The following
is a personal comment from WIFT Executive Director Susi Newborn and
does not necessarily reflect the views of the membership.
The
recent news that there may be a Kardashian family-style reality TV
show featuring Sally and Jaime Ridge has WIFT worried about the
message the media is sending our daughters, our sons and their
generation. Who are their role models? Why are we
rewarding reality TV's exploitation of
women's bodies? Are looks, for women, more important than their
brains or their talents? Is hyper-sexualisation and
self-objectification now a legitimate path to success in New
Zealand as it is in America?
We should be appalled at how often the cameras and commentators
focus on these celebrities, instead of the many other successful
women who have actually contributed something to society. Our
fascination with superficiality and the objectification of women in
popular media is increasing. When our top representatives in the
screen industry state that they believe The
GC - on which they spent almost half a million of
our taxes - is a "modern form of documentary" or a "programme that
has engaged the nation..." we should be really concerned about the
future for our industry. At least 87% of people who voted in a NZ
Herald poll said that there would 'No Way' they would watch a
reality show starring Sally and Jaime Ridge. Thank heavens for
that!"