Media responsibility

Well, I just finished watching a tape of Sheena's Place (www.sheenasplace.org) annual forum on eating disorder prevention and I'm all riled up. A series of panelists presented on different programs aimed at preventing eating disorders and promoting balanced health. Every single one of them talked about media literacy as a crucial element in health promotion. And it got me thinking, given the overwhelming amount of evidence that exists indicating that media and advertising is detrimental to our well-being, why are there so few checks on what is allowable and so few incentives for supplying more positive, health-promoting media? For those of you who think that all this talk about the dangers of media are crap, I would advise you dig a little. Consuming various forms of media has been linked with lower self-esteem, increased depression, increased body dissatisfaction, desensitization to violence (physical, verbal, sexual), increased feelings of fear and insecurity in the community - the list goes on and on.

Now I know some of you are bristling and saying "Freedom of speech! If we start the censorship process, it's just a slippery slope towards 1984." And I agree with you. It is crucial that there are uncensored outlets for discussion, debate, and disagreement. But I'm talking about corporate responsibility and the responsibility that we have as a society to protect each other from things that are clearly damaging. The truth is, it's not so much about what's removing what's out there (though I would be happier if stupid Julie's Story would just disappear). It's more about increasing the amount of alternatives available. It drives me nuts to hear health professionals talk about the need for media literacy, to see study after study show the harms of media exposure and then to see things only escalate in terms of the blatant use of sexuality to sell product, the objectification of women in advertising, music videos, and well, pretty much everything, the use of violence, especially sexual violence, to add "spice" to tv shows, and the complete lack of diversity in most of the dominant media. We focus so much on how to help children (and adults) deal with the messages coming in and do very little to provide other sorts of messages.

The other thing I would challenge you to think about when it comes to censorship and the media is the fact that we, as in we the lowly consumers, are already largely censored by lack of access. Only those with the cash get to be heard. How much would it cost an individual to run a full page ad in the Toronto Star? How about to put a poster in a subway? How about to run a campaign with newspaper, radio, and television ads? Most companies have large advertising budgets and so the images they choose are everywhere. We have little say about what we are forced to look at as we walk down the street or ride the subway. Occasionally complaints will bring action - I once complained that Chapters had an extremely explicit selection of manga directly in the path of the entrance to the children's section. I'm all for manga but I don't think pictures of women tied up in chains and wearing straps of leather are appropriate for 5 year olds. They moved the display. It was good. But face it, most of the time, complaints fall on deaf ears and nothing changes unless there is MASS public outcry.

Which is what I dig about weblogs - free access. You only need a very little technical know-how and access to a computer, which most people can get at a library or community centre. It's also what I dig about culture jamming. It might just look like graffiti but at least it's a way to interact and to strike back at the images that strike at us. Of course, it's illegal which is interesting. I can be forced to look at ads that are damaging to my self-esteem and increase my feelings of depression (it's not like I can walk down the street with my eyes closed) but I am not allowed to do anything to remove, disrupt, or even slightly mar those ads. The whole thing makes me feel very, very angry and very, very powerless. It's so discouraging, the power of the corporation versus the power of the individual. Grrr, it's enough to make me want to live off the grid. Solutions anyone?