Task 3: Essay

To what extent should magazines be held responsible for the social ramifications of the representations they offer?

Magazines like Bliss, Cosmo Girl, Mizz, Shout and Sugar (the ones I have analysed below) are all aimed at teenage girls from the age group 11-15. Magazines are very popular amongst teenagers and these magazines are bought and read on a regular basis by the teenage youth. They are said to have a big influence on how girls act because of the articles on celebrities it is said they aspire to be like them. There has been a lot of press around the idea that magazines are sexualising young girls and almost making them grow up to quickly.

As you can see from the magazines I analysed below, celebrities are the main focus of the magazine. With images, headlines and articles making them stand out. Celebrities are role models for young girls and when we see them with their hair done, makeup on and almost airbrushed to perfection, and then hear about them getting plastic surgery, brings up the question, do we really want teenage girls reading about people like that? Unsuitable content is the true life stories such as Sugar’s ‘I’m the worlds prettiest teen.’ Stories like that will add to teenagers insecurities. With all these pictures of done up, skinny celebrities it creates the wrong impression about what a teenager should look like. This can lead to people not being happy with their body type even though everyone’s different. This can even lead to extreme dieting, which is very dangerous. Girls shouldn’t be thinking about changing their looks and putting on tonnes of makeup they should be happy with who they are and what they look like.

Other inappropriate subjects are displayed on magazine covers for instance Cosmo Girl cover line ‘the secret to being a good kisser’ and Sugar’s quiz ‘are you snogging enough?’ this creates a great pressure upon teenage girls and when they read cover lines like that they think that every other girl is kissing boys so then they should. Girls shouldn’t have their focus on how to be a good kisser at the young age of 11 years old they should be organising their next trip to the cinema or doing their homework.

On the other hand, not all magazines can be held responsible some do not send out the wrong image, some focus on educating teenagers about the dangers of dieting and give a lot of helpful advice on support groups who offer help to teenagers. Others just simply stick to guidelines and do not include anything inappropriate by just focusing on latest films or album releases.

In my opinion I agree that magazines should in some cases be held responsible for the social ramifications of the representations they offer because they are commonly read among teenage girls and everything included inside them they look up to and makes them want to conform.  I think that, teenage girls are growing up to fast and worrying about their looks way to much because of what’s included in teenage magazines. I think they should definitely check their content more carefully so it reaches guide lines and should stop publishing articles on plastic surgery and tips on how to be a good kisser. They should focus on other subjects which also interest teenage girls such as TV programmes and music.