Date of Award

5-2009

Document Type

Project

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Specialization

Communication and Leadership

School or Department

School of Leadership Studies

First Advisor

Dr. John Caputo

Second Advisor

Dr. Heather Crandall

Abstract

This project is intended to mitigate the influence of beauty product advertising on tween and teenage girls by teaching media literacy skills that allow a critical look at ads and the perfect women featured in them. Research has shown that repeated and frequent exposure to unrealistic beauty ideals through various media can render these images achievable and real, while having a negative impact on women’s self-esteem and body image. Achieving beauty has become a continuous and all-encompassing project for tween and teenage girls, and the media continually portrays and promotes it as not only a possibility, but also a necessity to achieve happiness, success, and popularity. Beauty product advertising in particular, makes promises of what a particular product can do, and oftentimes the claims are exaggerated and untrue. Media literacy education has proven to be effective with other issues such as teenage smoking, and this curriculum is designed to teach girls how advertisers manipulate photos and exaggerate the benefits of beauty products in the name of marketing.

Comments

All rights reserved.

Download

Share

COinS