Posts Tagged: media
Cruise Vs. Shields: Overcoming Postpartum Depression
After watching the Golden Globes last night, I felt inspired to dissect a Hollywood debate that relates to reproductive justice. Everyone remember when Tom Cruise attacked Brooke Shields for taking anti-depressants to treat her postpartum depression? No matter how attractive you may think he is in his tighty-whiteys (Risky Business), it’s no secret that Tom Cruise is a little nutty – when I say a little, I’m being kind. For this reason, I usually just ignore his ranting and raving. Unfortunately, I really let his opinions on psychiatrics and postpartum depression get under my skin. Medical News Today defines postpartum depression (PPD), also referred to as postnatal depression as “a type of depression that affects some women after having a baby.” The article goes on to say that “typically, [PPD]… Read more »
Women of Color and Reality TV: the Bad, the Worse, and the Downright Offensive
This post is part of a series about reproductive justice and the media done in partnership with Women, Action, & the Media. Being a woman of color, specifically an African American woman of Caribbean decent, I grew up with little to representations of myself in the media. But looking back the 90’s were really a golden age of television shows with women of color. Shows like Living Single, Moesha, and Family Matters were shows that really shaped my childhood. But when the 90’s ended those representations slowly but surely faded away. By the time I hit high school what began to really take charge of television networks was something I consider absolutely evil…reality TV. Fast forward to the here and now, 2012, where reality TV is no longer the no holds… Read more »
Pornography and Measure B
This post is part of a series about reproductive justice and the media done in partnership with Women, Action, & the Media. Pornography is defined as any material that depicts explicit sexual organs or erotic behavior. Pornography is an art that has been around since ancient times. Sexuality is so innately artistic, after all. Feminism persistently argues that, “The personal is political” and yet again this catchy tagline seems to fit just right. Pornography is incredibly personal — the question arises of the role of the political in this massive enterprise. On election day, Big Brother seemed to intrude just a bit on the pornography industries turf, but with the best intentions… or so they say. In America, every second over $3,000 is spent on pornography. Did you catch that? Every… Read more »
50 Shades and the Responsibility to Educate
This post is part of a series about reproductive justice and the media done in partnership with Women, Action, & the Media. Unless you’ve been hiding in your bunker in fear of the end of the world or as a result of the recent election, you’ve probably heard of the latest bestselling trilogy 50 Shades by E.L. James. Earlier this year I had happened to be investigating the world of BDSM when I stumbled across a blog post deploring the premiere novel 50 Shades of Grey. I took to the BDSM section of reddit.com to which I was subscribed to for obvious “research” purposes as we all like to say. My first impression? I liked the novels. At this time I knew of no one else who had read the books,… Read more »
Lesbians in Primetime Television: Coming Out Is Not The Only Issue
This post is part of a series about reproductive justice and the media done in partnership with Women, Action, & the Media. Given that television’s primetime line-up consists of Glee, The New Normal, and Modern Family, it’s surreal to think that same-sex moments on television were once considered scandalous. But not too long ago, the mere rumor of homosexual content in a program was justification enough for a station to pull its broadcast. Even in the late 90s and early 00s, homosexuality was still very much a Wildean “love that dare not speak its name” in the television world. When “The Puppy Episode” of Ellen aired in 1997, numerous sponsors–from JC Penny to Wendy’s–dropped their support. A Birmingham affiliate of ABC refused to show the episode. In 2005, the US Department… Read more »
How Am I Supposed to Know How to be Sex Positive?
This post is part of a series about reproductive justice and the media done in partnership with Women, Action, & the Media. Increasingly, a culture of fear seems to be pervading the mass media. In the news, we hear about so many awful things happening in our community that we assume crime is high. Our response is then to be fearful and precautionary. In the advertisement industry tries to convince us that we are not satisfied without a certain product, instilling fears of inadequacy. News and advertising are only two of the many realms of mass media that play on negativity generally. Depictions of sexuality in entertainment media are no exception to media’s negative undercurrent. While I would love to write a book on sexuality in mass media generally, popular… Read more »
Pop Goes Sex Positive: Now With 0% Slut Shaming
When Christina Aguilera’s new single “Love Your Body” dropped several weeks back, I made the point to check it out. The artist has gone through as many unique phases as a chameleon, from teen pop royalty to blue-eyed soul icon. I was interested to see what the artist formerly known as Xtina had up her sleeve this time around. What I discovered was not just a really catchy pop song, but one with a sex-positive message. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cfCgLgiFDM
Love Your Body: the Office Ladies Were Right All Along
October 17 was Love Your Body Day. NOW (The National Organization of Women) has been celebrating this day for 15 years. They started this day to give the finger to world of advertising and media concerning their depiction of women. The Villain here? The Media. Why? The media relentlessly portrays limited and unrealistic representations of what it means to be beautiful. Between the lines the world of advertising tells us we’ll never be good enough- but we should keep buying their “stuff”. (Unintentional rhyme). Love Your Body Day is celebrated by saying, “F- THAT!” to the media’s derogatory portrayal of humanity. Every morning of high school over the PA the office ladies would say the lunch menu, the sports updates, and events happening on campus. Fairly typical for a high… Read more »
Juno, Choice, and Stigmatizing Teen Pregnancy
When Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman’s Juno premiered five years ago, it became an immediate critical and theatrical success. Oprah, barometer of all things of-the-moment, called the indie dramedy “fresh.” Legendary movie critic Robert Ebert hailed it as “the best movie of the year.” What makes this all the more fascinating is that Juno isn’t just a little quirky independent film in a similar vein as Garden State and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind. It’s also a film about a pregnant teen, and her remarkably solitary quest to deal with her pregnancy accordingly, in a way that works for her. Simply put, Juno is all about choice. One of the most remarkable things about the 2007 film was that it put the power back in the hands of a pregnant youth…. Read more »
Issa Rae and Awkward Black Girl making the world stand up and LISTEN!
Issa Rae is a talented director, producer, and actor has taken the internet and the web series realm by storm with her show The Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl. This show captures some of the day to day antics of Jay, a young black woman navigating through the spaces of work, love, and the madness of life coupled with awkward and hilarious flashbacks of Jay’s childhood. Issa shows a refreshingly real look and tends to tackle issues that many feel are too taboo and controversial. This show makes fun of stereotypes that women of color are often labeled with and every other culture as well. No one is safe. The language is raw and unedited, but I feel that this adds to the relatability of the show and the connection… Read more »
