Magazines

· Is there any harm in magazines featuring extremely thin (in the case of women) or very muscular (in the case of men) models in their photos and advertisements?  I believe there is harm in featuring thin or muscular models in advertisement.  It seems that this is where everyone looks for guidance, magazines.  From teens to women to men, we have all fallen into looking for perfection by looking at the standards the magazines portray.

· Do you think the images in fashion magazines contribute to the problem of eating disorders or steroid/supplement abuse? Why?  I do believe that fashion magazines contribute to eating disorders and supplement abuse.  We are all so focused on what the “status quo” is and tend to look to magazines.  I think young girls see these thin models and say to themselves, “If I just don’t eat for a week and make myself throw up, then maybe I can be thin like this.”  Then two months later their stomach can’t handle food and they end up having major problems they didn’t even think about.  What about a male that sees this muscular model and decides I’ll do steroids for a few months and see how that goes.  He then sees good results and continues until it is out of control.

· What about the opposite―Ought magazines feature “realistically sized” models? Does this help or harm things? Why?  I think that having realistic sized models would be a good thing.  I think that it would be good to have many different sized people in a magazine showing that we are all different.  The reality is a slim person and a plump person can eat the same thing and have the same level of active lifestyle, but because of heredity they don’t have the same body.  I think having realistic sized models would help people see that we are all individual and different.  Don’t be ashamed of who you are.  Being healthy is more important than looking a certain way.  A person would feel more accepting of themselves. 

· Should magazines Photoshop models to make them look thinner? How do you feel about the comments made by the editor of Self magazine in your chapter?  Magazines should not Photoshop models to make them look thinner.  It is setting a definite unrealistic standard and it is wrong.  I think what the editor said is ridiculous.  Even though she thinks it is best to make the cover model look their “best” it is not realistic.  Teens are then under even more pressure thinking that these stars are perfect.