Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999
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The Ohio State University / OhioLINK
2000
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| Online Access: | http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392988815 |
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ndltd-OhioLink-oai-etd.ohiolink.edu-osu13929888152021-08-03T06:22:36Z Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 Stimel, Leslie A. Journalism Research shows that the number of people suffering from eating disorders in the Untied States has grown over the past twenty years. Although women and girls are the most frequently afflicted, these illnesses do not discriminate: they affect both females and males, and cross over nearly every age, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Many researchers have speculated that media play a role in the existence and perpetuation of anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder. With the popularity of “women’s magazines,” that is, those magazines oriented towards women, the question arises: how has the nature of eating disorders been defined in women’s magazines over time and why?This thesis attempts to answer that question, as well as to explain why changes in the frequency of articles about eating disorders may have occurred using theories of social control and social change. For the analysis, two women’s magazines, Vogue and Ladies’ Home Journal, were selected due to their large circulation and enduring popularity; both have been published for over 100 years. Each issue of each magazine from 1979-1999 was analyzed for articles about eating disorders. These articles were counted for frequency and analyzed for content in an attempt to answer the above question. Some of the items looked for in the content analysis were: the characters being represented in each article, the causes mentioned, and solutions to the problem being offered.Overall, the results showed that there was a significantly greater amount of coverage in the 1990s than in the 1980s; during this time period, Vogue didn’t print an article about eating disorders until 1996. The results also demonstrated that men were all but omitted from the articles; all patients represented in the articles were women. Another important finding was the articles’ focus. Nearly every article focused on the individual in terms of causes and solutions, while none suggested a partial shift in focus to environmental causes and solutions.The findings of this thesis support the theory that media act as agents of social control. In this case, the infrequency of coverage and lack of environmental focus shifts the attention away from environmental influences such as fashion models and an unrealistic body ideal and lays the responsibility on the individual.This research study could be further developed by completing a separate study on another illness that predominantly develops in women, such as breast cancer. By analyzing the frequency and definition of another illness, one could have a basis for comparison when interpreting the frequency and nature of the coverage of eating disorders. 2000 English text The Ohio State University / OhioLINK http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392988815 http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392988815 unrestricted This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws. |
| collection |
NDLTD |
| language |
English |
| sources |
NDLTD |
| topic |
Journalism |
| spellingShingle |
Journalism Stimel, Leslie A. Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 |
| author |
Stimel, Leslie A. |
| author_facet |
Stimel, Leslie A. |
| author_sort |
Stimel, Leslie A. |
| title |
Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 |
| title_short |
Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 |
| title_full |
Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 |
| title_fullStr |
Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Eating Disorders and Women's Magazines: A Study of Coverage From 1979-1999 |
| title_sort |
eating disorders and women's magazines: a study of coverage from 1979-1999 |
| publisher |
The Ohio State University / OhioLINK |
| publishDate |
2000 |
| url |
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1392988815 |
| work_keys_str_mv |
AT stimellesliea eatingdisordersandwomensmagazinesastudyofcoveragefrom19791999 |
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1719435641283936256 |