Challenging Media

While its hard to hear the end statement of the video, Mickey Mouse Monopoly: Disney, Childhood & Corporate Power, we can’t help to ponder on it after viewing the video. Not many companies have the broad media coverage and ubiquitous conglomerate that Disney possesses. One of the speakers in the video says that Disney is often viewed as a fantasy that need not be questioned. This detail is scary alone; that one company has enough power that anything it portrays is assumed to be innocent and acceptable. Because of the reputation Disney has accumulated over the years, it is understandable that people assume that everything the company produces is good-natured.

            Disney and its products are advocated and endorsed by people around the world. The role they’ve played in children’s lives over the past few generations has made them respectable in a majority of populations. Dr. Henry Giroux, a speaker in the video, was taken aback by the reaction people had when he revealed to them that he was challenging Disney and it’s morality. It seemed as if the idea was unprecedented and confusing to many.

            A big concern with Disney’s message that it sends to younger generations is the portrayal of women. Over the years they have not changed the way the depict women and in today’s age it is an especially predominant issue. Since children look up to the characters in Disney movies, the image they portray about how to act is very important. The speaker’s example of how Belle forgives and justifies the beast’s abusive behavior is one twisted behavior that is portrayed as acceptable through Disney. This issue is present in many forms of media, including the modeling industry, which is discussed in the video, Killing Us Softly 4: Advertising's Image of Women. This video focused on the way media portrays how a woman “should” look, even though the models themselves don’t have that image, and don’t even desire it. Industries like this also contribute to the “very limited world view” idea that we are presented with in the Disney video. It’s an interesting fact to consider that the force of Disney has the power to shape what we thing about the world, people, relationships, and idealism.

            A second concern to Disney critics is the types of ideas Disney is putting into young minds in the interest of racism. The video claims that Disney may be promoting white supremacy, because they don’t have black people in their movies. This is still a big issue and is evident in almost any communities. I think people would have trouble accepting that Disney is a contributor to such hate but it’s an interesting thought to consider. The lack of representation of African and Asian societies is an incorrect portrayal of the world and since Disney has so much power, they plant this idea into kid’s heads early. While I don’t consider Disney a dictator or corrupted company, I believe there are many ideas they should start to evolve when creating new material in order to properly represent what children should be introduced to at a young age.