College women influenced by the media

Going into college is a tough transformation for young college women; everyone wants to feel accepted and wants to fit in with the right crowd. As young women are leaving high school and going to college they want to be noticed, and stand out amongst the other college women, but how do young women take that approach to do that with the media only focusing on a certain body type.

 This topic of discussion makes it interesting for the local audience of young female college students, because in today’s society there are different debates about the way the media portrays different women’s body types. Many people around the world have mixed feelings about how America portrays the concept of “the perfect body type”. The reason it is addressed to this selected audience is because they are constantly surrounded by the media. But, is this issue being brought upon in different discussions amongst college campuses to spread awareness to the female students? Since it is becoming the topic of the media, different students such has health or fashion majors are learning more about the issue.           

 A few of the Albright College fashion students have recently discussed the movement in the fashion world, which expresses the significance of the plus size models.  Even though we are always focused to the typical advertisements that express the thin model body types the clothing company Lane Bryant has changed the game. Lane Bryant had featured their second ad campaign in the fall of 2015 featuring plus size models. But in order for this campaign to launch or get recognized, the social media department of the clothing company had launched a #PlusIsEqual hashtag on their social media sites to get the campaign rolling. The main idea of this movement was to give women of all sizes the equal representation in the media as any other model would get. They wanted to break the average model stereotype and focus on not just a specific characteristic of being tall and thin, but to transfer the spotlight to women who feel they are not as important in the media. Statistics show from People magazine that “Sixty- seven percent of U.S. women are size 14 to 34, but they’re underrepresented on billboards, magazines, television…everywhere”, according to the brand.  Along with their #PlusIsEqual campaign, Lane Bryant had launched their first campaign last spring with the hashtag #ImNoAngel. As known this hashtag is referring to the Victoria Secret clothing line called “Angel”. The campaign was another success to the media.

The Albright College fashion department has been discussing bits and pieces of this movement, senior Fashion major Alison Markey explains her opinion behind the topic that she has recently discussed in her fashion classes,

“I feel like this topic is going to go more viral than it already has, I am seeing more and more billboards on this topic since it has hit the media”.
      “Every year around the spring time you get a few young women wanting to change their body for the summer or get “beach ready”, but with that they are taking many risks of physically and mentally hurting themselves”. 
      Partsch explains that if the media starts focusing on different body types instead of the unhealthy stereotypical ones, college females will begin to accept their body and respect themselves. He explains that you can change your body and become healthy in different ways besides not eating or over working yourself in the gym, this begins with not listening to the media about “how to get a slim body in 30 days “or the social media accounts that represent different meals or workouts to lose weight in 10 days or less.
        Along with this topic hitting the media, Markey feels as if it is a great awareness for the fashion department to spread amongst the Albright College campus. She feels this way because it will show the young women on campus that it is okay to be different and be yourself.

      The Fashion department is not the only department on campus to feel this way about the movement but the Albright College Athletic Department is as well. Rick Partsch the Albright College Athletic Trainer explains his encounters with unhealthy eating habits everyday with college females, Partsch states

“Every year around the spring time you get a few young women wanting to change their body for the summer or get “beach ready”, but with that they are taking many risks of physically and mentally hurting themselves”.

        Partsch explains that if the media starts focusing on different body types instead of the unhealthy stereotypical ones, college females will begin to accept their body and respect themselves”. He explains that you can change your body and become healthy in different ways besides not eating or over working yourself in the gym, this begins with not listening to the media about “how to get a slim body in 30 days “or the social media accounts that represent different meals or workouts to lose weight in 10 days or less.    

        Partsch is not the only Albright staff member to be dealing with these sort of issues because of the media but college coaches are also a big aspect involved. Albright Women’s Lacrosse coach Jen Willis explains what she tells her players during the spring sport,

Coach Jen Willis (PC:Athletic Department)

 “Since lacrosse is in the fall and spring I want my girls to be healthy but also to be in shape, with training all year around it also involves the proper diet, in the past I had dealt with some females who worried too much about their appearance than worrying about their health due to the various social media sites that portray what they should look like”.

Willis also states how she deals with these situations, “I like to send out weekly information regarding how to maintain a healthy lifestyle and the harmful affects that could occur if you do not maintain a healthy lifestyle along with reminding them the media is not always right and to take care of themselves”.  With being a female college athlete sometimes they get too caught up in the working out and trying to be their best instead of being concerned about their health. 

Senior student athlete and Fashion and Merchandising major Erin Farrell expresses her thoughts on the Lane Bryant campaign and how it could also potentially spread awareness amongst college campuses 

Senior Erin Farrell
(PC: Athletic Department)

“I feel like the different campaigns that involve plus size models or just involve a different body type for women is great”. 

Farrell explains, “As I had discussed earlier in the semester in my fashion classes there will never be the perfect body type but for the media to actually get over that concept and start producing commercials and campaigns to spread awareness will take some time”.  Farrell also expresses that if it was not for all of these social media fitness accounts showing young college females what a “healthy and fit” body looks like we would not have these problems. Too many females tend to follow these accounts that lead them into the wrong direction. On Instagram, Twitter and Facebook different fitness accounts are made by fitness models representing their bodies and how to get their body, but not everyone has the same body type so young females who try to live up to those expectations could potentially hurt themselves and their body.

Many other Albright students are influenced by the campaign, senior Colleen Cahill explains her thoughts on the change in the media,

Senior Colleen Cahill (PC:Athletic Department)

“Since I am built differently than other females on campus I feel like the campaign is a great idea, not everyone has the same body type so for people to live up to the typical Victoria Secret body type it is not realistic”. 

Cahill explains the campaign is realistic campaign because it is all real and not photo shopped. Along with the campaign idea, Cahill expresses her thoughts on the media and how it represents young women, “being in college is tough, especially when you are surrounded by so many different body types and different people, you just want to fit in”. She also explains that the media accounts that are created are not realistic just like the models we see on advertisements and magazines, it is all about being yourself and not trying to change your body just because what you are influenced by.

            Overall the media has a big influence not only on the audience and viewers but also to young females that are trying to live up to the media’s expectations. With different campaigns and new advertisements such as the Lane Bryant campaign it is showing young women that the media is not only about the stereotypical body type but it is also about being you and being real.

-Nicole Klusewitz

com 315 Lehman 

Local blog 


Edits:
Focused on two departments in Albright College
Changed the focus from shortening the Plus size model section (an edit that was posted on my beat to localize this topic)

sources:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%23imnoangel

"Maxim's Plus Size Cover Model, Ashley Graham, Is Getting Backlash from Plus-Size Fans." National Post Maxims Plussize Cover Model Ashley Graham Is Getting Backlash from Plussizefans Comments. Caitlin Gibson, n.d web. 01 Apr.2016.
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