Influence of Media
on Health By Madelaine Winzer
People are naturally inclined to be influenced by those around them and the media they are exposed to, therefore preventing them from digging deeper or exposing themselves to cultures that allow them to form their own beliefs that may or not transform into action. And we could say that is where the problem begins whether it is to do with glossy fashion magazines selling a lifestyle or the national news bombarding us with the latest updates on coronavirus. However, that would be too easy. Maybe it is society itself?
90s Grunge and
Youth Culture
It was the decade of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Sound Garden and Screaming Trees. Glossy fashion magazines promoting models one step away from perfection were replaced with models who sported hollowed cheeks, smudged eyeliner and a waif-like figure that gave the impression of not caring about health. It seemed to be positive at first allowing teenagers to be free from the repression of cultural society and be part of a sub-culture that gave them a feeling of belonging. Boundaries were broken as photographers and brands at the time wanted to connect youth with fashion in a way that blurred the lines between life and art that many people found uncomfortable. Experimentation was on the cards for many young people as they dabbled in the arts and drugs, allowing them to temporarily withdraw from society and their own self-loathing. It was a movement further glamourised by the media with Andrew Groves organising a runway show called Cocaine Nights; white powder covered the runway while the models wore dresses constructed of stainless-steel razor blades. High-end models headed the trend of heroin chic that was documented by Italian Fashion Photographer, Davide Sorrenti, who died in 1997 from a rare blood disorder, thalassemia. When he died the trend ended too – and he captured it beautifully in all its rawness using the language he knew best, mirroring his pain and telling a story of society at the time. Like anything, it was laced with hypocrisy as Kate Moss lost multi-million pound contracts when she was photographed snorting cocaine. 12
Issue 03 Summer 2021
Fitness Becomes
Trendy
There was now a void to be filled. Britney Spears, Gisele and the iPod touch filled it nicely as media took a new form. Gisele Bundchen graced the cover of Vogue in 1999 as she represented something quite different to the models of the 90s. She represented health and opposed the ideals associated with lifestyles of the grunge era. Whether the promotion of health is positive or negative depends on the viewer and how it triggers them. Are they inspired or are they filled with insecurity? It’s an open-ended question. We are, after all, just human with our unique web of experiences spun together which is what makes us who we are. Here and now. It’s time we stopped comparing ourselves to others in the media, or on the street, and say, “Good enough! – I am happy with who I am. I am the one I have to live with”. It is true that individuals are becoming more sedentary through increased use of technology, and the physical impact of that lifestyle takes its toll on the body causing unwanted tension that stays in the body through lack of self-awareness and lethargy. Technology made life so easy that we no longer need to walk to the shop to buy groceries or feel the F.Dick knife slice through meat bought from the local butchers. Life in the West is now lacking sensibility as political correctness replaces a genuine response to the automatic question, “how are you?”. People are scared to express themselves in ‘real-life’ as they fear rejection. It’s reflected in the medicine cabinets of people
