J.K. Rowling On Body Image

Our eldest came across this via Instagram - we love this:

“Fat’ is usually the first insult a girl throws at another girl when she wants to hurt her.

I mean, is ‘fat’ really the worst thing a human being can be? Is ‘fat’ worse than ‘vindictive’, ‘jealous’, ‘shallow’, ‘vain’, ‘boring’ or ‘cruel’? Not to me; but then, you might retort, what do I know about the pressure to be skinny? I’m not in the business of being judged on my looks, what with being a writer and earning my living by using my brain…

I went to the British Book Awards that evening. After the award ceremony I bumped into a woman I hadn’t seen for nearly three years. The first thing she said to me? ‘You’ve lost a lot of weight since the last time I saw you!’

‘Well,’ I said, slightly nonplussed, ‘the last time you saw me I’d just had a baby.’

What I felt like saying was, ‘I’ve produced my third child and my sixth novel since I last saw you. Aren’t either of those things more important, more interesting, than my size?’ But no – my waist looked smaller! Forget the kid and the book: finally, something to celebrate!

I’ve got two daughters who will have to make their way in this skinny-obsessed world, and it worries me, because I don’t want them to be empty-headed, self-obsessed, emaciated clones; I’d rather they were independent, interesting, idealistic, kind, opinionated, original, funny – a thousand things, before ‘thin’. And frankly, I’d rather they didn’t give a gust of stinking chihuahua flatulence whether the woman standing next to them has fleshier knees than they do. Let my girls be Hermiones, rather than Pansy Parkinsons.”

- J.K. Rowling

A Lesson For Tweens: Umm, No - I'm Pretty Sure It's Fotoshop

January is for resolutions, and for many this includes renewed efforts to work out, look good, etc. This video comes at an opportune time as our tweens (and everyone else) see the magazine covers everywhere this month. As the video's creator says, "This commercial isn't real,  neither are society's standards of beauty." Our YouTube-obsessed tweens gave it their stamp of cool.


 


Fotoshop by Adobé from Jesse Rosten on Vimeo.

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Tween Girl Issues in Film

Winners of the New York International Children's Film Festival (NYICFF) include a category called "Girls' Point of View", a collection of the best short films focusing on female protagonists and exploring common teen and tween girl issues around the globe. These shorts are designed for girls ages 9 to 16 but are not appropriate for girls under the age of 9. The program includes NYICFF Jury Prize-winning short film Chalk and Audience Award-winner See You, in addition to shorts from the UK, China, France, Denmark and United States.

We wrote about the issue of how girls and women are portrayed on screen when we reported on the Geena Davis Institute for Gender in Media event last month. These kinds of films are exactly what Ms. Davis was advocating for; attending a screening of "Girls Point of View" may interest you and your tween. We're trying to find screening times and will keep posted when we do.

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Geena Davis on How Girls Are Portrayed in the Media

Academy Award-winning actor Geena Davis is famous for portraying strong (both physically and emotionally) women on screen. When she became a mom, however, she was struck by the utter dearth of positive, active, and central role models for girls in movies and on television. She founded the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in the Media (GDIGM) to conduct research on the issue and advocate for change in the industry. We had the opportunity to attend an event on this topic yesterday at Georgetown University's McDonogh Business School and ask Ms. Davis a few questions.

GDIGM did a comprehensive survey of the roles girls and women had in film and television. They looked at everything from the amount of screen time girls and women had, how many girls and womens were in stories, their costumes, the number of lines they had, how they were or were not stereotyped, and the like. The organization also looked at the number of women in professional positions in the industry - that is, those behind the cameras. The results of these studies, especially those on family programming, were disturbing:

• Women and girls account for less than a third of the characters in family films. Despite public perception that this has changed (oft-cited are films like Mulan and Tangled, and shows like iCarly and Hannah Montana), this figure has not changed since 1946. Surprised? We were.
• Research shows that there is a direct correlation of when more women are behind the camera, women have more screen time and account for a higher number of characters (even background ones) shown. But the industry trend on female professionals in the industry is that women in the key roles of Director, Producer, and Write are going down.
• In G-rated films, 80.5% of all working characters are male - but women comprise 50% of the workforce. Why are we shown a 1950's version of the world in 2011?
• You can view their research here.

Why does this matter to parents, especially parents of tween girls? Because:

• Even though females comprise 50% of the US population, our daughters see that men outnumber women 3-to-1 on screen. Inexplicably, only 17% of group or crowd scenes are female. As Ms. Davis said yesterday, "So if we're 51% of the population but only 17% of the crowd, where did we all go?"
• This research means that "family entertainment" isn't the safe haven we parents expect it to be. Female characters are hyper-sexualized, almost especially when animated, and in the majority of shows are there just as eye-candy. One of our favorite quotes from Ms. Davis at yesterday's session was, "The way they're drawn, there's no room for a spinal column."
• Other research GDIGM cites finds that girls who are exposed to more media have the feeling that they are fewer choices in life, and that, on average, the more media boys watch the more sexist their outlook.
• Coraline is often held up as an example of a strong female lead role. Did you know that in the book, there was no boy character and that Coraline saved herself? Hollywood put one a boy character in, and he saved her. Really??

So what can parents do? (We LOVE when there are specifics like this)

• Watch media with your tween as much as possible and discuss what you see. Ms. Davis tells of how she'll watch a show with her own tween (now 9 years old) and ask, "Why do you think she's dressed like that if she needs to go and save someone?" or "Do you think a girl could be the hero in this show as much as a boy?" Starting this dialogue will go a long way towards changing her mindset - neither you nor her have to accept what's shown.
• Make your voices heard. The good news is that because of Ms. Davis stature in the industry, GDIGM's research was been shown to a key players in it. She has been heartened by the response: that people were shocked by the study. "This means," she says, "that there's no plot to keep women out. And that's a good thing."
• Raise the consciousness about this issue. Count the number of females you see on screen. Ask about it. Because what we've seen hasn't changed since 1946, it means that we all just take it for granted. Be media-literate, and ensure that your tween is too.

GDIGM will update their research next in 2015. Let's all hope that the results show improvement.

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Just Announced: the Members of "Healthy MEdia: the Commission for Positive Images of Women and Girls"

Co-chaired by actress Geena Davis and former FCC Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate, an organization to "lead the national dialogue on how women and girls are portrayed in the media and outline a blueprint for promoting positive and healthy media images" has been created. Members of "Healthy MEdia: the Commission for Positive Images of Women and Girls" draw from the public, private and non-profit worlds and include:

• Co-chair Geena Davis, Academy Award-winning actor and founder of the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
• Co-chair Deborah Taylor Tate, former FCC Commissioner
• Maria Brennan, President and CEO, Women in Cable Telecommunications
• Alice Cahn, Vice President, Social Responsibility, Cartoon Network
• Danielle Carrig, Senior Vice President, Advocacy & Public Affairs, A&E Networks
• Salaam Coleman Smith, President, The Style Network
• Sean Cunningham, President and CEO, Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau
• Madeline Di Nonno, Executive Director, The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
• Carmen DiRienzo, President and CEO, V-me Media, Inc.
• Emme, Social Reformer, TV Host and Founder, EmmeNation.com
• Ivelisse Estrada, Senior Vice President, Corporate and Community Relations, Univision Communications
• Janice Ferebee, founder and CEO, National Council of Negro Women
• Erin Fuller, President, Alliance for Women in Media
• Marie Gallo Dyak, Executive Vice President, Program Services and Government Relations, Entertainment Industries Council
• David Honig, President and Executive Director, Minority Media Telecommunications Council
• Sherri Hope Culver, President, National Association for Media Literacy Education
• Myung Kang-Huneke, Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Sesame Workshop
• Jean Kilbourne, Creator of the "Killing Us Softly: Advertising's Image of Women" Film Series
• Linda Kinney, Vice President for Regulatory Affairs, Motion Picture Association of America
• Jeanine Liburd, Executive Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs, Black Entertainment Television
• Vicki Lins, Chief Marketing Officer, Canoe Ventures
• April McClain-Delaney, Washington Director, Common Sense Media
• Cindy McConkey, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Scripps Network
• Lesli Rotenberg, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications, Children's Media, Public Broadcasting Service
• Katherine Schwarzenegger, author, "Rock What You've Got"
• Ann Shoket, Editor-in-Chief, Seventeen Magazine
• Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Director, Miss Representation
• Dr. Nancy Snyderman, Chief Medical Editor, NBC Nightly News
• Belinda Van Sickle, President and CEO, Women in Games International
• Alexa Verveer, Senior Vice President, Discovery Communications
• Jess Weiner, Author, Self-Esteem Expert and Dove's Global Self-Esteem Ambassador

Eight teen Girl Scouts were also selected to serve on the Commission: Allie Lundell and Jasmine Dent of Maryland; Caitlin Claire O'Brien of Texas; Kulsoom Ahmed of Illinois; Katie McGrath, Maggie Burgos and Caroline Tydings of Virginia; and Toni Guiterriez of California.

The first meeting of the Healthy MEdia Commission will take place next week in Washington, D.C., and we hope that we can bring you live reporting from the event - stay tuned! 

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Abercrombie Kids' Targets Tweens With Push-Up Bikini

At first I thought this was an online joke, but sadly I confirmed that it's true: Abercrombie Kids is selling push-up bikinis to girls ages 8 to 14. They even had an entire section of their website devoted to "push-up" as a category (I say "had" because the company changed their description and website menu from "push-up" to "triangle" this weekend). The video from the news segment on ABC News is below:



I have to ask: what message is Abercrombie Kids trying to send to kids by selling push-up bikini tops to tweens?  Do they believe that tween girls - remember, Abercrombie Kids makes clothing for kids ages 8 to 14 - should need and want padding in their bikinis? Certainly I can understand some lining for decency, but I cannot fathom why a push-up feature is needed on an 8 year old.

Dr. Michael Bradley, a child psychologist, was interviewed by ABC News and cited four societal negatives from having a child retailer sell this product:

1. We're shaping their beliefs and teaching tweens that our popular culture values them as sex objects.
2. We're shaping their behaviors: kids who are introduced to sexualized images and media earlier are more likely to engage in sexual activity earlier in life as well.
3. We're wreck their body image and telling them they're not okay as they as they are.
4. We're taking their childhoods away from them.

We wrote about a store in London, Primark, who sold padded bikinis to tweens last year. They faced such backlash that they pulled the item from shelves quickly and donated the proceeds to charity. Given the public outrage, I'm frankly surprised another retailer would repeat this gross mistake in judgment.

Abercrombie Kids' is seeing the backlash hit its Facebook page as well - parents are posting their dissatisfaction with the company on nearly every update. Are you, or were you, a fan of Abercrombie Kids? Is your tween? Will this issue change your views of the company? How will you broach this topic with your daughter?

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MsTwixt's List of 2011 Tween's New Year's Resolutions

Here's the complete list from our series of New Year's Resolutions for Tweens in 2011. Did you try any of these? Please add your suggestions and comments below.

• Get up for school on time
• Write thank you notes
• Pack the right gear
• Connect with mom - try a Mother-Daughter journal
• Make family dinners fun
• Unplug more - use Facebook and text in moderation
• Cook as a family
• Role model healthy living for our daughters

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Tween's New Year Resolution: To Model Health and Happiness For Tweens

Here's one last resolution for consideration in 2011: role modeling health and happiness for our tween daughters. Like a few of our other resolutions, this one is for both tweens and their parents. We wrote about this topic earlier when First Lady Michelle Obama explained in an interview that "Throughout my life, I've learned to make choices that make me happy and make sense for me. Even my husband is happier when I'm happy. So I have freed myself to put me on the priority list and say, yes, I can make choices that make me happy, and it will ripple and benefit my kids, my husband and my physical health."

Making time for ourselves as moms is especially challenging given the demands of work, parenting, marriage - you name it. Personally, I can use all the positive reinforcement I can get, so I'm going to borrow the First Lady's motivation for sticking to a regular workout schedule and use Mrs. Obama's counsel "to put me on the priority list."

This will be easier said than done as self-sacrifice has become the m.o. in our parenting career. But after this month of sharing our resolutions and all of the great comments from readers, it became clear that the choices we make (especially publicly stated ones, like resolutions) and the deliberate actions we take have a visible impact on our tween daughters. If we want them to grow into women with a healthy, positive body image, we've got to start with walking the walk. So, 2011, here we go.

Check out our full list of 2011 Tween's New Year Resolutions (see the upper right corner of the blog), and tell us what you thought about this series.

Photo credit: O Magazine

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Summit on Healthy Media for Youth Today on Capitol Hill

Super stars Geena Davis and Alfre Woodard headlined the "Healthy Media for Youth Summit" today on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The event was co-sponsored by Girl Scouts of the USA, The National Association of Broadcasters, The National Cable and Telecommunications Association, and The Creative Coalition.

The Summit explored the impact of the media on youth, especially girls', self image and brought together a coalition to promote healthy and positive images of women and girls through industry best practices, media literacy programs, career exploration, and opportunities for girls.

Ms. Davis said, "I have spent most of my adult life advocating for women and girls," and has advocated to put more strong female characters on screen. She spoke about how "a group did a study after 'Commander in Chief' was on the air that showed that people who watched the show were 68% more likely to vote for a female candidate after watching just one season. It speaks to the point where if you see it, you can be it."

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New Book on Positive Body Image For Girls Out Today

I guess today is the day for book announcements!  Katherine Schwarzenegger, daughter of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, has written a book about girls and healthy body image titled, "Rock What You've Got: Secrets to Loving Your Inner and Outer Beauty From Someone Who's Been There and Back."

We love the title and especially appreciate Ms. Schwarzenegger's take on the importance of having close family relationships to help gain perspective when dealing with sensitive body-image matters. About her mom, journalist Maria Shriver, she says, "My mom was always good with me. She always checked in with me. I had the best relationship with my mom. I still do. I talk to her four times a day." Not one to forget her dad, she adds, "I also have an amazing relationship with my dad. ... I talk to him about boys, about going out, about what I'm interested in, about business."

Ms. Schwarzenegger writes about the "friendly competition" she had with a friend to stay below a certain weight level and how she became "self conscious" about her weight in middle school.

The book was released today.

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Bollywood dance and fitness for tweens

After Slum Dog Millionaire cleaned up at the Oscars last week, Bollywood is on everyone's mind. There is a new DVD out for tweens featuring Bollywood dance moves by performer Sabrina Bryan, a Cheetah Girl. This video is all about celebrating girls and positive body image. The DVD is called BYOU2 (as in "Be You") and is actually the second in a series. Dance moves and fitness are the focus on the video with lots of motivation, positive self-esteem and healthy body image discussions sprinkled throughout. Pretty cool. You can learn more at www.byou.com.