• How is gender constructed in the media?
• To what extent do portrayals of gender influence everyday perceptions of ourselves and our actions?
• In what ways do the media reinforce and sometimes challenge gender inequalities?

Critical Readings: Media and Gender provides a lively and engaging introduction to the field of media and gender research, drawing from a wide range of important international scholarship. A variety of conceptual and methodological approaches is used to explore subjects such as: entertainment; news; grassroots communication; new media texts; institutions; audiences. Topics include:

• Gender identity and television talk shows
• Historical portrayals of women in advertising
• The sexualization of the popular press
• The representation of lesbians on television
• The cult of femininity in women's magazines
• Images of African American women and Latinas in Hollywood cinema
• Sexual violence in the media
• Women in popular music
• Pornography and masculine power
• Women's relationship to the Internet.

This book is ideal for undergraduate courses in cultural and media studies, gender studies, the sociology of the media, mass communication, journalism, communication studies and politics.