Men in the Media

Within the last two centuries, society has made a tremendous push for gender equality. Up until very recently, over half of the world’s population had been relegated to a subservient role; the men – strong, brave, providers – dominated the women – delicate, naïve, caretakers. Even today in many of the underdeveloped nations of the world, women remain submissive. In Saudi Arabia, women may face death if they are caught driving, while in Afghanistan, the average woman has a life expectancy rate of only 45-years-old (The Femenist eZine). Outside of these select few third-world countries, however, women have slowly gained themselves complete political equality in addition to social equality from most everyone. Yet, many feminists still argue that women are not equal in the developed world. This fight for gender equality which has erupted over the past two centuries has become a fight for women’s equality, inciting an unwarranted condemnation of men in the media. The media have conveyed to the public many different inaccurate messages about the expectations of men in society. News and movies expect men to always provide for the family, dying for the women and children if need be. Commercials and sitcoms depict men as oblivious, less-than-human buffoons who seemingly cannot function without the sensible women. Television, movies, and even music have glorified violence to demonstrate their expectation that men must be strong and powerful, ignoring the fact that men and women alike have emotions. Today, men are the most frequent victims of the media misrepresentation epidemic. To begin, society expects men to always provide for their families, putting their lives before those of their partners or children, due to the media exploiting men as “disposable.” Historically, gender inequality began during the very beginnings of civilization as a survival tactic. Without the technology or knowledge humans have today, early civilizations were exposed to far more danger than humans are now. One single famine, epidemic, or war could eliminate full tribes or people. If men were to survive a disaster while the women were all exterminated, this would mark the end of the civilization, as women are the restrictive influence in reproduction. Thus, women were placed at a higher importance than men, because without women, there could be no reproduction; so long as there is one competent man, society may continue. As societies became more advanced, the expectation that men sacrifice themselves for the women continued, even after the trend became obsolete. Men maintained their leadership roles, working to support the family while the women up-kept the home (menaregood.com). Eventually, women began to fight for equality, gaining themselves the ability to now play as equal a role in society as men. Yet the trend of male disposability continued and continues today, despite having no purpose in a world with an exponentially growing population and equal rights for women. One self-proclaimed “anti-feminist,” Karen Straughan, asserts “when it comes to the well-being of others, [women] come first, and men come last… seats in lifeboats, being rescued from burning buildings, and who gets to eat, society places men dead last every time” (Straughan). Straughan’s analogies are not merely situations she created; they are examples of different ways the media have taught society that male disposability is acceptable. The movie Titanic (1997), for instance, depicts the exact situation used in Straughan’s analogy. When their cruise ship hits an iceberg and begins to sink, lovers Jack and Rose cannot find a lifeboat to escape with. Though they find a wooden board to float on temporarily, it can only hold one person. Naturally, it is Jack who sacrifices his life for his beloved Rose. The media encourage men to sacrifice themselves for women in most every situation through movies like Titanic which characterize the sacrifice of male life as natural. They communicate this belief even more influentially through silence. Men in America account for more than 92% of workplace deaths, despite working only 57% of jobs (Perry). They also comprise over 97% of American deaths in Iraq (menaregood.com). Yet, there is seemingly no public outcry against the disparity between male and female workplace deaths. Men are just expected to work themselves to death. It is not questioned, nor is it given any attention by the media. In terms of their duties toward the women and children, a man is simply expected “to stand in front of a cabin with a rifle while his wife and kids hide inside” in the event of an intruder (Straughan), for example. The concept of male disposability is not foreign to society, as the media depict it as chivalric. However, the notion that male disposability is unequal is one the media ignore. Furthermore, the media continually misconstrue men as idiotic, lazy creatures as compared to the smart, wise women. To begin, Modern-day sitcoms have drastically shifted their portrayal of fathers from the quintessential ‘family man’ to dimwitted, bumbling morons. For approximately three decades following the Vietnam War, the media aired shows like The Cosby Show, Growing Pains, and Full House. These shows idealized the “American dream” of a happy family with wise parents as a response to American jingoism. After these feel-good shows became increasingly trite, a new trend began. The trend of “doofus dads” began around the early 1990s when cartoons like The Simpsons began to gain popularity for their “humorous” portrayal of men as “burping, farting, ignorant, and virtually useless” (Silver). Sitcoms like Olson & Douglas depict the father as “a fat oaf with no good advice to give his kids, and a beautiful wife who really ought to take the kids and leave” (Jove), a model shows like Family Guy, The Flintstones, Malcolm in the Middle, and an innumerable amount of other shows have copied since. This model is so popular because it mocks the “Average Joes” of society, a group of people who have never experienced oppression or inequality before; thus, there have been no groups who will protest or challenge the show for portraying stereotypes of men. The media continue to promote their easy-money comedies at the expense of the hard-working fathers of society. New York Times writer John Tierny points out that despite fathers spending more time with their children today than they did decades ago, on television men are “oblivious, troubled, deranged, and generally incompetent.” Tierny continues, saying that even the hard-working fathers on television who do not fit into the “lazy” or “incompetent father” stereotypes are “forever making messes that must be straightened out by Mom” (Peterson). Commercials are equally as obscene in their illustration of men as idiots. Children are estimated to see over 360,000 advertisements on television alone by the age of eighteen (Jove). Consequently, television commercials must have an impact on how a developing child thinks. Commercials do just as much damage toward the image of men as many of these disparaging television shows. For example, one commercial from Pampers advertised their diapers by saying that they could withstand even “the toughest test imaginable: dads, alone with their babies, in one house, for five days” (Peterson). This commercial blatantly labels fathers as unable to watch their child for even five days at a time without messing something up. Another commercial from T-Mobile shows a mother chastising her daughter for including “three-time first grader Ricky Fisher” as part of her T-Mobile texting plan. The mother then tells her daughter that she needs to “associate with smart guys,” to which the daughter replies sarcastically “sort of like… Dad and Uncle Joe?” The men are then seen out of the window riding a lawn-mower over a make-shift wooden ramp and crashing accordingly. This commercial makes three points about the imbecile men and the super-intelligent women: First, it labels boys as so moronic that some may have to repeat the first grade multiple times. Second, it asserts that women “must associate with smart guys” suitable for the smarter women. Third, it applies the banal aforementioned “doofus dad” stereotype of men trying to perform a dangerous stunt with makeshift materials, while the women dealt with more serious matters (Hughes). A third commercial from Hanes finds a man dipping his son’s feet into a bath of plaster because they “can’t find socks that shape to [their] feet” as the mother walks home with a pack of new socks. The woman retorts simply “that’s really stupid,” with a disdainful look on her face (Hughes). Writer and YouTube reporter Zac Hughes summarizes the effect these commercials have on society. He observes, “When I meet a potential employer I have to prove that I’m capable. When I meet someone new I have to prove that I’m not a moron,” instead of having the benefit of the doubt. The media depiction of men as unintelligent sub-humans has a lasting effect on how children view their fathers, as well as how society views men. Alternatively, the media has set rigid boundaries for men as to how masculine they must be to be considered “manly.” According to the media, a “real man” must be strong, heterosexual, hard-working, and cannot express their emotions. The strong influence of media over high school students is evident in a group of high school boys’ answers to the question “what is a real man?” Answers ranged from “strong,” “independent” and “physical” to “intimidating,” “powerful” and “respected,” but the one quality every student identified was that real men must be “tough.” Those who do not conform to these definitions of manhood are instead identified as a “wuss” or a “sissy.” (Katz). Movies have steadily helped to convey these messages as they glorify violence, associating it with strength. For example, legendary gang movie Goodfellas (1990) contains a scene where a gang member repeatedly beats another man over the head with his gun for flirting with his girlfriend. This scene is just one of many in the film where violence is heavily glorified. Other action films like Pulp Fiction (1994), Reservoir Dogs (1992), and Kill Bill (2003) esteem gang members, mafia members, and samurai as the highest form of man because of their violent tendencies. Additionally, video games glorify war and gang violence, influencing them to further believe that violence is ‘cool’. While these games are absolutely not the sole factor in a child’s view on violence, they objectify violence as a goal; “who can kill the most soldiers on the opposing army” or “who can rob the most banks at gunpoint without being caught by police” become missions that children strive to accomplish. For leaders in these games, there are army commanders designed with defined jaws and bulging muscles who hurl obscenities at the children who are playing the game. In other games, the protagonists are suit-clad pimps draped with jewelry and pockets filled with money. These are the ideals of masculinity that many impressionable children are influenced by today. These ideals of manliness which the media project onto easily-influenced boys carry rigid standards for how men must be emotionally as well. In the eyes of the populous, a man crying is “not masculine,” and shows that this man is truly a “crybaby.” The media teaches boys and men through movies and television that, as Jackson Katz says, “being a so-called “real man” means that you have to take on [a] ‘tough guise.’ In other words, you have to show the world only certain parts of yourself that the dominant culture has defined as ‘manly’” (Katz). Seldom are men featured in action movies filmed crying, as it would detract from their stereotypical masculine image. In commercials, men are also given the message that any form of emotion is not macho. One commercial from the company Milwaukee’s Best Light beer depicts a scene where a man playing poker with friends says he has to get something from his car but instead goes to call his wife. Away from his friends at the table, the man says “hey hunny, how are you? I’m just calling to check in” before being crushed by a giant can of beer. The commercial’s narrator, a man with a rugged, deep voice, boasts “Men should act like men, and light beer should taste like beer” before the commercial ends (Duong). This commercial contains everything wrong with the media portrayal of emotions as unmanly. First, the commercial establishes that a man cannot even express to his closest friends that he is taking a break to call his wife, as that would be seen by them as too effeminate. Second, the man is crushed by a beer can for simply trying to ensure that his wife is safe, something even the least affectionate husbands are expected to do on occasion. Third, the narrator claims that “men should act like men,” implying that calling one’s wife would not be doing so. This assertion also begs the question of how men should act. If men are to follow the definition of manliness set in this commercial and media at large, then men cannot express emotion in the least. The media requiring that men remain numb to emotion leads to another massive problem: it is a fact that men are the perpetrators in most all violent crimes. According to mediated.org, 85% of murderers are men, 90% of assaults are conducted by men, and 95% of serious domestic violence is conducted by men (Katz). These abhorrently high ratios could potentially be lowered if men were not required to keep their emotions bottled up. William Pollack metaphorically laments the situation, saying “if we don’t allow our boys to cry tears… then some boys are going to cry out with their fists and some boy are going to cry bullets” (Children Now). Because the media do not allow men to be both masculine and emotional simultaneously, many men cannot express their feelings of sadness or frustration to others without fearing that they may be seen as meek. This is also why a massive 80% of suicides are carried out by men, as they cannot go see a therapist and reveal that they are sad, because that would make them emotive people, the antithesis of masculine (menaregood.com). Because of these massively disproportionate male-to-female violence ratios, society views domestic disputes in public very differently depending on the scenario. If a man appears to be getting in the face of his female partner, society regards this very seriously; if a female is the one seen provoking or becoming physical, it is typically dismissed. An experiment was conducted in London with actors to test this theory out and found similar results. First, a man and woman staged an argument where the man would become physical with the woman. When the couple come into sight, the man is seem trying to hold his partner, demanding she tell him something about who she had been with earlier. He becomes aggressive, grabbing her face with both hands before pushing her backward into a fence, still urging her to tell him what he wants to know. Almost immediately, multiple people intervene, questioning why the man was treating the poor woman in such a way and threatening to call the police. Later, the situation is flipped so that the man is the one being abused. The woman curses at him, yelling at him very loudly before pushing him into a fence and then banging on his chest with her fists repeatedly. While some watched uncomfortably, most people watching laughed at the man being abused. (ManKind Initiative). The influence of media causes society to try and defend any woman against male violence, while a woman abusing a man is far less urgent. The media play an outrageously large role in how masculinity is viewed by both men and women. The media today misrepresent men far more frequently than any other group. The media relentlessly try to force men into strict gender roles. Through movies, television, advertisements, and the news, the media have influenced men to be men instead of just people, with seemingly no other favorable option. News and movies have relegated men to a permanent role as a provider and, if need be, savoir of their family. Commercials and sitcoms over the past two decades have portrayed men as unintelligent, inferior beings, capable of neither raising a family nor sustaining themselves without doing something stupid. Through movies, video games, and commercials, the media has laid out fixed guidelines for how to be a man which can only be broken at the risk of being labeled as feeble. Truly, the feminist fight for gender equality has been one-sided thus far. Only recently have groups advocating for men’s social rights rose to prominence. Still, the media’s portrayal of men, and resulting influence on society, is inaccurate and harmful to the susceptible youth. The media are focused on keeping men in the same role as they have maintained for millennia in order to promote women’s equality. Yet, this is exactly the opposite of equality. To progress as a society, the media cannot focus so much on male equality or female equality in the future; rather, the media needs to promote one single effort for equality, including all races, cultures, and sexes.

Sources Cited:
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Straughan, Karen Femenism and the disposable Male. Youtube.com 5 Nov 2011. Web. 6 June 2014.
Men Are Good. Male Disposability. Menaregood.com Web. 6 June 2014.
Perry, Professor Mark J. Male-Female Occupational Death Gap Is 13 to 1. Carpe Diem: Professor Mark J. Perry’s Blog for Economics and Finance. Mjrperry.blogspot.com. 10 Sep 2009. Web. 6 June 2014.
Jove, Chelsea Ivy-Rose. The Portrayal of Men in the Media. URC Research Journalism, Vol. 9. Kon.org. 2009. Web. 6 June 2014.
Silver, Austin. Media Portrayals Of Men. Ask Men Daily: Austin. Askmen.com. Web. 6 June 2014
Peterson, Sarah. Dumbing down Dad: How media present husbands, fathers as useless. Desertnews.com. 27 Feb 2013. Web. 6 June 2014.
Hughes, Zach. Men are Stupid (A Media Study). Youtube.com 28 Nov 2012. Web. 6 June 2014
Katz, Jackson. Tough Guise: Violence, Media & the Crisis in Masculinity. Youtube.com – Challengingmedia. 4 Oct 2006. Web. 6 June 2014.
Duong, Michael. Portrayal of Masculinity and Femininity in the Media. Youtube.com – geog124. 27 Apr 2010. Web. 6 June 2014
Children Now. Boys to Men: Media Messages About Masculinity. Joan Lapp. Childrennow.org 1999. Web. 6 June 2014.
ManKind Initiative. #ViolenceIsViolence: Domestic abuse advert Mankind. Youtube.com. 22 May 2014. Web. 6 June 2014.

Cited: Jove, Chelsea Ivy-Rose. The Portrayal of Men in the Media. URC Research Journalism, Vol. 9. Kon.org. 2009. Web. 6 June 2014. Silver, Austin