About-face.org is a website dedicated to exposing media messages that are detrimental for the body image of girls and women. Their mission is "to equip women and girls with tools to understand and resist harmful media messages that affect self-esteem and body image."
They focus on analysing visual images that appear on the media, in order to foster a critical mind in the viewers, particularly female viewers who are most affected by images of the "ideal woman" presented in the media, most pervasively in advertisements selling all kinds of products.
An interesting feature of this website is their "Gallery of offenders", in which they present offensive media images, including an analysis of the negative messages that they present. For example, the following image from a magazine ad, which presents a stereotypical image of female passivity, victimization, and objectivization.
The website also includes a "Gallery of winners", in which they present images that send more positive messages. For example, the following magazine ad, which presents a woman in a position of strenght.
It is an excellent resource for teaching women to look more critically at the information they receive from the media. For more information, visit: http://www.about-face.org/
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