Professional Documents
Culture Documents
COMM 3030
16 November 2016
Critique Paper
Behind the Cover: Discovering The Negative Impact of the Cosmo Girl Image
We all see them when we go to the grocery store, or in the gas station while
quickly stopping in brightly colored and extremely busy magazines whose covers are
filled with a plethora of catchy headlines, and all tied together with a svelte,
conventionally attractive celebrity on the front, dressed either to the nines or in nearly no
clothing at all. Within the publications, the story doesnt change much. Thin, impossibly
beautiful and sexualized models are in nearly every product advertisement. From the
the subjects within, many womens magazines, and particularly the focus of this critique,
harmless, these images can have a harmful and negative effect on their readers who
peruse the pages, both subconsciously and consciously. With the prevalence of eating
disorders and general dissatisfaction with life in todays society, its important to examine
the role that media, especially magazines, can play in our lives, and how they contribute
As described earlier, it is easy to see from first glance that Cosmopolitan, whose
self-proclaimed mission is to empower young women to own who they are and be who
they want to be, is a culprit of the promotions of unattainable beauty and overt
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sexualization of women. The recent October 2016 issue touts headlines such as Look
Great, Feel Great, Cardio That Boosts Your Booty, Meds vs. Meditation, The Better
Way to Beat Anxiety, and The Sex Secret for Easy Os!!!, just to name a few, all tied
together with a scantily clad Kourtney Kardashian laying on a pristine white bed sheet,
smiling seductively at the camera. From this initial exposure, Cosmopolitan reels you in
with its catchy headlines, claiming to be able to give you a better life by making you
contemplate issues you never even knew that you had previously.
one begins to flip through the pages of the publication. While the women represented in
the magazine come from many different walks of life and careers paths, each and every
one exhibits a level of beauty that is unattainable (unless by genetic blessing) to the
average American woman. The initial turn of the page reveals Kendall Jenner, and
subsequent turns result in more advertisements featuring notable celebrities like Keira
Knightly and Gigi Hadid, promoting brands that nearly every woman is familiar with.
Some advertisements dont feature recognizable celebrities or models, opting instead for
their readers.
The women sport a multitude of looks in the magazine, but each has features that
perfectly fit Americas mold of what is considered the ideal woman, whether it is a slim
physique, delicate and feminine features, light skin (even amongst the minorities
to this, each female within the magazine has been subjected to a plethora of makeup
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artists, hair stylists, fashion directors, and of course, Photoshop, to take their already
The reality of the matter is that if not genetically blessed with these features, they
are not reasonably attained. Most women do not look like the ones very commonly
represented in Cosmopolitan, but this could not be easily assumed if you only focused on
The overt sexualization of women within Cosmo is clear from the time you lay
your eyes on the cover, where in this issue, we see Kourtney Kardashian laying in a
cleavage-baring bodysuit and nothing else. Within the magazine, the body chopping, in
which women cease to be seen as whole persons (Cortese, 2015) is featured, in addition
to a multitude of models and celebrities wearing lingerie or, conversely, nothing at all.
Advertisements for products such as perfume, diamonds, and clothes companies all
receive an adult twist in this publication. The presence of this sexualization comes in
advertisements that they are detailed and explained well by author Anthony Cortese; An
exaggerated leg length appears to be more adult and therefore more sexual. Hair
sexual How female breasts are displayed is a key part of sexual attraction. (2015). All
of these factors are featured in the internal and external advertisements Cosmo uses.
It is, quite honestly, a bit shocking to see just how much sexualization is present
within Cosmopolitan. The amount of half-naked women and subtly sexual images was
quite unexpected for the mostly female audience that the company tries to appeal to, and
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would be more expected in a mens magazine than within an international womens
magazine.
So, what is the big deal with featuring beautiful models and celebrities, and their
sexualization? Some might think these topics are non-issues, and that the concern about
these images and media is overdramatic and unfounded. Older generations claim that the
improper upbringing. While others might steadfastly cling to the belief that these images
negative body image. Various studies conducted throughout the years have proven that
perception of herself.
Disorders, Inc. (ANAD), At least 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from
an eating disorder in the U.S., Every 62 minutes at least one person dies as a direct
result from an eating disorder, and Genetics, environmental factors, and personality
traits all combine to create risk for an eating disorder. Additionally, eating disorders
have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. (Eating Disorder Statistics).
According to a study by Morris, over the last 50 years, the presence of eating disorders
amongst adolescent girls has increased, which has led to girls today being apt to concerns
about their weight, size, shape, and body image, which has also resulted in dieting to lose
weight. As a result, many researchers have hypothesized that the media may play a
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central role in creating and intensifying the phenomenon of body dissatisfaction and
consequently, may be partly responsible for the increase in the prevalence of eating
disorders (2003).
studies regarding the media and its impact on womens body image were researched.
Specifically, they focused on a study where women were presented a variety of thin
and the womens perceptions of themselves following their exposure to these problematic
images. Exposure to the images of thin models in media was found to have a significant
and adverse influence on body satisfaction levels in the women they tested.
The effects of negative body image are significant. Negative body image is a
contributing factor to the development of eating disorders, and can also be linked to the
surgery and crash diets (Dittmar, 2009). A study conducted during the coming of the age
of technology found that 44% of adolescent girls believed that they were overweight, and
60% of girls were trying to lose weight, despite being within normal ranges (Ozer,
are aged 18-49 years old. Though this may not be the adolescent girls that a few of the
above studies talk about, one can assume that the children present in 50.1% of readers
households are easily able to access this publication, and can be negatively influenced by
it. In addition to this, the demographic profile fails to account for the ages of the other
22.2% of their readers, some of whom are presumably teenagers younger than 18.
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Additionally, knowing that some of the studies discussed above found similar
results in populations of women who were older than the adolescent stage, and that half
of Cosmo readers have children, if we were to look further, we might find that the
negative body image of the older readers can be passed on to younger generations.
Children - especially young girls learn a lot of behaviors from their parents, and a
parent with a negative body image or that is suffering from an eating disorder has the
Cosmopolitan, can have its fair share of consequences. Women, naturally being sexual
beings, are not inherently bad in themselves a truly empowered and equal society
allows both men and women to be sexual and express their sexuality. It is the over-
unrelated product that is the issue, and that is commonly present in the media, and in
Cosmo. While many of these effects this sexualization has are similar to, if not the same
as the effects of featuring unattainably beautiful models in advertising, there are a few
of the female body as their own primary view of their physical selves (Fredrickson &
Roberts, 1997; Szymanski & Henning, 2007). Essentially, these experiences and exposure
(Rooney, 2016).
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Body chopping, as mentioned earlier, is a type of advertising that is present
occasionally in issues of Cosmo. Body chopping is when a specific body part of women
is focused on rather than the whole being, and as mentioned earlier, can make women
cease to be seen as whole beings. The type of body chopping can convey different
messages, but all inherently sexual towards women. As Cortese states, advertising that
depicts human bodies without faces, heads, and feet implies that all that is really
important about a person lies between the neck and knees (2015). This implication can
uncomfortable with themselves, which can manifest itself in the form of mental illnesses
and diseases.
Sexual violence also holds some of its roots in the objectification of women. Rape
normalized through media and popular culture, and it is perpetuated by the hyper-
Assault and Rape Culture, 2016). When men are constantly exposed to advertisements
that imply that women are solely meant to please men, it can impact the way that they
treat women. Higher rates of sexual violence are expected to be more prevalent in
cultures that encourage objectification of women, thus making them appear inferior to
men (Kalra & Bhugra, 2013). With so many of Cosmopolitans advertisements touting
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Sexualization and objectification can also affect greatly how women are
perceived. A study conducted in 2010 by Loughnan found that participants who had
viewed pictures of women experiencing low, moderate, and high objectification denied
objectified women proposed aspects of personhood: Mind and moral status. This lack
of viewing objectified women as people can play into the prevalence of sexual violence
in our culture, as sexual crimes, as well as crimes in general, are presumably much easier
to commit when you do not view your victim as person. It is interesting to note that this
phenomenon is not confined to how males view females, but how women view other
women as well.
It is clear from the multitude of studies and research discussed above that
sexualization and objectification can have an extremely harmful and negative impact on
its readers. The hurtful effects run deeper than simply hurt feelings, to the point of
disease, mental illness, self-harm, plastic surgery, and violence. The effects of these
young women to own who they are and be who they want to be. Rather, they encourage
women of all ages to change who they are to fit the impossibly tight mold that they create
through their irresponsible practices. These images and these themes have become so
commonplace in our culture and in Cosmopolitan today that we readily accept them with
open arms, rather than questioning the status quo and challenging them. It is time that we
take control of the media we consume and to be a catalyst for change, and for
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women by changing the types of advertisement they use for both their own brand and
others.
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References
http://www.cosmomediakit.com/r5/showkiosk.asp?
listing_id=4785154&category_code=demo&category_id=77109
Dittmar, H. (2009). How do body perfect ideals in the media have a negative impact on
body image and behaviors? Factors and processes related to self and identity.
http://search.proquest.com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/docview/224859660?
accountid=2909
information/about-eating-disorders/eating-disorders-statistics/
Groesz, L. M., Levine, M. P., & Murnen, S. K. (2001). The effect of experimental
Kalra, G., & Bhugra, D. (2013). Sexual violence against women: Understanding cross-
http://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.117139
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Loughnan, S., Haslam, N., Murnane, T., Vaes, J., Reynolds, C., & Suitner, C. (2010, May
doi:10.1002/ejsp.755
Morris, A. M., & Katzman, D. K. (2003). The impact of the media on eating disorders in
Ozer EM, Brindis CD, Millstein SG, et al. Americas adolescents: Are they healthy? San
from http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/appsych/opus/issues/2016/spring/rooney
Sexual Assault and Rape Culture. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2016, from
http://www.stcloudstate.edu/womenscenter/violence-stalking/assault-rape-
culture.aspx
Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics | RAINN. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2016,
from https://www.rainn.org/statistics/victims-sexual-violence
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