Gender in the Media/United States of Tara

In response to Kristen's post of "Why is Angelina turning Shiloh into a boy?" I wanted to discuss the gender ideology of young girls. After studying pop culture this semester, I understand why the media is overreacting of the way Angelina's daughter was dressed. In Life&Style's article it stated, "When Brad Pitt was spotted in Paris on Feb. 23rd, it looked like he and Angelina Jolie had adopted a new child--an adorable blond boy. Instead, it was the couple's 3-year-old daughter, Shiloh, sporting boys' clothes and a new haircut so shockingly short it immediately ignited a firestorm of controvery (Life&Style, 2010)."

http://http://www.lifeandstylemag.com/2010/03/large-1011-cover.html

To me, this ridiculous comment was made because Shiloh did not display long locks of hair and have a floral, pink dress on. The ideology of little girls in today's society is obviously portrayed as having long hair, pink clothing, etc. I think it is sad the ways the media attack children for the way they look, regardless of who their parents are.

After seeing this article, I googled "Angelina Jolie's children." I was shocked when I saw all of the articles talking about various things about Angelina's children. They varied from "Angelina's Children All Hate Eachother" to "Angelina Jolie's Adopted Children Made Into Fashion Accessories in Online Game (links below)." After seeing these articles, it made me realize that celebrity children are media targets. Not only are they targeted in the gender hegemony, but also in the celebrity ideology where anyone can know everything about them.

http://http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/7074778/Angelina-Jolies-adopted-children-made-into-fashion-accessories-in-online-game.html

http://http://www.hecklerspray.com/brad-pitt-angelina-jolies-kids-all-hate-each-other/200813387.php