrays women in our society. Once they start to recognize that, I am hoping they start to see themselves in a different light, which will in turn (hopefully) help the men in their lives to see them differently as well.

Then maybe they can watch the film again with the men in their lives and it can create a domino effect.

It's a great film - I hope everyone who reads betenoire's thread will find it and watch it.

[betenoire]

it's reassuring to go through the screenings section and see that it is being played in highschools.

[tapu]

[meant to quote celtic spirit's most recent post here]

I meant that, rhetorically, to mean "Wouldn't it be great to get men to watch and think about it?"

I don't know what the men in my family would think. I DO believe, along with you, that we can't expect men to get there on their own. There needs to be an analysis of what women can do to force the changes.

It'll be tough though: it has a deep evolutionary history and a long cultural one. (Interestingly, nearly every documented culture has this imbalance. I know there's a tribe called the Tchambuli that is supposed to have the reverse? Not sure whether Margaret Mead's research conclusions were debunked.)

[Parker]

I was just posting on my Facebook about how, with a group of people who don't know me, my sarcasm is sometimes met with crickets because it doesn't come off well on-line; then I come back here and missed the meaning behind your post.

[tapu]

I know what you mean. That same phenomenon has often been my downfall.

[Hollylane]

Thank you for posting this betenoire. I have watched it before and although I knew these things to be true, this puts it all together in its ugly harsh reality.

[betenoire]

Found the full video here. The sound is a little "quiet" so I hope your computer has good speakers.

[The_Lady_Snow]

bump........

[Lady_Di]

needs to be required viewing in our school system, imnsho

[The_Lady_Snow]

Originally Posted by Lady_Di

needs to be required viewing in our school system, imnsho

I TOTALLY AGREE!!!