Year: 2010

Time was when women were discriminated against on TV and nobody batted an eyelid. There were fewer women, those that appeared only did so in a few traditional settings, and they were rarely the protagonists.

Feminism and the sexual revolution came along and by the 70s, it could be argued that things had got worse, with women now being patronised and treated as sex objects. But the 80s and political correctness slowly began to change all that, with more strong female characters and less exploitation being the call de jour.

But with modern shows like My Ugly Best Friend, Fast Lane, Knight Rider, America’s Next Top Model and even Chuck (to name but a few) all reducing women down to sex object status, while claiming to be pro-women, has the forward progress made during the 80s and 90s been reversed of late and have we returned to the 70s? Has even Doctor Who begun to treat its female lead as a sex object, there to scream and look good and not much else?

So this week’s question is (fingers crossed using the word won’t make me sound like Rik Mayall in The Young Ones):

Has TV become more sexist? If so, why and is it worse because we should know better by now?

For the advanced student: has TV become more sexist towards men? Is it actually the case that both men and women are being treated equally badly/well by TV?

As always, leave a comment with your answer or a link to your answer on your own blog.