Like drawing back a curtain to let bright light stream in, Miss
Representation (90 min; TV-14 DL) uncovers a glaring reality we live
with every day but fail to see. Written and directed by Jennifer
Siebel Newsom, the film exposes how mainstream media contribute to the
under-representation of women in positions of power and influence in
America. The film challenges the media’s limited and often
disparaging portrayals of women and girls, which make it difficult for
women to achieve leadership positions and for the average woman to
feel powerful herself.
In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural
norms, the collective message that our young women and men
overwhelmingly receive is that a woman’s value and power lie in her
youth, beauty, and sexuality, and not in her capacity as a leader.
While women have made great strides in leadership over the past few
decades, the United States is still 90th in the world for women in
national legislatures, women hold only 3% of clout positions in
mainstream media, and 65% of women and girls have disordered eating
behaviors.
Stories from teenage girls and provocative interviews with
politicians, journalists, entertainers, activists and academics, like
Condoleezza Rice, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Margaret
Cho, Rosario Dawson and Gloria Steinem build momentum as Miss
Representation accumulates startling facts and statistics that will
leave the audience shaken and armed with a new perspective.
second the cause, yet i find it somewhat ironic that almost all women in this film are obviously above average … attractive?
Wow i’m just about to watch this in class lets see how it goes
Modern Feminists are uneducated over privileged trendies. The wage gap doesn’t exist, do your own fucking math on it (and I mean do the actual math) and you’ll see the wage gap is only about 5 cents average across the U.S. Feminism cannot even deal with these issues of body image, or objectification because they’re all too busy blaming 48% of the worlds population for problems they assisted in causing. Modern Feminism COMPLETELY shits on mens rights, gender equality and promotes this idea that you can whine and cry and throw a fit while doing absolutely nothing productive and still get your way. Fuck these psuedo intellectuals, they have NO understanding of biology, sexual dimorphism, or what equality means. If they did they would see that both men and women have issues that need to be resolved. That will never, and I mean never happen under the banner of feminism. When an equallist movement comes about, let me know I’ll assist. Until then I will continue looking down on feminists as what they are, whiny white teenage women who say they don’t want to be attacked, but viciously attack anyone who’s actually intelligent enough to disagree with them. Modern feminism has completely destroyed any credibility that real feminism had, and that’s completely on them. Feminism poisons E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G.
“The wage gap doesn’t exist……the wage gap is only about 5 cents average.” so theres no wage gap, but theres a small wage gap? To suggest that we ignore the problems women face and focus on the problems men face as well, undermines what women face. We live in a male dominant world and I think if you cannot see or understand this, take a long look at history. I will say you are right in one sense, Normal feminism, the belief that women should have EQUAL rights to men such as right to equal pay has in a sense bred this incorrect outlook on feminism which seeks to in a sense emasculate men and make them out as horrible people. Thats not the definition of feminism, this is why people call feminist feminazis because few want to be looked at as greater than men. Feminism doesn’t poison anything, the way it has evolved does. I think people forget the meaning of the word and what the feminist movement looks to do. Do not confuse the two, do not associate one with the other.
have you seen the ideal mens body?
Come on, and i don’t be crying and making a documentary for that!
error reads ‘this video no longer exists’… anyone know anywhere else i can watch this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXJqspNwGGE
“Signed, A woman who’s not some pussy-ass bitch crying about how men objectify her.”
—It is interesting that “Gwahface” chose feminine words like “pussy” and “bitch” in her post that, I can only imagine, was suppose to put down the morale of empowered women while raising herself up onto a delusional pedestal… Maybe you should watch this film again. Just sayin’
Men and women will always face that nasty double edge sword called double standard BS, because toomany of the sheep masses will buy such one dimentional view of themselves. Humanity love simplicity and compartimizing everything into a single file. This goes beyond gender, sex, race, ethnics, cultures, societies etc… humanity as a whole suck. Humanity want to feel they have life all figured out by brainwashing the weak minded into believing that sex and gender is so easily defined. I’ve read cultures such as the Zuni tribe of Southwestern part of United States in which they don’t have such one dimensional view of sex and gender as a majority of other cultures/societies do. They believe you can have multiple sexes and genders. You can call yourself unisex/ intersex (hermaphrodite) and you wouldn’t be viewed as a freak or be shun out of the community as most other cultures/societies do.
I dislike this one view point documentaries. They tend to simplify too much and put too much blame onto one group. This whole idea of underrepresented is the fault of humanity, not just the men who own and control these companies. The reason for believing this is that men are as under represented as women are too. There isn’t any great stay at home dads being represented, unless his wife is wealthy or he is in a gay relationship. >_> I know some low class stay at home dads who are awesome, but where are they represented in the media? Is that the last taboo or something? Women, though I agree grossly not shown as often, are represented in all forms, occupation and talents (negative and positive lighting), but men aren’t portrayed as truly sensitive, loving, team player and when he is he is portrayed as a joke. As if men are incapable of being such cooperating, warm hearted, multitasking individuals.
Men too face the single portrait one dimensional view of what society states they ought to be. Men are represented as players, football fanatics, and insensitive towards their partners. I can say this offenses me more than how the media portrays women as whores going after men with money (these women are shown as high maintenance females and they clearly do display themselves as being high maintenance, so I’m not affected by that). This limited view on men insults their intelligence and warps women views on men too. It causes women to think that men are just giant babies, incapable of caring for themselves so we end up doing everything, while they just do their 9 to 5 jobs (limiting their talents, abilities, and self of worth… no wonder men are so aggressive they’re not allow to show their positive qualities).
I’m very fortunate. I’m currently with a man who clearly knows how to care for himself and doesn’t need me to wash or clean after him. Where is he represented in the media? He is represented by all the comedy sitcom. I’m fortunate to find him… he is a rare breed, extremely rare, because most guys follow the stereotype of the Spike TV bs men. Of course my man questions or at least contradicts himself from time to time, but I think it is due to the mix of messages he receives from family and the media and that which is natural and right for him. His kind isn’t represented in a serious matter or as a day to day person, just displayed by the media as a joke, so he ponders his masculinity. When he isn’t pressured or need to prove to colleges… he does a lot around the house. He isn’t just a 9 to 5 guy, just bringing in the paycheck. He is more. His dad is the same way. His dad does whatever makes the family strong and if that is to cook and clean then so be it. It doesn’t make him less of a man… if not … it makes him more of a man, than the pathetic portrayals the media displays of what a man ought to be in many of the male programing (SPIKE TV being the biggest insult towards men since Oxygen or Lifetime; all these sex and gender based channels are insults towards humanity really).
…anyways what I’m trying to say with all of this, is that this documentary isn’t helping with the issue women and men have within society. If anything, this documentary is only feeding more of this discrimination, misrepresentation, and bias views of the sexes and genders. It only encourages more of the whole us against them mentality. It’s quite childish really. The most pathetic part of it all is that the majority of the masses will buy into this garbage and nothing will change… both men and women will continue to be compartmentalized into cookie cut stereotypes by the media and the whole society will be stupid enough to believe it and even follow through continuing the nasty cycle over and over… because history repeats itself because humanity is a *beep* ing retard. Truly I can’t wait for the most embarrassing species on Earth to go extinct.
Fuck discrimination. ALL DISCRIMINATION!! Which would include what you nazis call POSITIVE DISCRIMINATION!
I have many women who are my bosses, and they are very good at their jobs in the company. Women dont need special legislation to protect them in the workforce or politics, equality 50/50 with no enforcement or special laws to give some people an edge over others based on sex, race or class.
So fuck all you positive discrimation fascists!
I think you’re trying to talk about affirmative action? Which is not what women want. They want EQUALITY idiot.
I would like to thank all the trolls in the comments for further proving the movie’s argument correct with their sexist slander.
rachel maddow is a great pundit – love her style too – nerd glasses ftw!!
Wait did they just use twilight as something that’s a good women’s movie? If anything is sexist it’s that god damn book series/movie.
Also all these women need to go find something better to do with their time other than bitching.
Signed, A woman who’s not some pussy-ass bitch crying about how men objectify her.
Nice, with the election upon us I hope that Hilary Clinton will be tapped to be Obama’s vice-president. He might offer for Biden and Clinton to swap roles.
…at least, the First Lady has more influence than previous wives of rulers. Example: http://www.documentary-log.com/you-are-watching-the-six-wives-of-henry-viii/
Another feminist perpetual victimhood ”documentary”.
Give me a break. I’m going to watch an episode of Sons of Anarchy. Far better use of my time.
What a pointless comment. If you really felt that way to begin with why did you waste your time?
Men don’t like skinny bone racks and where does Condolezza Rice get off being preachy after being involved with the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of people.
amen!
the one in the beginning could lose some weight
Yes, because losing weight is the be all and end all of existence, isn’t it? Sheesh, you haven’t learned anything from this movie, have you?!
Okay, so the queen of all media’s not at all responsible for reinforcing women’s negative self-image? She preaches over-consumption and self-esteem through shopping all day long. If Oprah wants women to see balance in the media, she can start with her own product.
Secondly, if you love your children, pull the plug and restrict their media access. We have these problems because parents won’t say, “No!”
Thirdly, the vast majority of these images are created by WOMEN or gay men. The beauty ideal is set for women by other women. They are frequently the first to criticise or ostercise any woman who defies the accepted norm. Women are photo editors, casting directors, costume designers, etcetera and they should be the first line of defense.
You need to be the change you want to see.
These things effect more than just children, they effect women (and men) their entire lives. And the majority of people who hold the jobs you listed are male, and answer to male execs and producers. Every professional field is male dominated with the exception of modelling; now what does that tell you 😉
agree with the first two, disagree with the third.
honestly, what do gay men care about women anyway? XD;;
women criticize other women because they are trained to do so from a young age. sitcoms, movies, media in general, teaches girls that other girls are competition for attention or male affection and it continues as they mature. think of it in the same way you would training a little girl that the best day in her life is the day she gets married. this is not a natural inclination, but images that affect the mother affect the child and then create the reinforcing stereotype that gets leaked to the next generation.
On another hand it’s about consumption and advertising – by creating the unattainable (there’s a ‘fotoshop by adobe youtube vid that is good at this point) and making that unattainable into a social pressure you can get women, and now men into buying products and spending money to chase what they can never have.
It’s societal blight regardless of the perpetrators identities – i’d like to see science magazines at supermarket check stands instead of the sludge that is there.
What information do you have to support your statement ” the vast majority of these images are created by WOMEN or gay men” . I dont see how this can be a statement based of any type of fact when less than 21% of the of the people in power in the media world are women. ( who cares if people are gay or not? I dont see how that statment was relevant at all to the topic. )
Yes women are “photo editors, casting directors, costume designers”…they are also CEO’s, leaders, and are trying to change laws in congress not just for other women but for the country as a whole.
I can see that in your comment you want to flip the switch, it’s not the super masculine man that is putting all you women down…..you are doing this to yourselves, type of thing.
Yes men are in part responsible but women are not blameless either. Anna Wintour, the editor of Vogue and Helen Gurley Brown, the former editor of Cosmopolitan, did more than anyone to create the current unhealthy media image of women and guess what, they weren’t men. If they were men, we’d be seeing women in the media who look more like the Joan Holloway character in the TV series Mad Men (voted by men as the sexiest woman on TV). So get a clue.
Lol, yes two females who were appointed and can be replaced by a board of males, and who have to do their jobs based on what their male superiors expect.
Yes, many women do suffer from internalized misogyny…because men perpetuate it to the point where the masses believe it as truth.