Women’s Health and Men’s Health magazine Essay -- Gender Roles

The Sourcebook on Violence against Women reports that 14.8% to 36.1% of women will experience sexual violence over their lifetime. They also cited studies that found that up to 26.4% of women have experienced intimate partner violence (Renzetti, Edleson, & Bergen, 2011). With roughly 1 in 4 women experiencing sexual violence or violence perpetrated by a partner, many scholars are looking to point fingers. There are several theories that have something to say on the issue. However, it is important to realize at the heart of all the theories is how they are played out in the everyday lives of men and women. The media is a portal to how children are socialized, what consumers purchase, and lifestyle choices people make (Tallim, J). There is little dispute that media outlets are thriving in America. Magazine sales net over $4.5 billion every year. Magazines are widely available to the general public. The Magazine Publishers of America found that 93% of American adults read magazines. The growth trend over the last five years shows that next to the internet, magazines show the most growth in media usage (Magazine Publishers of America & International Periodical Distributors Association, 2010). Most of the public would agree that the American culture has become hypersexualized. Feona Attwood goes as far as calling the transformation a â€Å"‘pornographication’ of mainstream media†¦ [with] women increasingly targeted† (Attwood, 2005). There have been some efforts to combat this by encouraging the empowerment of women but results are still forthcoming. A comparison between the Men’s Health and Women’s Health magazine, owned by the same company, shows how media portrays men and women and perpetuates a violent, sexual culture that cultivates v... ...through the abuse that it teaches men is ok to perpetrate. Media is a powerful source of information for people of all ages. Consumers spend $86 million on magazines a week (Magazine Publishers of America & International Periodical Distributors Association, 2010). Media outlets should be working towards restructuring how boys and girls are socialized and the gender roles for men and women. Magazines should focus on empowering women rather than showing them scantily clad as sex objects. Not every article in Men’s Health and Women’s Health follows the stereotypes and enables violence or the objectification of women; however, the articles that do perpetuate violence far outweigh those that set a good example for men and women. Men’s Health and Women’s Health need to step up and learn to empower women instead of leaving them vulnerable to intimate partner abuse.