Sex, Girls Gone Wild, and Katie Couric

I was completely fascinated and educated after reading the first two sections of Ariel Levy's book. While it is no surprise to me that sex as become a big part of today's pop culture and that women are often the victims of this sex culture, I was shocked at the fact that many people would argue that the vagrant display of nude women in today's media and publications is evidence that women have finally gained as much power as men. Levy really did job at offering compelling evidence to support her argument that we still have a long way to go in the feminist movement. I found it particularly interesting at the fact that Olympian female athletes who have gold medals pose nude in male publications and that this is viewed as women empowerment. Personally, I feel like this was done to bring out the "femininity" of the female athletes. Furthermore, I was better educated on how Girls Gone Wild exploits the sexuality and bodies of women. I mean, I have seen the infomercials before on late night television. However, I honestly never thought anything of it....I figured these girls new what they were doing and so be it. However, after reading what really goes on behind the scenes, I am compelled to move in a new direction of thinking. These girls are not making an conscious choice to show there breasts and privates on camera to millions of strangers that they will never meet...they are being coerced to do it....and for what...a hat?! Then there are the girls who merely do it out of peer pressure from men and other girls. It was all very enlightening. Levy went on to argue that even women of great power, like Katie Couric, are even seen as sexual objects. The fact that she made was made to a sexual object on the Leno show in order to prove her power, depsite the fact that she is the the highest paid and one of the most powerful news reporters in the US, causes me (and should really cause others) to question if we are really pass the w omen's rights issue. Women aren't sexual objects that should be drooled over...there human beings. And if I see a GGW camera man near my daughter, I will punch him dead in the face.