Children are exposed to a barrage of sexual and violent images through mainstream and other media. As children gain more access to media through technology such as phones and computers, the time per day that children are exposed to images is increasing. The average high school student spends as much as 8-10 hours a day with some type of media, according to recent findings from the Geena Davis Institute. Studies estimate that counting all ads, logos, labels, and announcements a child is exposed to 16,000 images in one day. (Youth Media Reporter 2009).

Media and Violence Against Women

Often, media such as TV, commercials, movies, music lyrics, and even Halloween costumes, sexually exploits girls and young women; and it perpetuates unhealthy and unrealistic stereotypical portrayals of both young men and women. Sexually violent material can contribute to a social climate in which violence against women is more accepted. According to several studies by the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls (2007), men and women exposed to sexually objectifying and violent images of women from mainstream media were more accepting of rape myths, sexual harassment, sex role stereotypes, and interpersonal violence. Such structures of violence allow violence against women to exist and persist.

This resource, Challenge the Media: End the Sexualization of Girls and Young Women in Mainstream Media analyzes the impact of media on the rights of girls and young women from an international human rights framework, specifically the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

Download the resource free of charge here:  Challenge the Media: End the Sexualization of Girls and Young Women in Mainstream Media.