MEDIA IS SO INFLUENTIAL
Mass media portray powerful forces that have the unique abilities to influence individuals in many different ways. Over the years we've seen how the media has converted the picture of how black people no longer embrace the beauty of their real natural hair instead they embrace the western culture hairdos especially women. from your weaves, braids, colour-treated hair etc. And how the media emphasised the fact that black women continue to fear adorning natural hair and that weaves raised the black bar beauty even higher to hair that is not just straight but long too. Celebrities like Nicki Minaj and Rihanna have been emphasised or pointed out in the media to typically show how the black community is ashamed of its originality and turn to wanting to be white people because of the qualities white people have or white women have: For example long hair.
These are the media effects and black hair politics.While advertisements influence black women's hairstyles and the perception of what constitutes beautiful black hair and what is considered to be beautiful. But I believe that when it comes to hair, all women can relate whether White, Black or Asian. We all agonise over how to wear it and while time changes everything, people also change and are exposed to new things which will definitely be tried out. There are also celebrities who still go natural like
Erykah Badu www.erykahbadu.com but she's not portrayed as much as the other celebrities. This states that the media shows what people want to see, how it has powerful tie establishments and how untrustworthy it is. So at the end of the day it's not about the black community trying to be ''something'' it's not but it's about what we like, getting on with the programme and expressing beauty in our own unique ways.
Yep i agree with you black women are not proud of their hair,and the media is not helpin at all.
ReplyDeleteTrue it is not. Because it portrays us black woman as people who want to be white people.
DeleteI don't think media is entirely to be blamed for how the image of natural hair in black women, because media reports on what is happening. I feel if we embrace the Black image and become proud of it then media will report on that. We have seen with Braids , when Alicia Keys Braided her hair the world took notice even David Beckham Braided his hair...Parents and Society need to take a stand in educating everyone that what we see in media doesn't make it Right or Potray our true image., I believe it starts in our communities
ReplyDeleteYeah that's true but I feel like the media is to blame because it has the power to influence.
DeleteI think black women need a way of potraying their hair in a way that media give positively influence to the society. looking at how black women's hair was part of the media in the past, you'd notice that even whites wanted the afros unfortunately they had to come with a better way of being noticed by the society. I feel some new and more elegant hairstyles need to be created if they already exist then black women need to do them.
ReplyDeleteYah got a point there folk but it's definitely going to be hard hey, for black women to bring back that source of belonging with their hair. I mean come to think about it the weave community is all over the world.
DeleteI am not my hair *singing* Black people have beautiful hair, look at you darling your hair is wonderful. But we shouldnt tie what our hair looks like to what we really are. It is whats inside you. What Im pissed of about is the fact that we wear weaves and we start acting "white"and lose our Black fabulosity.
ReplyDeleteWhat happened to her hair #singing out loud. Yah hey I agree with you hun plus the media does not just pop out information but it's portraying what we want to see.
Deletei am guilty of what is being said, i prefer a weave only because i fear the comb with all my being. otherwise i like my hair.
ReplyDeleteLol omg laughing out loud oh well but really?
Deletei am strongly in agreenment with you in a sense that women, especially afican women,are no longer interested in maintaining their natural african look with which they were born, which to me is totally unacceptable,i believe an african woman must conduct herself as an African, and not an AFICAN'T
ReplyDeleteLol yeah I get you hey but to me it seems like you guys really like the western look than the african look because apparently it's more attracting.
DeleteI have to agree, the media feeds us in believing what defines "BEAUTIFUL" in us black woman. If the media portrays weave as beautiful, then that's what we will have on not that its the only reason why black women wear weaves. I agree wit you, its time we embraced our African roots.
ReplyDeleteVery true hun
Deleteblack women do not like accepting their hair but i dont blame them because im one of them.My hair does not grow so i prefer weaves than natural hair.not that im not proud of my hair but its the circumstance that makes me wana plait it.
ReplyDeleteLol I get you hey and at the end of the day you do as you pleases.
Deleteit is very sad how most people..particularly girls adapted the western culture and they do not embrace their African roots but i dnt blame them,media contribute to these changes..we often exposed to beautiful..flat stomach models who wear killer weaves and look amazing..to tell the truth i luv weaves..not that i'm not proud of my natural hair but i prefer weaves and i have my own reason preffering them
ReplyDeleteYah honey it's the media that contribute to such effects and I'm not against weaves though but i'm good with my dreadlocks.
Deleteyes i agree with molly. Its as if black women are ashamed of embracing their natural hair. The media makes the tipical black women believe that the weave will excentuate your beauty and to other people it makes you look un-natural.
ReplyDeleteFolk I strongly agree with you but since weaves are a trend then nothing can be done to change that perception.
DeleteIt is a good thing to explore a variety of hairstyles likes weaves in the name of maintaining your appearance as a women but it gets to be immoral if you don't embrace your God given look in the name of being ashamed of your natural look because its more like you living a shell life by covering your natural look.
ReplyDeleteI think it is because weaves enhances their beauty in such a way that they are now used to the weaves. they have lost self-confidence.
ReplyDeleteYah Fifi got a point right there even the issue of not having self-esteem or confidence and thinking that weaves might be an option.
Deletei agree with the point made .media has influenced how we think and act .we have relied on weaves to make us look beautiful what about keeping it real and natural.i support natural beauty all the way !
ReplyDeleteNatural beauty all the way honey.
Deletewe define beauty in different ways, some believes that if you wear weave you are not beautiful. some believe in the natural beauty. the media can be able to active it gaol 0f reaching to the women who believe that weave is beautiful but as african or blacks we must not keep our natural beauty because you will never find a white woman or indian putting weave.
ReplyDeleteTrue as women we define beauty in different ways and yeah the media is certainly accomplishing it's goal of influencing black women to put on weaves but the fact still remains that we black and our hair won't be as long as white peoples hair so as black we should be proud of who we are.
DeleteThe aticle is spot on Molly. What makes it even more frustrating is that even our own media here in Africa promote these kind of images from America or shall I say the western society. Its not only with hair, peoples accents, dress sense, music and we even forget that we live in Africa not America. We should embrace who we are, use the media as our own platform to promote our own identity as Africans because as things stand, future generations will not know their heritage as they would be born thinking that you have to modify yourself rather than being natural to be considered beautiful and we, today's generation, would be the architects of that.
ReplyDeleteI am for the natural African look.
Definitely agreeing with you on that one and what modifies me is the fact that this whole western culture thing is growing as a trend but I still blame the media I mean it's so powerful in such a way that our own black society believes everything the media is telling them. Brainwashed!
DeleteI think the media portrays women as powerful forces within society hence they are always trying to imitate men.
ReplyDeleteI get your point but now lets focus on how the media portray black women in terms of hair.
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ReplyDeleteTo some point that’s true but not all black women are like that as a person you choose the look you want. I think that we cannot judge people for putting on weaves it's a free world everyone is allowed to do what they want with their hair. Yes the media does portray them in that way but it's their choose not ours if nicki Minaj and Rehanna love putting on weaves let them.
Get your point and it's fair but what I'm emphasizing on is the fact that the media portray us black women as people from know where,who don't really know where they come from and all of a sudden were influenced to do something that will present them as 'these' brainwashed people. I don't have a problem with weaves and I'm not against them but as black women we should live our truth.
DeleteI think this is about choice and what you like as an individual, the media feeds the public with what it wants to know but does not tell them what to or believe in.
ReplyDeleteYah true Lolo because as individuals it's up to us on what we want to believe and not to believe.
DeleteYour point is very clear but i myself prefer a woman with natural hair whether is "kaffer hair" or brush as long as its neat and looks good on her but at the same time weaves are also nice as long as it looks good on you but please dont do it regularly because once you remove it we going to laugh at you.
ReplyDeleteLol you have valid reasons and you reasonable aswell.
Deletewe may say media has an influence on us woman but its up to each and everyone of us to accept the influence, and we are the ones that pay for our weaves because we want to look beatiful, so media may and may not have an influence
ReplyDeleteThully you definitely got a point there and I strongly agree with you.
DeleteI love how everyone has the ability to make a choice upon influence, the choice to decide what works best for who. I personally am i fan of artificial hair with the understanding that not every womans hair grows well,have the neatest texture so one would resort to hair that came with a price tag
ReplyDeleteDefinitely true hun it's just a matter of choosing what one wants.
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