Incident highlights media portrayal of women
The month of October is considered Anti-Bully month, when awareness is drawn to preventing people from bullying one another.
While most people associate bullying with adolescence, it is undeterred by old age and affects people at different times in their lives. One major example that has become a YouTube sensation and even made it on CNN was the bullying of a local news anchor for CBS, WKBT.
Jennifer Livingston received an email from a viewer stating that she could not possibly consider herself to be a good public role model because her weight sets a bad example for younger viewers. Livingston’s co-anchor was so appalled that he posted the email on the news station’s Facebook page. Many people offered support and kind words to Livingston in the hope of discrediting the words of the viewer. Livingston decided to make a public example of her situation and gave an on-air response to the man who sent her the demeaning email, telling him that she is aware of her body image but that it does not define her as a person or a news anchor. She admitted that she is overweight, which is already courageous when speaking to such a vast audience, and then related it to anyone who feels bullied. Simply the act of confronting her bully nationally will inspire people everywhere to stand up for themselves and for others as well. She draws attention to the constantly reoccurring issue of internet bullying and encourages people to do their best to reject the hurtful words.
Livingston is not the only person to be credited with the positive message that is gained from her experience. The hundreds of supporters that she received during this time demonstrate to the many victims of bullying that the hurtful words of one person are not necessarily true. I was proud to see so many of my peers posting the video link on Facebook with positive encouragement towards her message.
In a time where appearance seems to triumph all, it is enlightening to see so many rise to support her. In a sense, it is almost better to have someone of her stature be in the public eye, because in so many other divisions of media, viewers are constantly bombarded with an unattainable and unrealistic view of the body.
It is necessary to show viewers, especially those in the younger generation, that people come in all different body types.
Livingston’s reaction to the viewer email and the positive responses from hundreds of viewers completely discredits the email by showing that she makes an exceptional public figure and influence on younger people.
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