Teen Vogue

On the cover of Teen Vogue there are messages about glorifying your appearance, gossiping about the latest news, and tips on how to spend your money. Are these the types of values we want to instil in middle school students? Vanity, gossip, and ungrateful behaviour are the values being emphasized in these magazines. The morals presented in these magazines are not academic success, civic engagement, or intellectual challenges; they are ones of dressing provocatively, flirtatious behaviour, and making our bodies the main priority.

Many of the images throughout the magazine have female models in their underwear or male models with their shirts off. Captions correspond with the photos such as “Beautiful Creature” and “Material Girl”. On every two-page spread, there are models wearing the latest fashions, accessories, and hairstyles. Teens are being bombarded with images that tell them how to look hot. Middle school students may think the only way to improve their self-image is to look like the models in the images. Also, studies show that girls who frequently view these images in this media have the most negative opinions of their gender.

There are many advertisements in the magazine beckoning the readers to buy their products. It would be an understatement to say that over 90 percent of the magazines were advertisements. Statistics indicate that 80 percent of girls have purchased an item as a result of exposure to an advertisement in a teen magazine and 63 percent trust magazine advertisements. Some middle schools students may not have the discretionary skills necessary to determine their needs from their wants and these advertisements will take advantage of this. The advertisements will tempt them to buy products they do not need; but, the middle school students think they must have them in order to be popular and look hot.

Teen Vogue is easily accessible to middle school students. For example, teens can purchase the magazine in bookstores, convenience stores, and online. Middle school students have unlimited access to these magazines if they desire to alter their appearance or read the latest gossip. It is discouraging to think of the amount of access middle school students have to the messages in this media, which are mainly negative. We need to have more edifying resources for students who turn to magazines that do not enrich their minds and bodies.