WOMEN IN MEDIA

INTRODUCTION Advertising in TV and Magazines COMMERCIAL ADS ON TV: The essence of womanhood in ads? IL PROBLEMA IN ITALIA THE ISSUE IN AMERICA WOMEN IN TV ADS: COMPARISON COMMERCIAL ADS IN MAGAZINES American campaigns: first category Campagne italiane: prima categoria American campaigns: second category Campagne italiane: seconda categoria Television Shows (That's Amore vs. Uomini Donne)  THE ISSUE IN AMERICA: "THAT’S AMORE" IL PROBLEMA IN ITALIA: "UOMINI E DONNE" WOMEN IN TV SHOWS: COMPARISON MUSIC VIDEOS USA ITALY POLITICS The situation in the US La situazione in italia USEFUL LINKS AND REFERENCES

 

INTRODUCTION

 

The aim of this wiki page is to try to consider the role of women in the world of media, both in Italy and in the US. Our comparison will take into account the most widespread means of communication, namely television and magazines. A further look will be taken at the domain of music and politics, always trying to highlight differences and similarities between the two countries.

 

Advertising in TV and Magazines

 

COMMERCIAL ADS ON TV: The essence of womanhood in ads?

 

IL PROBLEMA IN ITALIA

 

^[1]

Anche negli spot televisivi italiani l’immagine della donna è senza dubbio più abusata rispetto a quella maschile e spesso, anche quando non è presente, si rimanda ad essa indirettamente. Purtroppo nemmeno in Italia siamo privi di continui riferimenti, anche di cattivo gusto, al corpo femminile. Anche nel nostro paese, la stragrande maggioranza degli spot televisivi sembra suggerire l’idea che l’universo femminile sia costituito solamente da cosmetici, abiti e tecniche di seduzione e che tutto questo sia finalizzato non solo ad incrementare l’ autostima della donna ma anche, e soprattutto, alla conquista del mondo maschile.

^[2] 

È possibile però individuare, accanto al modello prevalente della donna oggetto, anche altri tipi femminili. Negli ultimi anni infatti, accanto alle immagini della donna fatale e della modella solo curve si è affiancata un’immagine completamente opposta che si distingue anche dall’immagine tradizionale della mamma casalinga. Si tratta della mamma, moglie, lavoratrice che si sforza di far coesistere queste dimensioni così diverse tra loro e che rispecchia spesso la vita e i ruoli di molte donne di oggi.

 

Ecco quindi un elenco delle tipologie di donna in assoluto prevalenti nella pubblicità in TV:

 

 

DONNA OGGETTO

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdfk6oNnJ6A ("Patatina Chips", con la partecipazione del famoso pornodivo Rocco Siffredi)

un esempio estremo in cui si considera la donna come un qualcosa da usare e gettare

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_6w4nMcyXM (spot "AXE Click")

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GISS23eL2RA ("Tiscali ADSL")

questo è solo uno dei tanti esempi in cui il corpo femminile è presente nonostante non ci sia ALCUNA connessione con il prodotto

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W3bLVobDns ("Milleuna TIM")

in questo come in altri casi l’immagine della donna arriva a essere ridotta letteralmente ad un oggetto

 

DONNA SEDUTTRICE

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wdBpanWYJo ("Rouge Allure - Chanel", spot trasmesso in lingua francese)

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqR8tKvyL2c ("Togo")

 

Gli spot appartenenti a questa prima categoria presentano donne molto affascinanti e ammiccanti, le quali sembrano tuttavia aver bisogno di una conferma del loro valore e della loro bellezza da parte dell’uomo.

 

DONNA MADRE - CASALINGA E LAVORATRICE

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIgksCRFwnI ("Fiat Idea")  

 

 

Al centro di questi spot vi è spesso una mamma che riesce perfettamente a conciliare, anche se ha poco tempo, un lavoro impegnativo o di prestigio con l’attenzione e la cura dei figli, del marito e della casa. Si tratta di una figura giovane, dinamica e estremamente femminile ma allo stesso tempo rassicurante.

 

THE ISSUE IN AMERICA

 

Taking a look at some American TV ads, one can not ignore the excessive exploitation of the female body in order to sell products of every sort. The world of advertising is nowadays still dominated by images of women that draw on physical beauty in order to catch the attention of the audience.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKKMoYcNNlE ("Victoria’s Secret" Push Up Bra commercial)

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyRvpR4XhK4 ("Miller Lite"'s Catfight) 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtS2PGXPUTs  (Beer Makes Women Beautiful by "Tuborg")

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-_eLCtRqW4 (The "AXE" Effect) 

 

The four videos above are perfect examples of how the body of the woman and her image are degraded. Here, women are made instrumental to the most rude of the men’s fantasies and that may cause people to have less respect for them as human beings.

 

Most ads reach the point of reducing women's bodies to silent but perfect sex objects that are totally unrealistic because they do not have anything to do with everyday women. Even though people perfectly know that, some commercials seem to exert a certain amount of influence on them and affect the way in which they perceive themselves. So, the body is considered as something that should be kept under control with the help of diets, cosmetics or even surgery; overweight or not proportioned bodies are presented as problematic and in need of correction and thinness seems to be final goal. One can almost have the impression that certain ads push people towards conformity instead of self-expression.

^[3]

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hq_-6Edr9sI ("L’Oreal Perfect Slim" commercial, featuring Eva Longoria)

 

Even when ladies are not objectified, they are still depicted as frivolous persons who rely on nothing but their physical aspects in order to attain self-confidence and success. Most of the women represented in American TV ads seem to be extremely dynamic, independent, goal-oriented and in total control of their own bodies, which are seen as tools, as things to be used for social or personal achievement^[4]. Lots of commercials aimed at women seem to invite them to consider particular kinds of cosmetics as the only keys to have success in their life.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAP0nNoCaYo (lipstick commercial by "L'Oreal" featuring Béyoncé)

 

 

WOMEN IN TV ADS: COMPARISON

 

 

After comparing American and Italian TV advertisements involving women, one can realize that in both countries, commercials tend to put an excessive emphasis on the female body as a means to exert seduction and attractiveness. However, most of them represent women as they ought to be and not as they really are.

 

Both in Italy and America women are almost “forced” to be desirable and attractive, not only for themselves but mainly for men. It is even worse that the concept of beauty seems to have changed too. According to most of the advertisements circulating in both countries, the ideal woman is not someone who has striking features or charming attitudes but rather a perfectly fit body, combed hair, glossed lips and so on…all that is almost an utopia in the real world and can only be constructed through make up and cosmetics (sometimes even plastic surgery). Moreover, this model totally dismisses the role of attributes that are not strictly physical.

 

One of the main differences between the two countries includes America's attitude that women no longer seem to be imprisoned in their old rigid roles of full-time housewives and mothers and seem to be taken more seriously. The most spread image of American woman seems to be more emancipated and self-confident. On the contrary, some commercials in Italy focus on old-fashioned stereotypes concerning women in a pathetical effort to entertain the audience.    

 

All in all, both Italian and American women tend to be dissatisfied with the representation that advertising makes of themselves. Although the overall picture does not seem to be a very positive one, the recent arrival of ads showing much more natural and real women instead of supermodels (see Dove campaign) suggests that a change is under way and that it is hard time people start questioning the traditional representation of woman in advertising.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoG2jWZZkc4 ("Calzedonia" commercial, example of ad trying to rediscover the image of real women - Italy) 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RADYaTvTGts ("Dove Campaign for Real Beauty" in USA)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U ("Dove Evolution" broadcasted in USA and in Italy)

 

 

^[5] 

COMMERCIAL ADS IN MAGAZINES

 

If you google the terms "women and magazines" the search engine gives results concerning not only the most popular magazines but also the topics they focus on. All of them treat themes like "fashion, health&fitness, motherohood/pregnancy, self-improvement, recipes, family, weight loss, beauty" and such. 

 

 

Publicity for and with women on magazines tends to display an image which is - most of the times - highly stereotyped and has strong sexual connotations. Not only is this approach to be found in ads but also in the attitude of such editorial products, thus diffusing a misleading standard of the female body and behaviour. What women are supposed to be looking for is just glamour, cosmetics, diets and the latest seduction technique. This is exactly the kind of woman portrayed in the ads of such magazines: with totally unrealistic bodies, superficial, banal and terribly close to a Barby doll. Publicity and the magazines that publishe it mirror each other perfectly. If we compare the Italian and the American policy behind advertising campaigns we see that the standards followed are very similar. In both cases, in fact, the goal of selling products is reached through the use of some recurrent elements. Now, let’s consider two different categories of advertisements. The one in which women are not only the object but also the target of the ad and the one in which they are the object of a product for a male audience.

 

 

FIRST CATEGORY

 

In the first category we have the promotion of housekeeping products such as detergents, washing liquids and softeners. In these ads housewives are actually close to models than to real women because they don’t seem to have been cleaning up all day but rather that they are ready to go out. The message conveyed is not just that the product works but, implicitly, that you can look like such women if you use it. The same thing happens with beauty products, accessories and clothes. Beautiful young girls are chosen to promote something that promises to make you become – and feel – just like them, that is successful, without problems, self-confident and seductive. The point here is that the female standard presented does not mirror real women, who first tend to feel depressed about their appearance and then to do anything to become as perfect as these computer-made girls. Here are some examples.

 

American campaigns: first category

 

Aubade (French underwear company that sells worldwide)^[6] 

In this advertisement we can see how the reference to seduction is made clear by the ironic message at the bottom. The idea conveyed is that this underwear brand is going to make you irresistible, no matter how you look like. Again, the need of self-esteem women feel is fully exploited in the ad, and there is no reference to the quality of the product itself. What is sold here is just a promise of success. If you take a look at the company web site, you’ll see that it even sells a book providing “seduction lessons”^[7].

ACE (paint)^[8] 

 This kind of advertisement has been chosen because it represents well a very common stereotype of femininity: the perfect housewife. The accent here is not put on the quality of the product promoted but rather on the feeling of spotlessness and order it conveys. The smiling mummy is put in the middle of the picture with her two perfect-looking daughters, who are themselves stereotyped. In fact, the girl on the left is the typical “good girl” that somehow mirrors the idea of femininity the mother represents, while the girl on the left is the tomboy of the family with a ball under her arm – a toy considered little suitable for girls. The slogan at the top contributes to complete the image of the happy family – without a male figure though – and link the product to the image. Moreover, the colours chosen by the two little girls are very often associated to the female taste in clothing, namely pink and violet.   

 

 

 

Campagne italiane: prima categoria

Francesco Biasia-handbags ^[9]  

 

Se lo scopo di questa pubblicità è quello di vendere borse, allora lo fa in un modo alquanto discutibile. Come in molte altre pubblicità, ci si concentra su una parte specifica del corpo femminile che però deve necessariamente avere una qualche connotazione sessuale, come dimostrano le gambe sinouse di questa modella. Tuttavia la sensazione del lettore non è certo quella di un'immagine positiva o piacevole. Quello che ci viene presentato qui non è altro che un corpo femminile fatto a pezzi e ciò che rende il tutto più macabro è che è attaccato a quello che sembra il piano di un tavolo di legno. La borsa - supposta protagonista - è posta al centro dell'immagine e dovrebbe sostituire il resto del corpo della donna, quindi il torace e la testa. Se questa in effetti è l'interpretazione giusta, allora possiamo pensare che una borsa vuota possa sostituire (e forse costituire) la testa e il cuore di una donna. Una rappresentazione del femminile a dir poco disumana.

 

 

Valentino^[10] 

 

 

La pubblicità della collezione occhiali di Valentino vede come protagonisti un uomo e una donna. Il loro, però, non è un rapporto di parità o solidarietà ma l’intera impostazione dell’immagine contribuisce a creare una situazione di conflitto tra i due protagonisti. La posizione di dominanza dell’uomo viene sottolineata dalla posizione della testa, dello sguardo rivolto verso destra oltre la ragazza e delle mani che stringono con forza e in modo minaccioso il volto della modella. Il senso di minaccia e di sottile violenza è acuito dall’atteggiamento di lei: totalmente sottomessa e senza dare segno di ribellione o protesta, guarda verso l’immaginario fruitore della pubblicità. Anche la combinazione dei colori è emblematica in quanto l’uomo è caratterizzato dal nero dei vestiti e dei capelli e la donna dal bianco del maglione e dai capelli biondi raccolti. Una sorta di lotta tra il bene e il male in cui trionfa senza troppa fatica la prevaricazione dell’uomo.

 

SECOND CATEGORY  

In the second category of products namely cars, male clothing and perfumes or drinks – just to mention a few of them - the female body does not seem to have a direct connection to the product it is shown next to. The girls portrayed embody the stereotyped Venus all men dream of: tall, thin but with big breasts, usually dressed very little and in provocative poses that refer more or less explicitly to sexual intercourse. This time, the use of the female body aims at attracting the attention of the male public and at connecting its need of success with women with the purchase of the product. Again, the message of the advertisement is very clear: buy this and you’ll get all you see in the ad – girl included.

 

American campaigns: second category

 

 

 

Lexus^[11] 

 

In this advertisement we have once again a connection between cars and women seen as sexual objects. The ad is definitely directed to a male public, considering that usually men are the typical Lexus buyers. Another constant feature is nudity: the young lady shown wears nothing under the red ribbon that ties her up from head to foot. What makes her look like an object – thus offending women as human beings -  is the fact that the ribbon is tight around her neck and her face, leaving only her eyes uncovered. The strip of cloth should symbolize a road running along the girl’s curves – again an association that has been often used in the past – and the new Lexus seems to be the best means to do it. The explanation of the bond between the girl and the car is emphasized in the question at the top of the ad: “Are we the cutting edge of road girls? Well, no”. The double meaning of the expression “road girl” is clear: it is not just a girl who’s like a road – the one in the picture - but also a girl who works on the streets, and the answer refers to the last meaning. The association of cars with girls and of girls with prostitution is, once again, offending.

Fosters Beer ^[12] 

 

 

 

 

Campagne italiane: seconda categoria

 

 

 

 

 

Questa pubblicità, apparsa per la collezione primavera/estate 2007, ha destato particolare scalpore presso l’opinione pubblica sia in Italia che all’estero per il suo contenuto, tanto da essere oggetto di discussione presso la Commissione per le Pari Opportunità e poi essere definitivamente sospesa. L’immagine rappresenta in modo stilizzato ma inequivocabile un atto di violenza nei confronti di una giovane donna. La modella è distesa a terra e viene tenuta ferma da un uomo a petto nudo con degli occhiali scuri, sottolineando così il suo senso di distacco da ciò che sta compiendo. Altri tre osservano la scena impassibili. Lo sguardo della ragazza è vuoto, più simile a quello di una bambola che a quello di una donna reale e non tenta in alcun modo di ribellarsi. L’immagine femminile fornita in questa pubblicità è profondamente degradante e offensiva in quanto dipinge una donna come un oggetto al servizio del desiderio maschile totalmente priva di volontà o intelligenza.

 

Television Shows (That's Amore vs. Uomini Donne) 

 

Lo scopo della questa sezione è di illustrare la rappresentanza negativa delle donne in la televisione. In questa sezione, usiamo "That's Amore" e "Uomini Donne" per illustrare la rappresentanza negativa delle donne negli Stati Uniti e nell'Italia.

 

THE ISSUE IN AMERICA: "THAT’S AMORE"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0-I5uqYl9E (trailer)

 

Questo è il trailer di un nuovo programma televisivo negli Stati Uniti. Il trailer è di un uomo, Domenico Nasci, sta provando trovare l'amore in un gruppo di donne. Queste donne provanno vincere il cuore di Domenico. Mentre molte programme dimostrano questa "ricerca di amore" aspetto, questo programma particolare degrada le donne più di altri. In altri videos, ci sono altri esempi come le donne sono degradate.

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WGaFsws8wc (l'audizione)

Questo video illustra Domenico Nesci, il padrone di casa, That's Amore e la sua ricerca per amore. Parla delle caratteristiche ama in una donna. Penso che questo video sia divertente perchè questo video è l'audizione di Domenico Nesci sta provando per lo spettacolo. Tuttavia, questo video dimostra come le persone sono disperate di essere in televisione. Anche, questo videodimostra l'atteggiamento generale verso le donne è representato come un comportamento negativo.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6v4AXCLQRI (la rissa nella piscina)

Questo video è un esempio di come le donne sono degradate in televisione. Questo video dimostra le azioni di donne, e i suoi modi per vincere il cuore dell'uomo. È facile notare come queste azioni delle donne non sono normali azioni. È semplicemente un modo per illustrare le donne come oggetti. Non posso cercare un altro video particolare in Youtube. Questo video illustra le azioni delle donne di vincere il cuore dell'uomo. In questo video, le donne lottano in una pozza delle polpette. Sì, questa scena è un po strano. Tuttavia, secondo MTV, il vincitore della questa sfida esce con Domenico Nasci.

 

 

 

IL PROBLEMA IN ITALIA: "UOMINI E DONNE"

 

^[13]

 

One of the clearest examples of TV shows degrading women in Italy is undoubtedly “Uomini e Donne”. In this show, every two or three months, a woman and a man desperately looking for the man/woman of their dreams are invited to the studios in order to be courted by a group of selected possible partners. Throughout the different episodes of the show, the two have the possibility to know their suitors better and to date one or two of them for the week. Every week they have to tell those who suit them less, to leave the program, so they literally eliminate them. The only “positive” thing about the program is that the role of the “corteggiato” can also be played by a woman. Nevertheless, objectification is not perceived with the same intensity in the case of men. Under this apparent equality, women are still more degraded and humiliated than men and both sexes behave according to traditional gender stereotypes.

 

Men are asked to court too but their role seems to be less passive and submissive. They are not exposed to humiliation and they do not become ridiculous as women do. The female components of this show are supposed to use their seduction powers in order to conquer the man, even, and above all, at the expenses of the other women.

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlDJZcJOhBY

("LA PUPA E IL SECCHIONE", a very recent show that is no longer transmitted now. It was a sort of reality show in which a group of women were assigned to "more learned men" who had to teach them some wisdom. In the episode, the "pupe" were subjected to final oral texts but, as you can see, they could not answer the easiest questions. The aim of the whole thing was to make fun of the stereotypical image of the woman who is "bella e stupida".) 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVg6jhmobmU

(Victoria Silvstedt as a "valletta" in "LA RUOTA DELLA FORTUNA". This TV show can boast a long and respectable history of prestige - it was once directed by the famous Mike Buongiorno- but in the last few years it has been "caught into the trend" as well)

 

hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355">

 

WOMEN IN TV SHOWS: COMPARISON

Analysing the mentioned TV shows, we arrived at the conclusion that there are not so many differences between Italy and America. These programms resemble reality shows and follow the same basic patterns: women are always presented as objects, wear extremely provocative clothes or perform seductive dances. Both in "Uomini e Donne" and in "That's amore" they often have violent fights with each other (both verbal and physical fights) in order to conquer the man. They are asked to emerge from the other women who are all equally determined and seductive so they really have to do their best. However, they have to submit to the man’s will: the final choice depends entirely on the man’s mood who, most of the times, has already decided his ideal partner from the beginnings.

 

Hence, competitiveness is evidently one of the most evident and essential features of such shows along with envy and jealously. These shows really contribute to degrade the image and the role of women in the society because it seems as if the attitudes adopted by these women are natural components of the female world and that the only strategy to conquer the man of your dreams is to “eliminate” the other female competitors rather than ally with other women in order to have support.

 

MUSIC VIDEOS

 

Lo scopo di questa sezione è di illustrare le differenze tra la rappresentazione negativa e la rappresentazione positiva delle donne nei video musicali.

 

 

USA

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plUy7Me_fZQ (Jay-Z - Big Pimpin')

Questo video musicale è un grande esempio come i musicisti svalorizzano le donne nei loro video musicali. Jay Z, che è un popolare artista rap, ha un atteggiamento negativo verso le donne in questo particolare videoclip. La canzone spiega che lui è un magnaccia o una persona che dorme con diverse donne nello stesso tempo. Anche questo video musicale dimostra come le donne non siano molto vestite e come siano rappresentate attraverso delle immagini sessuali e non reali.

 

 

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDFEoCOhRZQ (50 Cent - Candyshop)

Questo video musicale di 50 Cent è più inquietante del video di Jay Z. Non solamente questo video svalorizza le donne, ma 50 Cent canta sulle sue azioni sessuali con cui avrebbe a che fare con delle donne. Tuttavia, è interessante vedere che le donne nel video sembrano divertirsi. Queste azioni fanno credere che 50 Cent parli  di qualcosa di giusto. Poiché le sue parole negative sono disattese, le donne in questo video credono che lui sia attraente. Questo video illustra l'idea che se una persona parlasse in questo modo alle donne, potrebbe trovare una donna come quelle del video. Certamente abbiamo capito che questo video da semplicemente una negativa rappresentazione delle donne.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXKxs8Ge_9g (Black Eyed Peas - My Humps)

Questo video musicale è molto interessante perché illustra una prospettiva diversa. La cantante principale di questo gruppo è Fergie. Prima di tutto Fergie cantava col gruppo Black Eyed Peas, adesso Fergie è una cantante solista. Questo video particolare mostra immagini sessuali delle donne che sono tra le più volgari. Illustrano come le donne siano oggetti sessuali degli uomini, Fergie mostra  quanto le donne possano essere sexy. Questo messaggio indica come questi atteggiamenti verso siano negativi per le donne, particolarmente quando esse diventano delle immagini sessuali. Durante tutto il brano, i cantanti parlano di sesso e illustrano gesti sessuali. Concludendo, questo video musicale dimostra una rappresentazione negativa delle donne.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkIytHD5v9c (Britney Spears - Toxic)

In questo video musicale, Britney Spears da una immagine negativa delle donne. Lei si sveste (rivelando vestiti - revealing clothes) e si comporta sessualmente verso gli uomini. In questo video musicale, sembra che le donne possano ottenere ciò che vogliono solo se sono oggetti sessuali. Nel video di Britney Spears, lei  ammicca usando il corpo in una prospettiva sessuale.

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRhW_vBDlTM (Christina Aguilera, Mya, Lil Kim, Pink - Moulin Rouge)

Simile a Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera e le atre ragazze si  atteggiano a oggetti sessuali. Tuttavia, questo video musicale è molto più sessuale degli altri video. Penso che sia molto disgustoso vedere queste donne con non molti vestiti. Credo che il messagio in questo video musicale sia particolarmente distorto e che sia fatto per mostrare un cambiamento in negativo rispetto  agli altri video musicali.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYbHBWQLpQY (Fort Minor - Where'd You Go)

Invece di una rappresentazione negativa delle donne, Fort Minor parla dei problemi di una vita normale. Questo video musicale in particolare illustra lo stile di vita delle famiglie comuni che vivono l'attuale situazione dei soldati americani in Iraq. Il video musicale parla del figlio di una famiglia il quale si trova attualmente in Iraq. Il cantante del questo gruppo di hip hop parla di come sia difficile vivere con questo tipo di problema. Concludendo, le persone vivono diversi sentimenti riguardo la guerra in Iraq.

 

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Neop9OVaB8 (Fort Minor - Remember The Name)

Insieme con l'esempio precedente, questo video musicale mostra il coraggio e la determinazione delle persone quando fanno le cose che gli piacciono. Questo video musicale illustra come la motivazione delle persone sia molto importante. All'inizio del video, Mike Shinoda, il cantante del gruppo, dice che il video è ispirato e creato da persone che fanno cose incredibili e il resto del video musicale dimostra queste cose. Insieme a questo, la loro creatività e determinazione significa molto per le altre persone. A differenza di Jay Z, o 50 Cent, i Fort Minor mostrano un'immagine positiva in tutte le loro canzoni.

 

 

ITALY

 

 

In Italy the image of women in music videoclips is different. I think that the women are less sexy; however, I give some example of very sexy images.I want to analyse some Italian famous artists: Tiziano Ferro, Eros Ramazzotti, Paola and Chiara.

 

In this video entitled "fuoco nel fuoco" a model is dressed like a technological lady, she is not naked and her image is sofisticated, quite elegant and very far from American hip hop videos.

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=5iHG6krN0hc

 

 

This is a video of Eros Ramazzotti dedicated to his ex wife, a famous showwoman, she appears in this video. Clearly her image is very unostentatious. The words of this song are very sweet (the title is "Più bella cosa di te") and the image represents the words of the song.

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=ok3eHAloBjg

 

 

 

In this video of Tiziano Ferro called "Xverso" there are some sexy ladies who are dancing. I think they are sexy but not obscene as in 50cent videos.

 

 

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrEFEDXmUAU

 

 

 

This is a video of two famous singers called Paola and Chiara, they are sisters and want to look very sexy, above all in this video called "Kamasutra"... The name of the video say a lot of what they are doing and look like. The image of this video is clearly very hot: you see a lot of naked body, the sisters seem to be lesbian and there are some images of sadomasochist sex. What I like of this video is that the image of women is sexy as the image of men, we have a parity of gender, so both female and male bodies are used to give a sexy image. 

 

 

 

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=qHkXx_KaGSc

Finally, I conclude that in the comparison between Italian and American music video clips the image of women is very different.

Especially hip hop videos use women as sexual objects, they are the most degrading videos: sex is free, performed in the clubs and women are defined as “bitches”. May be it is due to black subculture: black people try to construct their identity through this image of “pimp” (it is a word used by a famous rapper, Snoop Dog, who says that his fortune was made through the exploitation of prostitution) working for a negative ethic -against the white ethic- because of racial segregation.

http://nuke.amalteaonline.com/Portals/0/upload_rivista/Rivista_due_e_tre/HipHop_riv_Amaltea2_3_2006.pdf

I am delighted to say that in American videos -especially hip hop videos (with the exception of some artists –see Fort Minor’s videos) - the image of women is more exploited than in Italian videos. Although Paola and Chiara have a very sexy image, there is no discrimination between men and women.

POLITICS

In this part we'll try to draw a comparison between the attittude of Americans and that of Italians towards women in politics with a particular attention to the election campaigns in the two countries. We will shortly analyse how today's most prominent women cope with their being a woman in such a male field. Therefore, we picked Hillary Clinton in the US and Daniela Santanchè in Italy (always beign aware of the fact that their position in the respective countries are quite differe

 

 

 

 

The situation in the US

As far as the United States are concerned, we'll focus on the only woman who has ever run for the White House: Hillary Clinton. It seems that she has good chances to become the first woman president in the history of the United States.

 

 

 

 

 

An important issue braught up by her candidacy is the perspective of having a woman president of the United States for the first time ever. This would be a huge achievement not only for American women but, I think, for the whole world. However, there seems to be a consistent part of electors who don’t think she would be suitable for such an important role. Especially on the internet – which has become more and more the barometer of electors – Clinton is object of a large amount of misogeny; some websites criticize her very sharply just for the way she laughs or dresses or, more recently, for how she looks without make-up. This kind criticism has got nothing to do with politics but only with her being a woman, in fact she is judged with same old parameters used by men for women. It seems there can be no fair competition with men when it comes to the achievement of such high-level positions.

 

 

THE ATTITUDE OF OTHER WOMEN TOWARDS HER 

 

Those who hate her

 

 

People seem to find her cold and too far from them, and women, surprisingly, don’t trust her. Some feminists say that Hillary Clinton reiterates the stereotype of male politicians, according to which one needs to have a ruthless attitude and demonstrate strenght in every situation. She is said to have betrayed the feminist cause because she behaves like a man and doesn’t give enough space to women’s issues, thus supporting the patriarchy and imperialism that have always characterized American politics. In particular, Hillary’s support to the continuation of the war in Iraq has deceived feminists because of the contrast with her often declared interest in children and women’s issues.  Susan Douglas writes “If she’s a feminist, how could she continue to support this war for so long? (...) how could she countenance the ongoing killing of innocent Iraqi families, and of American soldiers who are also someone’s children? If it would be so revolutionary to have a female as president, why does she feel like the same old poll-driven opportunistic politician who seems to craft her positions accordingly?”. 

 

Those who love her

 

Clinton’s supporters emphasize her constant engagement in battles that aim at improving women’s living conditions in important fields such as health care, wage discrimination and contraception. They think that having her as president means that all this will be of primary interest, and women’s rights are going to be sustained and granted, so that they no longer feel second class citizens. In a recent occasion, Hillary broke down and cried while exposing her programme in New Hapshire and stating that being the future president of the United States is more than a political matter to her.

 

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=gq9wAHk-S_A

 

Others focus on her long political experience, especially compared to that of her adversary Barack Obama. Most likely, she has been the most influent First Lady the US have ever had for the way she has supported her husband as well as for her personal battles. During her mandate in the Armed Services Committee she had to cope with issues of national interest, and this grants her a number of competences that are not easily found in the other candidates. Her support of the Iraqi war is seen as a brave example of pragmatism in which she put her ideas aside in order to support the American troops.

 

THE ATTITUDE OF MEN

 

Hillary Clinton has been and is still often attacked just because she is a woman. This kind of attitude on the part of both other politicians and journalists witnesses that not all Americans are ready to accept a female leadership. Examples of more or less overt misogyny can be found both on the web and on tv. One is offered by the journalist Keith Olbermann who, during his Wednesday night show on MSNBC, made some very sharp statements about her, hinting that it is high time to get rid her – even with extreme methods.

 

 

 

 

 

After being harshly criticized for his statements, Olbermann had to apologise publicly.

 

 

Chris Matthews, another journalist, has played the same old card of connections. In fact, he stated that Hillary got where she is, not thanks to her personal skills and engagement but rather because of her husband’s influence. You can watch the video at this URL.

 

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/01/09/chris-matthews-says-the-only-reason-hillary-became-a-senator-is-because-bill-messed-around/

 

 

La situazione in italia

 

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2299/2317699261_f6c52e033d.jpg?v=0

Cenni sulla biografia

Daniela Santanchè nata a Cuneo il giorno 7 aprile classe 1961 è la prima donna candidata premier per le elezioni politiche italiane. Iscritta al corso di Scienze Politiche a Torino, è entrata in politica con il partito di Alleanza Nazionale come collaboratrice dell'onorevole Ignazio La Russa. La Santanchè è subentrata come deputata alla Camera durante l'anno 2001 dopo le dimissioni dell'onorevole Viviana Beccalossi. 

Seguentemente forma il partito La_Destra Fiamma_Tricolore con lo scessionista Francesco Storace. Famosa anche per essere stata la prima donna ad aver redatto la legge sulla finanziaria (legge che riguarda il bilancio dello stato, importante per il conto pubblico) e per aver aver proposto la porno-tax, una tassa per i fruitori del materiale pornografico. Sebbene abbia perso clamorosamente alle elezioni, non è riuscita nemmeno a acquisire il quorum minimo del 4% per entrare alla Camera, è molto richiesta dai mass media per copertine e interviste.

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniela_Santanch%C3%A8

http://biografie.studenti.it/biografia.htm?BioID=1712&biografia=Daniela+Santanch%E8

http://www.danielasantanche.com/biografia.php

Questo è un link che fa un parallelo tra la biografia della Santanchè e il famoso film Erin Brockovich (interpretato dalla famosissima attrice Julia Roberts), è un video divertente e breve per chi ha voglia di sapere i momenti più importanti della vita della Santanchè.

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=j1WDT_0_kls

Questo video mostra la Santanchè che parla a proposito delle quote rosa (discusse nel nostro forum), lei è stata definita femminista d'avanguardia del suo ex partito Alleanza Nazionale. Dichiara che le quote rosa non le piacciono ma che sono necessarie per equilibrare la politica italiana, spesso accusata di maschilismo.

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=DSvo3R5AJA8

Questo video è molto ironico perché una famosa comica italiana; paola Cortellesi, imita due politiche italiane: Santanchè e Prestigiacomo (ex ministra per le pari opportunità). Quello che noto è che le due vengono satirate più per il loro modo di vestirsi e acconciarsi che sulla politica, per esempio "la finta Santanchè" mostra una sua scarpa col tacco a spillo.

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=ed3duBV29K0&feature=related

Opinioni e scontri

Sebbene la Santanchè abbia dichiarato di essere poco attenta all'apparenza fisica, di aver evitato carriere come quelle da modella o da giornalista televisiva, e di preferire il cervello, i media la dipingono come una modaiola accessoriata da borse di marca e spesso vestita anche in modo sexy...

La Santanchè è stata criticata anche dai mass media del mondo mussulmano a causa della polemica sul velo. Ha affermato che "il velo non è mai simbolo di libertà" provocando critiche da esponenti del mondo mussulmano come Mario Scialoja ex presidente della lega musulmana mondiale, Yahya Pallavicini presidente della comunità religiosa islamica (Coreis) e Abu Shwaima l'imam di Segrate. Quest'ultimo l'ha definita "ignorante".

http://www.politicaonline.it/?p=506

http://www.repubblica.it/2006/10/sezioni/politica/prodi-integrazione/velo-santanche/velo-santanche.html

http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Politica/2006/10_Ottobre/22/veloislamico.shtml

 

The fact is that the number of women in politics remains few influential in American and Italian politics and women elected in Parliament are a meagre minority^[14]. After the Italian election the women in the Lower House are about 21,1% and in the Upper House 17,4%. The president of Arcidonna, Valeria Ajovalasit, said that women are excluded in Parliament, because the parties decided rationally to exclude women from the power as a political choice^[15].

 

The data of the Interparliamentary Union^[16] stated the percentage of women in Parliament on 31 March 2008: in the Italian Parliament the number oscillates between 17,3 - 14 % and in the American between 16,8 - 16 %^[17]. As you see the data do not have big difference. As a matter of fact USA are facing the first very possible woman election for presidency. Hillary Clinton herself asked people to vote for her based on her life and experience and said that “ the fact I am a woman, the fact I am a mom, is part of who I am."^[18] 

USEFUL LINKS AND REFERENCES

1. Advertising in TV and Magazines

The essence of womenhood in ads?

http://www.wimnonline.org/analysis/journalism.html

(a really interesting selection of articles on women and media in America)

http://www.salon.com/src/pass/sitepass/spon/sitepass_website.html

("You're soaking in it", by Jennifer L. Pozner - the second part of an article devoted to the effects of marketing aimed at women)

http://www.genderads.com/

http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Modules/TF33120/gendertv.html

2. Television Shows

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kytiKxHPzQA (Uomini e Donne)

 (That's amore)

http://www.tvblog.it/post/8424/thats-amore-gli-italiani-spopolano-in-usa

(That's Amore)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/That%27s_Amore_%28TV_series%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Real_World (The Real World)

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_pupa_e_il_secchione (La Pupa e Il Secchione)

http://media.www.diamondbackonline.com/media/storage/paper873/news/2006/12/14/Opinion/Degrading.Women-2551617.shtml ("Degrading Women" by Alan Wright)

3. Music Videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plUy7Me_fZQ (Jay Z - Big Pimpin')

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDFEoCOhRZQ (50 Cent - Candyshop)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXKxs8Ge_9g (Black Eyed Peas - My Humps)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYbHBWQLpQY (Fort Minor - Where'd You Go)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Neop9OVaB8 (Fort Minor - Remember The Name)

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=5iHG6krN0hc

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=ok3eHAloBjg

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=5nT_a3NCpm4&feature=related

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=qHkXx_KaGSc

http://nuke.amalteaonline.com/Portals/0/upload_rivista/Rivista_due_e_tre/HipHop_riv_Amaltea2_3_2006.pdf

4. Politics

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniela_Santanch%C3%A8

http://biografie.studenti.it/biografia.htm?BioID=1712&biografia=Daniela+Santanch%E8

http://www.danielasantanche.com/biografia.php

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=j1WDT_0_kls

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=DSvo3R5AJA8

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=ed3duBV29K0&feature=related

http://www.politicaonline.it/?p=506

http://www.repubblica.it/2006/10/sezioni/politica/prodi-integrazione/velo-santanche/velo-santanche.html

http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Politica/2006/10_Ottobre/22/veloislamico.shtml

http://nuke.amalteaonline.com/Portals/0/upload_rivista/Rivista_due_e_tre/HipHop_riv_Amaltea2_3_2006.pdf 

 

Clinton’s political career has often been object of debate because of her breaking of some cultural barriers in various fileds which are still considered of male predominancy. First, she became a successful lawyer – a profession that is still regarded as a male domain– and was the first female associate of one of the most important law firms of the United States at the end of the 70’s. Secondly, her presence and active support during her husband’s presidential campaign has been a decisive factor that contributed to his victory. Her constant political engagement (especially during her first lady years) has also helped to renogotiate and improve the image of women in politics, thus violating some fix gender norms and bringing them under the spotlight. She has also been defined  “a polarizing figure”, in the sense that her presence in politics has always been very debated, raising either very positive or very negative opinions. This attitutde on the part of the American public opinion has been confirmed by a Time cover ^[19]of this year, in which below her picture you read “Love her”,  “Hate her”.

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zqXzs0C8Zk

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kytiKxHPzQA

(taken from two different episodes of "UOMINI E DONNE")

 

 

 

 

D&G^[20] 

 

 

 

Diesel  ^[21] 

L’ambientazione di questa pubblicità della Diesel è quella di una metropoli distrutta da un’alluvione a causa dello scioglimento dei ghiacci – la campagna infatti si chiama “Global warming ready”. L’acqua potabile sembra scarseggiare e gli unici sopravvissuti sono un ragazzo e una ragazza che per sfuggire alla catastrofe si sono rifugiati sul tetto di un grattacielo. Sui loro volti tuttavia non vi è traccia di disperazione e sembrano noncuranti di ciò che gli accade intorno. Il loro isolamento crea una particolare intimità sintetizzata dall’espressione dei loro sguardi complici e dall’attesa di lui di ricevere l’acqua. La donna è qui connotata in due modi diversi. Da una parte  come consolatrice in quanto lui appoggia la testa sul suo grembo e lei appoggia una mano sul suo petto, dall’altra come tentatrice poiché sembra restia a concedergli l’unica acqua rimasta. Questa duplice valenza e l’espressione languida sul suo viso contribuiscono a porla al centro dell’attenzione del lettore maschile che in qualche modo sembra sempre essere preso in maggiore considerazione dai pubblicitari.

 

In this advertisement we can see how the female body is exploited in order to immediately catch the readers’ attention. As beer is considered a drink for men, the ad is explicitly aiming at striking them. The body part in this case is breast, which occupies the left part of the image, together with the product itself – probably their being so close and having the same colour is not a coincidence at all. Another important thing to be pointed out is that we do not see her face, which is unfairly cut from the image, so that the reader’s attention is entirely focused on her body and, again, makes her nothing more than an object. The second character is a girl too but with more masculine features (short hair and almost no breast), who bawdily looks at the other’s disproportionate breast; the need to keep the beer away from the heat seems to be a mere excuse. It is not difficult to understand that the editors aimed at suggesting a sort of homosexual attraction between the two ladies, thus confirming a male target for this ad.

 

 

 

Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton (born October 26, 1947) graduated at Yale Law School in 1973 and became one of the most influential lawyers of the United States of the 80’s. As first lady of the United States from 1994 to 1998, she took a number of initiatives in favour of women and child care, even though some of them haven’t been approved by the Senate. At the end of her husband’s presidential mandate she moved to New York where she became senator for New York State in 2000 and was re-elected in 2006. This can be considered a unique event in the American history because New York had never been represented either by a female senator nor by a previuos First Lady before. She is now one of the two democratic candidates running for president and still a record woman, as she has won more primaries and delegates than any other woman has ever done before.

 

 

Here, you can find a very funny parody of the TV show. See how the three actors perfectly manage to mocker the participants of the program:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDq8idZHO8M

(Parody of "UOMINI E DONNE" taken from Zelig, a satirical TV show)

 

 

In Italy, you can easily find other examples of TV shows degrading women. These shows involve the partecipation of women but the only thing they have to do is to expose their bodies, hold microphones, do promiscuos dances and accept teasing from male participants. What is worse is that lots of Italian teenagers see them as idols and often express the desire to do the same things. Some of them become so obsessed with thinness that they end up forcing their bodies into extremely strict diets.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7kSc4yiw8E

(Le "veline" in "STRISCIA LA NOTIZIA")

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Create your own educational wiki!HelpPublic, not yet premium Privacy Policy RSS