Violence against Women in the Mass Media

The media plays a critical role in reflecting the most significant issues in the society; therefore, sexual exploitation and violence towards women is usually depicted in movies, music videos and cartoons. The mass media uses women as objects and considers them to be the lesser beings. In this regard, it treats women as beings without souls or feelings, making it simple to exploit their features, such as the physical body parts and feminine voice. Most media consider a woman as a non-human being but an object that can be used to influence the behavior of a man, attract his attention or provoke certain physical or psychological reaction. In the light of the facts, images of the women’s physical features, such as face, hair, thighs, breast, and legs, are demonstrated to others to cause fun and interest in the specific environment (Renzetti et al., 2001). In most of the mass media programs, such as television shows, movies, music videos, and cartoons, women are regarded as human beings only in a perfunctory manner; therefore, it is important to learn from where this victimization emanates.

The first notable way, in which women encounter violation in the mass media, is the manner in which they are portrayed in advertising. Most advertising agencies that market products to their clients in the mass media target men. In this regard, the erotized parts of the female body are used to manipulate or influence males’ behavior and increase demand for some goods or services. Men, being the targeted consumers, are anticipated to be influenced by women in shaping of their perception of certain products or services; when using this strategy, the companies aim at increasing their consumption and profits. Some of the parts of the women’s body, such as breasts and thighs, are used to trigger women into believing that they are superior. It is a fact that sexuality contributes to one of the most burning debates in the modern society. The adverts mainly do not present the messages intended to be passed to the consumers only, they also shapes the general perception of a women, which in turn can cause violence to females in the real life.

The mass media, such as movies and music videos also employs the other logic. It is known that men use women for their own interests. Most movies, for example, the James Bond film series, pass the message that women characters only enhance the achievement of the men’s target, but cannot make a significant contribution on their own. In this regard, the physical aspects of the woman’s body are used to manipulate the antagonists, whom the protagonist aims to punish by fair means or foul. In this regard, women are depicted as half humans without skills, thoughts, and feelings. Similarly, women are attributed as individuals who are incapable of fulfilling any crucial role under the scenario, but are supposed to satisfy the men sexually, to help them achieve the set targets. The fact indicates the high level of demoralization and underestimation of the women’s abilities and skills.

Concerning the music videos, it is a common phenomenon to see women being exploited by singers in these pieces. In these music videos, women are shown as the inanimate objects and there attractive physical parts are exposed for the audience to make them interested in the creative work of the musician. In the videos, the female bodies are exposed as plastic mannequins and serve as a background for the artists. The main intention is to attract audience, most of which are men, and who are enticed by sexuality of women rather than the message passed in the lyrics. The fact proves that the artists do not try necessarily to sing about some idea; they try to make up for the lack of meaningfulness at the expense of women, who are made to expose their bodies. This concept demoralizes the humanity of a woman and shows that women are way below the standards of men. In addition, it indicates that women are of a low significance in the community due to their limited capabilities and strength.

Another crucial element of the mass media that indicates violence against women is the television shows and cartoons. In this regard, women are depicted as objects that are inferior to men and whose sole purpose is to satisfy the sexuality of a husband. For instance, in most of the TV shows, which argue about the concept of love and affection, there always are women who try to demonstrate the level of their submission to men, in terms of keeping the home fires burning and doing everything to stay attractive. In these shows, the man is supposed to possess control at all times. They present means in which women have to be loyal without considering their feelings and thoughts, in the pursuit of love and other aims. Such topics depict how mass media have permeated the level of victimization against women in society. Nevertheless, the women’s contribution to concerning such topics never makes significant impact.

Despite the media’s significant role in victimizing against the humanity of a woman, it is believed that media has a considerable role in ensuring that the phenomenon is curved. There is certain approach that asserts that women should be portrayed and treated in a more humane and moral manner, in the media. For this to be achieved, activists and governments should focus on using the media to raise awareness on victimization, attributed to women, and means of eradicating the vice. The strategy, therefore, entails the elimination of coverage of women in the dimension of the physical characteristics of the female body that enhance assault against women. Therefore, this contributes to the curbing of the women’s victimization immensely and arouses the need of respecting women’s virtues and humanity by both the media and the audience.

Considering some of the crucial elements of the media that pervades the assault of the women’s humanity in the programs, it is essential to regulate their coverage to inhibit the vice in the society (French et al., 1998). This very vital coverage could include movies and music videos that victimize women’s abilities and skills. In this case, the media have the sole influence on the artists by mobilizing women to rise against the social phenomenon and participate in the fight for equality. This means that women should oppose the challenge and do everything possible to eliminate the vice. Similarly, the media has a significant role of instilling courage and confidence amongst women to engage in activities that are not going to improve their general perception in the society. In this regard, women can participate to the extent similar to the one of their male counterparts; thus, they should rise to fight for equality and avoid intimidation. This will serve to increase their positive and respectful perception in society and instill the ideas that they are of equal importance to men.

Considering the role of the government, it is essential to make and pass policies and regulations that seek to eradicate the vice of violence towards women in the mass media. Such policies, if adopted by the media producers, would regulate their conduct while taking into consideration the ethical and moral aspects. In this case, any regulations issued by the government will ensure that the media prevent any cases of underrating women, especially in regard to sexual abuse and exposure of the women’s physical parts. Through this, the media will instill the appropriate consideration of the female. In addition, the creation of awareness among the public with regard to the idea of violence against women would assist in the development of equality among women and men. As a result, women would avoid disparities prevalent in the society leading to a media free from any kind of abuse or violence.