We realize systematically changing the way women, minorities, and LGBTQ+ people are represented in the media would be difficult to do at the individual level, which is why we came up with a few ways to advocate for better representation. These ways are to hold others accountable, be an activist, and set an example. Finally, we leave our solution section with examples of equal representation in movies, news media, and advertising campaigns to illustrate the efforts currently going on.
Hold Others Accountable:
Besides holding oneself accountable to recognizing when groups of people are being underrepresented, people can hold others- friends, family, companies- accountable. Social media can be a great platform to hold companies accountable for the things they say and do. One way to do this is through using the comment section of social media platforms to encourage others to be accountable and represent women and minorities fairly. If a user sees someone they know post or a company post something that is stereotypically representing men or women, they can freely express their opinions in hope that the company will see it and take responsibility for their actions and change.
Stepping away from the individual level, television shows have also worked to expose and hold companies accountable. Shows such as Sixty Minutesare known for exposing corporate level misconduct like sexism and gendered violence are helping this new wave of equality in media (Fixmer-Oraiz & Wood, 2017, p. 233). These shows are great because they are able to use their leverage as nationwide broadcasted shows to support a great cause. They can inspire change within larger companies and bring attention to the mistreatment of women and minorities. Giving a voice to minority groups is important because it sets a precedent that underrepresentation will not be tolerated.
It can be difficult to keep people one personally knows accountable because of the fear someone will react negatively. Keeping in mind that underrepresentation is not always intentional, respectfully telling friends and family what they could do better to encourage equal representation might be all the push they need. For example, if a friend captions their Instagram post with a sexist caption about women, it can be seen as an opportunity to clearly communicate how this stereotypically represents women, versus an opportunity to attack them for their caption.
Be an Activist:
Local and nationwide organizations use social media as a platform to bring awareness to underrepresentation and to increase their following. Examples of organizations that do this are the Black Lives Matter Movement and the Me-Too movement. The Black Lives Matter began as a simple hashtag and through social media it quickly spread to a household term. In addition, the Me-Too movement was started to spread awareness of harassment in the workplace, and it rapidly spread. The communication channel of social media is affective because it allows anyone to comment and post in solidarity with new organizations.
It is great that organizations are being made to support activism, however, activism does not only have to occur at this level- individuals can be activists. A powerful example of activism is from June 2013, when Texas state senator Wendy Davis filibustered an antiabortion bill for over 11 hours (Fixmer-Oraiz & Wood, 2017, p. 234). Davis did this to show that she supports women’s rights. Social media helped broadcast her filibuster on YouTube where it gained hundreds of thousands of views. What could have been a local or state news event turned into nationwide news because of her bravery and activism. Social media allows activists to communicate in “multiple ways that are related to gendered attitudes, identities, and activism” (Fixmer-Oraiz, 2019, p. 234).
Being an activist requires bravery, because it is not always easy to speak out about a cause that could be seen as controversial. If there is going to be change, however, it needs to start somewhere, and speaking out is a great place to start.
Set an Example:
Finally, besides holding other people accountable and being an activist, a simple solution is to set an example of representation on one’s own social media accounts and posts. By working to make sure social media posts are representative through a variety of ways like pictures that do not stereotypically represent women or men can show followers that the person they are following cares about equality in media. In addition, reposting or retweeting organizations that are activists can show solidarity and support. Finally, unfollowing people or organizations that stereotypically represent women, underrepresent minorities, or any other misrepresentation will show that it is not acceptable.
Examples:
To illustrate a good representation, the following are an example of representation in movies, news media, and advertisements.
First, an example of a movie that represents women and minorities well in recent movie pop culture is Crazy Rich Asians. This movie is important because usually when there is good representation of minorities in American media, it tends to be indie and not mainstream, but for this movie, it was popular in box offices across the country. This movie has an almost all Asian cast and it had a strong female lead and supporting actress. In addition, it portrayed women and Asians mostly not stereotypically, which helps show that these minorities are not all the same.
Next, a good example of representation of LGBTQ+ and women in news media is The Ellen Show. Although her show is definitely soft news, her talk show being in mainstream is a feat for LGBTQ+ representation. As part of the community, Ellen DeGeneres touches on issues facing the community and has an open dialogue about representation of LGBTQ+ people and women. In addition, she breaks the stereotypes of both women and lesbians by just being herself and dressing and acting herself.
Finally, an example of a company that uses its advertisements to touch on women empowerment is Aerie. The Aerie Real campaign is a campaign launched by American Eagle’s brand Aerie. They have a mission to empower women and leave their photos unretouched. In addition, they use models that have different shapes, skin tones, and models with disabilities to further showcase women that represent different groups.
Women, Minorities, and LGBTQ People in Media: How to Represent All 