Sexuality: The Impact of the Media
Sexuality is one of the most misused terms. Especially
in the media. A quick definition of sexuality and a summed up one. Think of
sexuality simply as which sex you are attracted to. For example homosexuality.
Is broken down into two parts. ‘Homo’, meaning same and ‘sexuality’ as to what
your sexual orientation is.[1] So
the full word homosexuality would simple mean you are attracted to the same
sex. Same could be said about Heterosexuality. ‘Hetero’ as in different and
‘sexuality’ again the sexual orientation you are. So a heterosexual is a person
who is attracted to a different sex.
Now onto the juicy part. Sexuality in the media is
often misused and it puts the wrong ideas into people’s minds. For instance, on
the famous TMZ show (a show that is dedicated to gossiping about celebrities)
they often coin behavior as ‘gay’. To clear up what I mean say Jay-Z wore a
pink shirt. People on the TMZ staff would call him gay. Based off of the
definition of sexuality I put up does that make sense? To simply call someone
gay for wearing a pink shirt? It would be different if Jay-Z said he was
attracted to men or showed a sexual attraction to men, but he didn’t. He just
wore a pink shirt.
For those who couldn’t quite grasp what I was trying
to say. Let’s put into more realistic terms. In school if a man is seen as
hanging around too many girls who are friends and not enough guy friends, then
he may be called gay. Or if he doesn’t show overwhelming interest for females
then he is called a homosexual. Is it not reasonable to assume that he may just
get along better with girls and prefer to have more female friends? Also does
it make him homosexual for not constantly staring at a woman’s body? Maybe he
rather show respect for women and not view them as sexual creatures only.
The media tends to blur the lines between gender and
sexuality which gives people a false view of what sexuality actually is. Hence
the example in the above paragraph. Calling someone a certain sexuality because
they don’t fit into a specific gender role isn’t correct. Sure there are some
media outlets that will use the term ‘sexuality’ correctly, but comedy shows
and other non-news stations often portray it incorrectly. The majority of
Americans watch TV so they see this kind of thing for years starting from when
they are children. The media can put it into people’s minds that sexuality is
based off of gender and it isn’t. If you fit the gender role for a man, it
doesn’t mean you won’t be sexually attracted to another man. The same goes for
women.
Another trend is to shame people for their sexuality
in the media. Recently Beyonce and Jay-Z did a performance together on the
Grammys. Her performance started out with her wearing a body suit and dancing
on a chair. The internet went on fire after her performance. Melissa Henson,
Parents Television Council, quote said, “Bad taste, vulgarity, and outrageous
performances are now the new Norm.”[2]
Parents all over America were saying how such a show wasn’t fit for children,
even though Beyonce was simply expressing her sexuality.
[1] Wikipedia,
"Homosexuality." Last modified January 31, 2014. Accessed January 31,
2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexuality.
[2] Chiderah,
Monde, and Psece Nicole . New York Daily News, "Grammys 2014 Beyonce and
Jay-Z sexy performance of 'Drunk in Love' draws more cheers than jeers from
fans, critics." Last modified January 27, 2014. Accessed January 31, 2014.
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music-arts/beyonce-jay-z-turn-heat-drunk-love-performance-article-1.1592457.
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