Case study: Everyday Sexism

Everyday Sexism

1) Why did Laura Bates start the Everyday Sexism project?

Laura Bates started the Everyday Sexism project because within a week she experienced multiple sexual comments or assaults and felt like nothing was being done about it. Also, when she went to speak to women about similar things, they all had loads of stories to tell and this gave Laura more reason to start the Everyday Sexism project. 

2) How does the Everyday Sexism project link to the concept of post-feminism? Is feminism still required in western societies?
The 'Everyday Sexism' project links to the concept of post-feminism as the project allows people to share their stories regarding sexual assaults etc, and shows that feminism is still needed due to females still experiencing countless sexual assaults. Therefore, the project also shows that feminism is still required in western societies. 

3) How can you apply Judith Butler's theory of gender as a 'performance' to the creation of the Everyday Sexism project?
Butler believes traditional feminists are wrong to divide society into ‘men’ and ‘women’ and says gender is not biologically fixed. By dividing men and women, feminists accidentally reinforced the idea of differences between the two genders. She also believes  that gender roles are ‘a performance’ and that male and female behaviour is socially constructed rather than the result of biology. Therefore, Butler's theory of gender as a 'performance' can be applied to the 'Everyday Sexism', as most sexual accusations are based upon a woman's body, rather than anything else.  


4) How does Angela McRobbie's work on female empowerment link to the Everyday Sexism project?

Angela McRobbie's work on female empowerment links to the Everyday Sexism project as she highlights women's empowerment and emphasises the fact that women shouldn't go through things alone, which is very similar to the Everyday Sexism project. 

Media Magazine: The fourth wave?

1) Summarise the questions in the first two sub-headings: What is networked feminism? Why is it a problem?

Networked feminism, is the fourth wave. It's aim is to solve problems on both both on, and using, modern technology. Thousands of campaigns, blogs and hashtags have

been used to spur on the feminist upheaval. Ideologies and communities that were thought to have been extinct have been watered back to life through the roots of the internet. User-generated content websites have seemed to flourish with the words

of the feminists: blogs, submission sites and YouTube are all being utilised to set up, grow and oppose campaigns. Twitter is a big player in representing modern feminism; people are now able to instantly engage with the ideologies, and hashtags such as #WomenAgainstFeminism and #YesAllWomen have trended. 

2) What are the four waves of feminism? Do you agree that we are in a fourth wave ‘networked feminism’? 

First wave: early 20th century, suffragette movement (right to vote).

Second wave: 1960s – 1990s, reproductive rights (pill), abortion, equal pay.

Third wave: 1990s – present, empowerment, reclaiming of femininity (high heels, sexuality etc. See Angela McRobbie's work on women's magazines).

Fourth wave? 2010 – ongoing, use of new technology and digital media (e.g. Twitter) for activism.

I do agree we are in the fourth wave of 'networked feminism'. Due to everything mainly being online now, more programmes such as 'Everyday Sexism' for example are mainly based online, rather than anywhere else. 

3) Focus on the examples in the article. Write a 100-word summary of EACH of the following: Everyday Sexism, HeForShe, FCKH8 campaign, This Girl Can.

Everyday Sexism:

The project was started by Laura Bates back in 2012 as a website which posted examples of sexism that users faced every day. Laura set it up after finding feminism hard to talk about, saying: ‘Again and again, people told me sexism is no longer a problem – that women are equal now’. The response she received proved differently, with 50,000 entries of sexist experiences made by December 2013. This project is now one of the most high-visibility feminist digital campaigns, arguably due to its user-generated content and its well-used #EverydaySexism Twitter feed. It is also said, that this programme is where it is, in terms of success due to social media. Furthermore, not only does the programme focus on female problems, but it focuses on men as well; ‘This is not solely a ‘make the men wrong’ approach,’. 

HeForShe: 

The HeForShe campaign is led by Emma Watson. Watson’s campaign focuses on male support for gender equality, highlighting the fact that feminism is not about promoting matriarchy, but solidarity. Her digital commitment means that you can pledge to help the women’s issue online,and has generated a huge response. Watson utilised Twitter for a Q&A session during the campaign’s promotion at Davos, and represented both feminism and He For She as dynamic and integrated. Watson believes that you can have both; a successful job and being married with kids. Nonetheless, many people have argued that the 'HeForShe' campaign makes females too reliant on males. They also argue, that men are stereotyped in the way that they are the ones who get everything done, and women simply rely on them. 

FCKH8 campaign:

FCKH8 campaign is one of the most popular digital campaigns. The campaign/movement mainly focuses on the modern representation of girls and the huge social inequalities they

face, whilst featuring young girls ‘F-Bombing’ to highlight society’s imbalance when it comes to offences. FCKH8 is mainly popular for it's youtube video that went viral, the ‘Potty Mouth Princess’, gaining 1.6 million views. However, FCKH8 is actually a for-

profit company, and the video is in fact trying to sell its t-shirts. This exploitation of feminism as an advertising tool created a huge backlash and was hugely criticised. Nonetheless, the campaign shows that being strong and fighting issues such as pay inequality, rape culture and the sexualisation of women  in this engaging way is new to the 21st-century feminist movement.

This Girl Can: 

This Girl Can campaign is a campaign mainly regarding women's bodies. The campaign has been described to be the first fitness campaign for women which doesn’t shame or exclude them, by sharing photos, videos and quotes of women without the usual sexual exploitation of a women’s fitness advert and without body shaming. However, the campaign has been largely criticised by feminist activists themselves – on social media fora. Moreover, there is an online petition explaining that tampons shouldn't be regarded as a 'luxury item' as it's more of an essential item.  

4) What is your opinion with regards to feminism and new/digital media? Do you agree with the concept of a 'fourth wave' of feminism post-2010 or are recent developments like the Everyday Sexism project merely an extension of the third wave of feminism from the 1990s?

I do believe that currently we are living in a fourth wave, due to everything mainly being online and on social media. Furthermore, due to the 'Everyday Sexism' project being primarily online I do agree with the point that the 'Everyday Sexism' project is an extension from the third wave.  

Identities: Feminist theory and blog task

A current debate in feminism is whether we are in a post-feminist state: is feminism still needed?

1) How might this video contribute to Butler’s idea that gender roles are a ‘performance’?

Beyonce's video contributes to Butler's idea that gender roles are a 'performance' as the video is showing Beyonce, as a typical housewife, doing typical house chores. Therefore, we see Beyonce herself putting on a 'performance' to present herself as the typical housewife. 

Would McRobbie view Beyonce as an empowering role model for women? Why?

In this video Beyonce is seen as both empowering and not at all. For example, at the beginning of the video we hear Beyonce talking about 'putting money in the bank' showing that she is independent and doesn't rely on men. However, at the same time, the song is mainly about her crying over a man who doesn't love her. Reinforcing the fact that she isn't seen as empowering. 

What are your OWN views on this debate – does Beyonce empower women or reinforce the traditional ‘male gaze’ (Mulvey)?

I do think Beyonce reinforces the traditional 'male gaze' as she mainly uses her sexuality in this video, as well as moving in a provocative manner. Furthermore, the clothes she wears throughout the video reinforces the idea of the male gaze.   

Identities and the Media: Feminism

2) What are the two texts the article focuses on?
- Pan Am 
- Beyonce - Why Don't You Love Me 

What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?

• The Pan Am stewardesses is one which is highly constructed and mediated, an image whose purpose is to be admired and aspired to by women, and visually enjoyed by men.
• There are shots of women's legs, engaging the male's audiences eye.  
• Slow motion shots of women walking, results in the audience to be more focused in whats happening. 
• Beyonce wears sexual, revealing clothes. 
• Beyonce does sexual actions, reinforcing the male gaze. 

3) Do texts such as these show there is no longer a need for feminism or are they simply sexism in a different form?

In my opinion, I think they show sexism in a different way. However, I do believe there is still a need for feminism, otherwise, women would feel obliged by men to do things like examples shown in both texts. 

4)Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog. 

Patriarchy – An ideology that places men in a dominant position over women.

Nostalgia – A sentimental longing for the past, often only remembering the positives of the time.

Post-feminism – An ideology in culture and society that society is somehow past needing

feminism and that the attitudes and arguments of feminism are no longer needed.

No More Page 3

1)Research the No More Page 3 campaign. Who started it and why?

No More Page 3 was started in August 2012 by Actress and Author Lucy-Anne Holmes. It was during the London 2012 Olympics that Lucy bought a copy of The Sun following the ‘Super Saturday’ where lots of gold medals were won, she picked that particular paper because of its’ reputation for sports coverage. 

2) What reasons did the campaign give for why Page 3 had to go?The main reason as to why the campaign said Page 3 had to was;  'boobs are not news'. They felt as if it was not relevant for there to be a Page 3, as it wasn't actually news, as well as explaining that children shouldn't be able to view sexual content like that. 

3) Read this debate in the Guardian regarding whether the campaign should be dropped. What are Barbara Ellen and Susan Boniface's contrasting opinions in the debate?

Both have completely different views regarding the issue of Page 3.  Susan Boniface, believes that Page 3 should be completely gone and thinks it should be taken out. Whereas Barbara Ellen thinks there is a reason for Page 3, as she states there is nothing wrong with women having their boobs if they want to. 

4) The main campaign website has now been replaced by a site called Sexist News, designed to highlight sexism in the media. Give an example of a recent story the website has highlighted. Do you agree with the view of the website?

The recent story that was highlighted on the website, was the issue about Little Mix; 'LITTLE MIXED UP ABOUT WHAT TO WEAR?'. 

I do agree with some points in which the article presents. I believe that when female artists wear certain clothes they do set a certain impression for younger girls that look up to them and try to be like them. However, I also think, that artists don't go out of their way to wear provocative clothing, as sometimes it is up to the institutions, as they decide what they want their artist to wear for a certain performance. Furthermore, if the artist feels comfortable wearing what they are wearing, I don't think there is anything wrong with it, but there are younger girls looking up to these females, as role models. 

5) How can the No More Page 3 campaign and Sexist News website be linked to the idea of post-feminism? 

The No More Page 3 and the Sexist News website can be linked to the idea of post-feminism as they state we now live in a society where we don't believe women are used purely for the needs of men. 

6) What are your OWN views on these campaigns? Do you agree with their aims? Is there still a need for these campaigns in the media?

In my opinion, I think it is good for some of these campaigns to still exist, as there are people who still completely side with these campaigns and there views. I do agree with SOME of their aims, however, I do believe that we live in a society in which it has become the 'norm' for celebrities to dress 'provocatively' as they feel the need to keep up with the industry's and what is seen as normal. 

7) Finally, do you agree that we are in a post-feminist state or is there still a need for feminism?  

I don't believe we are in a 'post-feminist' state, I feel that women will always be slightly degraded in comparison to men. However, I do think that there has been a vast improvement in terms of equality, to the extent that we don't need extreme feminism or as much criticism.    

Week 21 - Vizio smart TVs tracked what viewers were watching without consent

One of the biggest makers of smart televisions has been found to be tracking users' viewing habits without them knowing. 

Vizio has been fined $2.2 million (£1.8m) after the US consumer watchdog discovered the company had been using content recognition software to track viewers without asking for permission. 

The tracking technology, called automated content recognition, can recognise what is being watched on the television at any given moment. Vizio gathered "as many as 100 billion data points a day from millions of TVs". Vizio, which has sold more than 11 million smart TVs since 2010, was found to have been sharing the "mountain of data" with independent companies such as advertisers and those that monitor audience engagement and habits. It does not sell its TVs in the UK.

"Consumers didn't know that while they were watching their TVs, Vizio was watching them," the US Federal Trade Commission said. "The generic way the company described that feature – for example, 'enables program offers and suggestions' – didn’t give consumers the necessary heads-up to know that Vizio was tracking their TV’s every flicker."

The company began using the tracking software in its products in 2014. Around this time it also added the software to older models, already in people's homes, through an update, the Commission said. 

"Vizio then turned that mountain of data into cash by selling consumers’ viewing histories to advertisers and others. And let’s be clear: We’re not talking about summary information about national viewing trends," the Commission said. "The company provided consumers’ IP addresses to data aggregators, who then matched the address with an individual consumer or household."

Vizio said the data it stored and shared wasn't personally identifiable and didn't include viewers' names or contact information. But it did include sensitive information such as sex, age, income, marital status, household size and education.