Running Head: HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

How Media Portrays Women: Comparison of a Movie and Billboard

Vania Garcia
University of Texas at El Paso

HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

How Media Portrays Women: Comparison of a Movie and a Billboard

On a daily basis, most of the people from all over the world are able to see or hear any
type of media, whether it is a magazine, the news, a journal, and so on. On all of this different
types of media, one is always able to contemplate a woman. Something thats interesting is that
these women are portrayed in many different ways. Some may be shown as hard workers, and
some may be good hearted. On the other hand, they may also be portrayed as dumb, weak and
uncaring. In some media, one can even see women as strippers or prostitutes, and some may
even be portrayed as bad people. This is shown in two distinct genres, where women are clearly
viewed in a really bad way. In the movie, Legally Blond, directed by Robert Luketic, he portrays
women as being stupid and only caring about their physical appearance, and in the Billboard
created by USI Wireless high-speed Internet service that reads, Fast, Cheap and Satisfaction
Guaranteed, portrays women as being sluts and that theyll do anything, just like prostitutes.
These two genres, and their views over women, will be compared and contrasted throughout this
whole paper.
Audience and Purpose
The first genre, Legally Blonde, by Robert Luketic, is a movie that was released in
theaters from all over the United States on July 13, 2001. The purpose of this movie is to
entertain people, and also to show that women are stupid, that they are materialistic, and that all
they care and think about is their personal appearance. The second genre, Fast, Cheap and
Satisfaction Guaranteed, created by USI Wireless high-speed Internet service was put up in
Minneapolis, Minnesota, on the year of 2010. The purpose of this billboard is to persuade people
to get service from their company, and also, to show that their internet is easy and cheap, just
like women.

HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

The intended audience of the Legally Blonde is teenage girls above 13 years old, or even
women, who may be interested in fashion, and who are really girly. It may also be people who
are interested in law. This audience ties in with the purpose because girls really like movies, and
also because girls will be able to look at the character, and see her as an awesome role model.
Since the Legally Blonde takes place, for the most part, at a law school, people who study law
may also be interested in it. For the USI billboard, the intended audience could be anyone who
drives and lives in the city of Minneapolis, or also people who may be interested in internet
service contract. The audience for this billboard ties in with the purpose because this company is
trying to sell as much as possible. The people who see this billboard will be persuaded into
contracting internet service.
The amount of time that the audience will spend to cover the information, as well as the
amount of time it takes for the audience to process or reread sometimes difficult information, is
very different for these two genres. Since the first genre is presented as a movie, it will take
around one hour and a half to view it in its entirely. Because it is presented in this way, it has to
be easy to understand and the story has to be concise and interesting in order for the audience to
pay attention and to follow along. The audience has to find this entertaining and fun. If this is
not the case, then they will stop watching it. The second genre is presented as a billboard, and
since theres not a lot of words to it, will take a few seconds for the audience to view and
understand its whole content. Due to this, the message being sent is short, concise, and easy to
understand in order for the audience to catch its content.
The purpose of these two genres is to entertain or persuade by showing that women are
stupid and bad. However, the information presented in each of the genres is presented in a
different way. The purpose Legally Blonde is to entertain the audience and to make them have a

HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

nice and fun time. In the billboard, the purpose is to persuade the audience into contracting their
internet service, by showing that its service is fast and easy, and that its satisfying.
In order to convey their purpose to the audience, these two medias use a specific
language and vocabulary. In Luketics movie, LB, the vocabulary that they use is casual for the
most part, but it does have a few cuss words. For example, the character Elle (Reese
Witherspoon) says, Oh, I like your outfit too, except when I dress up as a frigid bitch, I try not
to look so constipated (Legally Blonde, 40:46-40:53). This vocabulary is appropriate because
the audience will find everything as being funny and entertaining. In the billboard, the
vocabulary utilized is formal and appropriate. It reads, Fast, Cheap and Satisfaction
Guaranteed: High Speed Internet. When the audience sees this, they think good about this
internet service, and there is nothing wrong with it. But there is also an image of a young lady,
portraying her as fast, cheap. Due to this, the whole vocabulary changes to inappropriate and
informal, and so many people may be offended. The language that these two medias have is in
English, and it is clear. While the language in the movie is spoken, the one in the billboard is
written in really big, white letters, and has a blue background color and a picture of a lady. This
way, the audience will be able to see it from a long distance, and it will be catchy. With these,
one is able to see clearly, and the purpose is being fulfilled.
Rhetorical Issues
Both of these genres show rhetorical appeals. And the way in which they are shown is
different for each of the genres.
Ethos

HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

The movies director uses ethos when an innocent woman was being falsely accused of
murdering her husband. The woman who was defending her case always trusted her. Even
before there was any physical proof, the defender always had trust in her words just because she
knew how she was. (Legally Blonde, 51:50-53:04- In the second genre, the creators use ethos
by showing how satisfactory their internet service is.
Pathos
In Legally Blonde, the director uses ethos throughout the whole movie. For example,
when the main characters boyfriend broke up with her. This segment shows emotional appeal
because it can relate to teen girls who have gotten their hearts broken. He does this by showing
the character crying and suffering. (Legally Blonde, 7:35-10:55). In the second genre, the
creators of the billboard use pathos in a different way. The emotion that this board is giving is
excitement because apparently, the internet service is able to offer a lot. But also, it makes the
audience mad because they are showing an image of a woman, and she is described as being,
fast, easy.
Logos
The first genre uses logos towards the end of the movie, when the accused women is in
court. The lawyers use logos in order to figure out what the truth is. This is done by putting
pressure over people, which was caused by asking so many questions and by talking too fast.
(Legally Blonde, 1:12:08-1:12:50, 1:22:20-1:27:10). In the second genre, the creator does not
show a lot of the logical appeal. He does not show factual proof of why the service is cheap and
fast. All that one can know for a fact is the price, but thats it.
Structure and Delivery

HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

The way in which these two genres are organized and presented to the audience is
completely different from each other. The first genre is a move, which has an introduction, a
problem, and a conclusion/solution to that problem. Since this movie lasts around one hour and
a half, there is a lot of space to add more to the plot and make it more entertaining to the
audience. An advantage about a movie is that one can rent or buy the movie, and they can see it
in any house or car that has a T.V. Also, one is able to see it online if they have internet
connection. The good thing about this is that one can watch it anywhere if they have a smart
phone. Since the second genre is a billboard, and it is most likely on a highway, the cars passing
by wont have a lot of time to look at it. This is why the message written on it should be short
and straight to the point. Another reason why it cant be long is because the space provided is
very limited. The words are in really huge letters. This way, the audience will be able to see
even when they are far, or theyre going too fast. A disadvantage about a billboard is that one is
able to look at it only when driving by it. Also, since there is limited space, one is not able to put
a lot of information that may be important to persuade the audience. Something that these two
genres have in common is that they have to be catchy to the eye. Another thing is that the
information should be concise and clear. By doing these things, the audience will pay attention,
and theyll find the information interesting.
Conclusion
The genre that was more effective in conveying its message was the movie, Legally
Blonde. This is because there is more time to show its purpose, and also, because the rhetorical
appeals are used better. Overall, the impact of genres on discourse is very different. They each
have different structures of presenting their message, different times, and different ways of
transmitting the message. Although they each are very different, they all are very important.

HOW MEDIA PORTRAYS WOMEN

References
Luketic, R. (Director). (2001). Legally blonde [Motion picture on DVD]. Santa Monica, CA:
MGM Home Entertainment.
Fast, cheap and satisfaction guaranteed billboard - Google Search. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23,
2016, from https://www.google.com/search?q=fast, cheap and satisfaction guaranteed
billboard