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Sex in the Media

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Sex in the Media
As I prepared for my collage and started the research for images I realized that there was a ton of sexual media everywhere I looked. As I observed mass media with a critical eye, I realized that sexual media has an impact on everyone’s daily life. As the saying says, “Sex sells!”. In some of the images I saw I was taken aback and overwhelmed because some of the products that were trying to be advertised didn’t need any sex images attached to be sold. It is evident to me that the people in advertising know exactly what they are doing to capture the attention of the consumers. Over the years I have seen how advertising has gotten more and more sexual in order to sell their products. This is concerning to me because more and more younger kids are being exposed to these advertisements. In one of the magazine’s I used to obtain images, there was a particular one that was for a cologne called Seductive. The advertisement image was a man and a woman who were both half dressed tugging on each other’s pants in a provocative position. This was just to advertise a cologne. In another image the advertisement was for a grill with a woman in a bikini saying “She can’t believe the size of your meat.” In a CD cover for a well known rap artist the title of the of the album is Sex in the Lounge and it has the artist dressed in a revealing lingerie laying down in an antique couch in a provocative position. Another CD cover was for a jazz instrumental album. The cover was a saxophone and a woman that was only dressed in bra and panty in a sexual position with the title Sax and Sex. On an advertisement for the popular book Fifty Shades the background of the image has a naked woman in bondage. I also found a cartoon comic book advertisement of Batwoman and Supergirl. There were no words at all, it just had Batwoman and Supergirl embraced in a hug with Batwoman seductively lifting up Supergirl’s skirt revealing her behind. The majority of these messages were targeted to a diverse population, from young to old. For example, the cologne message could target young males who are starting to pay closer attention to their hygiene just like it can target an older audience who are looking to purchase a new cologne. With the comic book message I believe it was made to target adult comic enthusiast with the provocative image of the characters but there are also a large number of kids and young people that love Marvel comic books who might be exposed to these images. I believe sexualized media can affect one’s health in a negative way, specifically with the younger population. It feels like every time I watch television, open a magazine, surf online or buy music, I am bombarded with sexual images. It is overwhelming enough for an adult person like myself to be exposed to so much sexuality I can imagine how it must affect the younger population. As an adult I at least have the experience and knowledge to know that sex isn’t everything plus, I don’t have the constant pressure of peer pressure and having to fit in with my peers. Sometimes I think to myself that it’s not surprising that we have such a high rate of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, young girls dressing in such provocative manner and younger people being sexually active at a younger and younger age. Media affects people’s way of thinking by glorifying the pleasure of sex without giving you the consequences of sex. If a person, younger or older, is constantly listening to artists who always talk about sex or watch tv shows that glorify sex it is only natural that eventually they will start to get more curious. Also they might make decisions based on what they have been exposed to without fully understanding all the risks involved. If a person is constantly listening or watching on tv that having sex at any age and with as many different people as possible is ok, eventually they will start to believe the same. There are some things we can do to counteract the negative sexual messages that surround us daily. For example just as much as sex is glorified in the media, the risks of sex should also be made aware. I also think celebrities should take a bigger role in counteracting negative sexual messages. Many people listen and follow what these celebrities do. They should be more responsible with their behaviors and actions because someone is always looking to be just like them, good or bad. Talking about the benefits of abstinence can also counteract negative sexual messages. Lastly I think the most important thing to do to counteract is having open, honest communication at all times about the consequences of engaging in sexual acts.

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