Love Your Body Turns 10: Sex, Stereotypes and Beauty

National NOW Foundation Times >> Fall 2007 >> Love Your Body Turns 10

By Lisa Bennett, Communications Director

Cesare Paciotti and Claritin advertisements

The NOW Foundation slide show, Sex, Steroetypes and Beauty: The ABCs and Ds of Commerical Images of Women, demonstrates how advertising often portrays women as vulnerable or in distress (above left). Occasionally, ads feature women who appear strong and adventurous (above right)--but not enough! A variety of other images appear in this compelling and informative presentation.

NOW Foundation's successful Love Your Body campaign turned 10 this year, and it's never been more relevant. The campaign was launched in 1998 to address ways that advertising, Hollywood and the fashion, beauty and diet industries impact women's and girls' self-esteem and body image.

The shrinking size of the supermodel, the daily reality of eating disorders, increased smoking and dangerous dieting by young women, and the growing rate of plastic surgery procedures all inspired the campaign.

Love Your Body urges women and men to talk back to advertisers and media outlets that use offensive and exploitative images of women to sell products or as "entertainment." The campaign encourages women and girls to live healthy lives and feel comfortable with their bodies on their own terms, not based on the unrealistic images so prevalent in our popular culture.

Over the years, Love Your Body has generated two videos, a web site, an annual poster contest, a beautiful 2007 calendar and countless actions across the country. The latest Love Your Body production grew out of the most-visited section of the web site -- the offensive and positive ads pages. Those pages were expanded into a slide show for a workshop at the July 2007 National NOW Conference. By Oct. 18, the date of this year's Love Your Body Day, we had developed them into the acclaimed "Sex, Stereotypes and Beauty: The ABCs and Ds of Commercial Images of Women."

The popular presentation describes and graphically illustrates ways that advertisers and the media enforce unrealistic beauty standards, sexual ideals and gender stereotypes that girls and women are expected to follow. It addresses the impact of these images on the health and well-being of women and girls, and calls on individuals to take action.

"Sex, Stereotypes and Beauty" is available online in several different viewing formats, so you can view the show from your own computer or download it and present the slide show to a group or class. Guidelines and talking points are included for presenters.

Check out "Sex, Stereotypes and Beauty" and let us know what you think and how you are using the presentation -- we would love to have feedback.

What people are saying:

"I am an associate professor in the Department of Communications at Kansas State University. I am using your PowerPoint in two of my classes -- one in business communications and the other in electronic news reporting. I think the studnets need to be exposed ot this!!" -- Richard Baker

"I work with a group called 'Imagine' at our high school that works to end sexual violence and gender stereotyping. I see the devastating pressure on young girls every day. You [presentation] on the media images is fantastic!!!! I will share it with everyone and anyone that will listen." -- Janell Thom Schneider

"I just wanted to say that the presentation on the media portrayal of feminine beauty was excellent. It was well put together and it made me motivated to change the inequalities in media representation. As a fifteen year old girl, I feel these subjects are important to acknowledge and discuss. Thank you for this wonderful work and for addressing this sabotage on our health and self-esteem." -- Michelle

"In addition to my current work, I am a media literacy professional and have any MA degree from BYU where I focused on media literacy for girls. . . . I wanted to comment you on an excellent presentation." -- Deborah Aubert Thomas