Watch it.

www.campaignforrealbeauty.com.

Obviously, its not an exaggeration of what really happens. I can't figure out why we continue to read magazines which basically hate women - and thus feel the need to conform us to this half-tolerable but totally unreal prototype - and in turn make us hate ourselves. I read an article a few weeks ago (that I now can't find) about a "model" that appeared in a major fashion spread, and then a bunch of other companies wanted to book her for their ads. Then it came out that she didn't exist at all - she was COMPLETELY computer-generated. Oops.
As women, we often fail to see that the fashion industry is not our friend. In fact, we see thousands of ads per day, and each one of them promotes distorted ideals and a sense of inferiority- both because real people can't live up to perfection and because that's the ONLY thing that seems to matter. Also, did you know that high-fashion runway models are picked specifically for having the facial structure and body type of pre-pubescent boys?
Both of my best friends have eating disorders. My cousin, at 5, can't have a conversation without using the word "sexy." Who's to blame for the recent phenomenon of plummeted self-esteem, unrealistic expectations for oneself and others, and an unhealthy focus on sexual imagery? There's no question - clinical proof of the media's effect on our psyche is pouring in every day.
I actually flinch every time I see my younger sister engrossed in a magazine, and to her frustration, tend to launch into a discussion of how not a single woman pictured has not been airbrushed into oblivion, not to mention the rediculousness of using a half-naked anorexic girl even when only selling backpacks or soft drinks.
....and I've officially lost ten more minutes of studying time. Oh, well.