Reality

Since the start of the 21st century, Media has been used by everyone to express their individual sexuality. This is a REALITY. An increasing number of young people have been using the internet (specifically social networks and dating apps) to send and receive sexualized pictures to please their partners. Besides, "sexting" (the exchange of erotic texts) is a new but growing trend among people of all ages but specifically young ones. Also, Pornography is not a 21st century's invention. However, it is the starting point for young people (especially boys) when it comes to start thinking about what sex is.

We published an online survey in December 2017. We wanted to know a bit more about the sexual behaviors of people in Media. Out of the 170 people who have answered this survey, around 86% have watched pornography, 43% with less than 14 years old. Nevertheless, only 10% of the respondents think that pornography is a real representation of what sexuality is. 30% have used dating apps (Tinder, OkCupid, Hinge, Plenty of Fish in the Sea, etc...) and around 20% of those people have met up with somebody from those apps. Concerning sexting, 60% said that they have already tried it. Approximately half of the people have admitted sending erotic pictures of themselves.

When the answers were analyzed, we weren't surprised by the facts. The reality is this: media is here to stay. Even in the most private, intimate and personal aspects of our lives, media will still be present for long. 

Paulo Carneiro

Sexuality expressed in Media

Sexuality is more and more present in our everyday society through media. It's becoming so common that sometimes we do not even notice it. It has reached a point where we learn more about sexuality through media than our parents or schools. We see these sexual expressions so regularly nowadays that we have finally got used to it. They appear in all types of media and we can easily see examples.

Almost all TV commercials we see relate to this: they addresss more about the practice of sex itself (like the advertisement from Viagra), how to protect yourself from getting pregnant, or even a simple add to some pregnancy test brand. We see in almost every movie some kind of "sexy" scene showing relationships as being more sexual than emotional ones. Thus, advertisements where we see the actor being portrayed as a sexual object, constructed in a seductive way to please the audience, are very ordinary. That way beauty standards are put up by the media and we feel like we have to obey them to be accepted.

It's even easier to access it through phones or the internet. Technology has opened the door to things like dating sites, sexting, posting or sending nude photos, and they are popularizing more and more. Many of the apps that we have on our phones lead the way to some type of conversations that can turn to heated talks or sending pictures of themselves. Some of these apps are almost especially made for this. Unfortunately, as we all know, many of these things get posted online where everybody can see them. Music is also a major source of sexual suggestiveness.

There is in fact a direct relationship with the amount of sexual content children see and ear and their level of sexuality activity in the future. But it's up to us to decide if we should let the media control our most intimate self's.

 Leonor Andrade

Pornography Industry 

Pornography dates to the beginning of time as being the depiction of erotic behavior intended to cause sexual excitement and although it's always been part of society, it is now a billion-dollar entertainment industry and growing as days go by.

Porn sites receive more views every day than Netflix, Amazon and Twitter combined. This means that pornography sites are the most viewed online. Its access is very easy, at any age (not very safe), which means teenagers can view them anytime, and its use is very frequent. Any child with at least 13 years is very likely to have had some connection with pornography. And it does not stop there. Child pornography is also a very common in this industry, adding to 3 billion dollars. Unfortunately, it is one of the fastest-growing online businesses. Over 624,000 child porn traders have been discovered online in the U.S.

In comparison with the film industry, Hollywood releases roughly 600 movies and makes $10 billion in profit. And how much does the porn industry makes? 13,000 films and close to $15 billion in profit. In fact, every 39 minutes a new porno movie is made.

Porn is a favorite for millions of users, and many of them have no idea what kind of harm they're letting into their own lives, or the kind of exploitation they're contributing to. 

Leonor Andrade

Women commercialized in magazines:The image of women in media

Beauty sells. But what type of beauty should magazines sell?

We all have reached the conclusion that media protraits a specific image of women in media. All women are usually models, with certain measurmeants to fill. In a blog written by Anna Davtyan-Gevorgyan with the title Women and Mass Media, it is easy to understand that media follows two stereotypes: either a household wife or a sex-object.

 This limiting way of advertising has been calling out the "super-hero" side of women, trying to change their image into something respectful and tasteful. There are a lot of examples of this misleading image: the very famous Jersey Shore, in which the young women in the show are only used for entertainment and only show their radical behavior, for example;  These forms of marketing are dangerous, in a broad sense of the word. Women have a lot of difficulty in developing a strong and independent personality, without insecurities. In fact, anorexia is a brutal cause of what is seen in magazines. Young women's health is at risk and is worth fighting for.

It is time to change this narrow-minded way of seeing women and show that women are much more than house-wives or sex-objects. 

Marcela Adão

Sexual harassment in Hollywood 

The first view on the matter should be that harassment is wrong because its definition implies going against someone else's will.

In a business where the face, body, the image is your work tool, there will always be people in higher positions who will want to take advantage of desperate people in need of a job. Especially, but not only, men towards women because the industry is so demanding about the way they look.

Media and the Internet, Twitter in this case, really helped to jump-start the case against the famous owner of a movie production company: Harvey Weinstein. He had been harassing women in the business since everyone can remember but no one said anything because they were afraid their voices would not be heard. But with the internet no one could look the other way, you only need a twitter account.

The year 2017 started an internet revolution with the #metoo trending on twitter, and because of it, women could tell their own story, involving well-known actors like Kevin Spacey, that have been marked as sexual predators because of it. Even the NY times featured the #metoo and its power on the most important cover, the last issue of the year.

In conclusion, harassment still exists and will probably and unfortunately continue to exist but nowadays we can have the certainty that Media will give the power and voice to smaller individuals.

Maria Inês Barroso

Literature and sexuality 

Literature for a very long time was the only source of media people could find. It unraveled different views of the world, you could see what was not in front of you. Therefore, it was very influential, the love or sexuality that it portraited was simple, not very explicit and altogether unrealistic, but it only serves to reflect the mindset of society back then.

Almost every subject was taken as a taboo, especially if it was sexual. A lot has improved, people started to turn against such oppressions and started to more freely express themselves. Obviously, the end of the 20th century cannot be compared to our current times because there were still a lot of censures especially due to the government. Luckily all has evolved and we are in a society with a more advanced mindset (not forgetting the countries that unfortunately still are trapped under terrible oppression).

In conclusion, literature has always evolved directly with its society, portraying now more than ever a free way of viewing sexuality. There are so many books touching the subject, not only the more sexual and erotic genre but an LGBTQ genre as well: we have the examples of not only the books fifty shades of grey and Simon vs the Homo sapiens agenda but also their adaptations to the cinema which shows how far we have come.

Maria Inês Barroso

The Impact of Media on Younger Generations

The media world (television, movies, music, video games, the Internet, etc.) has a serious influence on how people view the world and even themselves. The aim of this article is that it will somehow inform the reader, generate discussions and provoke additional research on the subject.

Media plays a tremendous role in forming the youth's beliefs and affects the way they eat, dress, act, think, etc. This fact can be very frightening. While media offers opportunities to learn and be amused, some of its messages are linked to health problems. Also, every child is different and may react in distinct ways to a violent video game, a horror movie or something similar. Therefore, Mass Media may have an awful impact on youngsters if adults do not monitor their activities. But, if used in the right way, it can change lives for the better.

Since media is part of our daily lives, I think it is a necessity to distinguish both its positive and negative impacts. When a young person is well-informed about the impact of media, she will deal with media pressure much better. Nowadays, media is everywhere and therefore, nobody is able to avoid it. Yet, media is full of options and how you use it depends exclusively on you. The only way to overcome those problems is to educate young people so they won't be affected negatively by mass media.

Fátima Vilela

LGBTQ COMMUNITY

Historically, LGBT people were persecuted, killed and declared mentally ill just because they were not heterosexual. Although this is now a crime in most countries, they are still classified as different, abnormal and wrong. In the past, the portrayal of the LGBTQ+ community in mainstream media was unidentifiable. There were no LGBTQ+ characters in films or tv shows. Nowadays it's different.

Gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders have taken an increasingly proactive stand and achieved more visibility in mainstream media. This positive representation as a minority has helped when it comes to accept and support the LGBTQ+ community. But is that representation of today enough? And is it real?. 

According to GLAAD´s annual report, of the 895 series regular characters expected to appear on broadcast scripted primetime programming in the past year, 43 (4.8%) were identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer. This is the highest percentage of LGBTQ series regulars GLAAD has ever found. Lesbian representation dropped dramatically on broadcast television, down 16 percentage points to 17% of all LGBTQ characters. When it comes to streaming services (Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix), GLAAD found 45 series regulars and 20 recurring LGBTQ characters for a total of 65 characters. However, it's important to consider not only the number of LGBT characters in media but also how they are represented. In some cases, they are just representations of common stereotypes. For example, gay men are portrayed as promiscuous, dramatic and bold. 

Despite this, media had and are still contributing to making people feel good about themselves and let them understand that they are normal. We can mention some milestones like Ellen DeGeneres coming out and television shows like "Will and Grace" and "The L Word". More recently, tv shows like "Modern Family" or "The Fosters" are also representing homo-parental families, whose representation is quite rare.

Paulo Carneiro

The influencers and influenced of Media

Nowadays, the media world is full of 'influencers' and 'influenced people'. Many people even claim that media is single-handedly the biggest influencer of the population. But who are the 'media impacters'? And how are people affected by this huge media world?

Media influencers are those who somehow control other people's actions or behaviours because of their talents, knowledge, position, authority or any other aspect. Their most important characteristic is that they have a solid and loyal following in a niche, in which they actively interact with (usually through media). Those people who consistently affect the media world can be celebrities, industry experts (managers for example), bloggers, creators, thought leaders (for example: journalists), micro influencers, or others. Their value as 'influencers' is determined by the size of their audience and their power over their followers.

Despite media influencers, in the large media world, there are people that can be far more dangerous and destructive than them. For starters, criminals use a lot of websites and apps to target and influence young children or teenagers. Those wicked people can easily manipulate them into sharing personal information (which is very serious and should be addressed as a problem), into taking private pictures or even meeting up with them in person. Young people are often blind to this great danger and that's why it is so important to explain to them that many people on social media are lying about their identity. Besides, many media users don't know this, but some individuals can use the data from any photo to pull the exact geographic location of where that photo was taken. It is also common knowledge that whatever someone posts on the internet will be there forever, and that can have consequences in the future. Social media postings can later be accessed by stalkers, robbers, colleges, employers, insurance boards, and basically anyone who knows how to use a laptop.

Due to fundamental human rights, not much can be done to eliminate mass media's harmful content and corrupt influencers. Still, every individual has the power to make choices in order to lessen its negative effects in their lives. Overall, multiple studies show that media can affect many aspects of our life and our best protection is to think carefully about our actions and their consequences, about what we actually want to retrieve from media and who we choose to interact with or look up to.

Fátima Vilela

Anonymous stories

Sexuality in media exists in various form. Therefore, people experience it differently.

There are a lot of people that agree on the practice of sexting and sending nude photos, as a way of making the relationship enticing. We thought we should ask around regarding those subjects, for us to have insightful information about what really happens to people, anonymously of course.

After asking around, we realized that many of the experiences were not very pleasant ones. Most people (especially women) had their nude photos leaked on the internet, either by their friends, or by their partners. Why we wondered... simply because they thought it would be funny to expose people's intimate photos to embarrass them or because they wanted to get revenge about something. Although, not everyone has bad experiences. There are a few people that have had good experiences, saying that it has benefited their relationship.

In all fairness, no one can tell someone what they can or cannot do. However, we hope these stories inform everyone and allow them to act responsibly and aware of the consequences. 

Marcela Adão