In 2021, the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) received an overall grade of a C on their racial and gender report card, an upgrade from the D-minus they received on the same report card just a few years prior. The curious thing about their C grade, however, is that they received a fairly strong B-plus in the race category, also an improvement on their race grades from years past. If the APSE is making such strides in their racial diversity by hiring a much more racially diverse group of employees, how is their grade still below average? 

The answer–women. 

Continue reading Get women off the bench – by Danny Webb →

While television has included characters with disabilities, they haven’t steered away from showing them in a stereotypical light. Popular shows medical dramas like Grey’s Anatomy and Chicago Med aren’t excluded in this. In fact, after watching both of these shows, I believe they were two of the most stereotypical displays of people with disabilities. What makes these displays even worse is they are about the same across television, creating a constant image of a person with a disability needing help or playing a victimized character for the viewers. This constant image can lead to a downward spiral of how a person views someone with a disability, leading to bullying and mental health issues for the victim—in some cases even suicide. While research is limited, adults with disabilities are roughly three times more likely to commit suicide.

Continue reading Disability Portrayal Within Television – by Bryana Konig →

Clothing is a major way people express themselves, making it important that clothing brands make clothing that is welcoming for everyone. Brands such as Brandy Melville offer only one size clothing, but the clothing is only for some. Their sizes say they are for everyone, but realistically they fit an extra-small to a medium. One-size clothing is not a true statement because everyone has a different body type, meaning a one-size shirt will not fit everyone the same. Brandy Melville markets towards short and small people. The shirts and shorts are extremely short, small, and cropped making it impossible for curvy or tall people to fit into. However, they sell sweatshirts that are one size but are labeled as “oversized”. This is highly offensive to people because their oversized fit is just a normal fit. What kind of message is Brandy Melville trying to portray? That the “normal” size of women should be an extra small to a medium? These are questions that need to be answered and not suppressed just because “smaller” people like their clothing.

Continue reading Diversity in Fashion Brand Clothing – by Madison Schutter, Kylina Caylor, Kate Hixon, Mya Mckinney →

Gender diversity in advertising has become a prevalent issue in today’s fight for gender equality. For many years women have been fighting within the marketing and advertising industry for equal representation in commercials and even landing jobs working behind the scenes. A lot of progress has been made with integrating more representation of women into advertising, however there is still more work to be done. There are, on average, twice as many men shown in an advertisement than women and men have about three times the amount of speaking time than women. While women are underrepresented within the advertising world, they are also stereotypically sexualized for the work that they are chosen for. It’s no secret that sex appeal is one of the largest selling aspects in today’s marketing world, and while this is also true for men, it is more predominant among women displayed in advertisements. 

Continue reading Gender Diversity in Advertising – by Katie Ghee, Lindsey Meisheid, Lauryn Allman →

My professor clicks the next slide of his presentation, a Secret Deodorant commercial from 2013. My classmates and I sit in silence as the YouTube player begin, and a woman’s fast, quivering voice booms from the speakers. 

Stress sweat. It’s different from ordinary sweat – it smells worse and it can happen anytime to anyone. Like when I fell asleep at movie night with all my coworkers and totally dream snorted myself awake. I actually popped my head back so fast I’m pretty sure I have whiplash. 

Continue reading Packaged Womanhood: Reclaiming our Essence  – by Marley Hillman →

The LGBTQ+ community continues to be facing diversity, as a new law was passed recently in Tennessee that restricts adult cabaret performances in public or in the presence of children, and bans them from occurring within 1000 feet of schools, public parks, or places of worship.” This law strictly prohibits people in this community from expressing themselves in a country that is supposed to be known for their freedom. My uncle is a member of the LGBTQ+ community and has done drag before. He was simply devastated by the news, as many others in this community were and he even called my Father and angrily ranted to him how awful this new law is. 

Continue reading Devastating New Law for the LGBTQ+ Community – by Sean Meehan, Leonardo Vega →

When I first met my partner, I could not grasp their pronouns for the life of me. In all honesty, I had never made acquaintances with a non-binary person until I met Koy in college. On the way to visit them, I would repeat “they, them, they, them, they, them” out loud behind the steering wheel. Of course, Koy and their friends would politely correct me each time I slipped up. Hey, we all have to learn at some point. Because the fact of the matter is: not everyone is comfortable with the gender that was assigned to them at birth. With the rapid discourse on gender expression changing every day, it’s imperative that we learn. I learned, and so can you. 

Continue reading Navigating Gender Non-conforming Pronouns – by Abigail Mann →

At the end of the corporate Pride rainbow lies a darker story to be told

Since 1999 when President Bill Clinton designated June as Pride month in the United States, the surface level social climate has grown to be more widely accepting of the LGBTQIA+ community. Corporations have been quick to pick up on this, adjusting their marketing angle during June to reflect consumers ideals. Similar to the social climate though, this effort appears to be performative when viewed through a narrower lens. At the end of the corporate rainbow is a money trail of donations to politicians who support anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation.
Continue reading The Corporate Rainbow – by Jules Jackson, McKenzie Malone, Anna Truss →