By: LEENA KHAN
Staff Writer
Discussion Question: Do you think it is OK for magazines to retouch wrinkles and signs of aging? Why do magazines find this necessary?
I don’t think it is okay for magazines to retouch wrinkles and other signs of aging because they know that their target audience is young girls specifically and they are at a very impressionable age where they feel that looking youthful for the rest of their lives is the end goal. There are countless types of research that have concluded that advertisements and photographs of “perfect” thin models have effects on self-esteem, body image, and body dissatisfaction. The Social Comparison Theory even entails that humans compare themselves with others, specifically in regard to appearance. Magazines might feel like it is necessary to retouch images to the point of the image not even looking like the actual model – to give an illusion of perfection. The media aspect really makes this “perfect” picture of women seem like the “norm” and therefore is then accepted and expected. This is why young people feel the need to grow up fast or change their appearance so early on, because of all the exposure they have to media, magazines, and advertisements.