Children's Media Response by Dakota Peschel

Growing up watching television, it never struck me how it is a media outlet that reinforces and recreates gender stereotypes on the daily. Just looking at children's shows makes me realize that gender is something that is unescapable from a discerning eye. Every show that was presented had some sort of gender bias or conformity, and since young children's minds are impressionable, it is easy to see how gender is so seamlessly recreated even in their young lives.

I thought it interesting to see the stark contrast between the roles of girls in both Go, Diego, Go and Dora the Explorer; two shows that are set in the same universe and are supposedly equal to each other. In Go, Diego, Go, Diego is the adventurer, while his older sister does all of the behind the scenes work from their treehouse. Diego is the strong, masculine boy who goes out and does all of the hard work, while his sister just sits around and waits for things to happen or for Diego to ask for help. There seems to be no connection to the way that gender is portrayed in Dora. Dora is the protagonist, and while she does get things done on her own, she does rely on a lot of help from her talking objects and Boots. She is often one of the only female characters on the show as well, which is interesting because it seems to be a show that is more marketed towards girls. Diego swings on ropes and does very active things, while Dora merely walks around during her show; she does not have such an active or athletic role.

Growing up watching Arthur, I always thought it to be a fun, yet wholesome show, but never did I realize the vast gender inequality that exists between the girls and the boys of the show. Not only are girl (with the exception of Francine) shown only wearing dresses, they are also shown being weak and fragile. When they are shown in their room, Blair pointed out that Arthur has a desk, and Muffy only has a vanity table, sending messages that girls lead a more fulfilling life beautifying themselves while boys may be more interested in careers or academic pursuits. I find this to be a striking incidence, especially in contemporary society where the achievement gap is hugely in the girls favor.

It is the little things that overall send messages to kids. Whether it is eyelashes on a dinosaur in order to appropriate their gender, or girls working behind the scenes, it seems that children's television programs still have a lot to go before true gender equality is reached.