There's a new documentary about the representation of women in the media and it's really gotten people talking. The film, MissRepresentation, premiered on Oprah's OWN Network last night and attempts to shed some light on how the mainstream media portrays women and girls. Written and directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom (pictured below with Gloria Steinem, Daphne Zuniga and Geena Davis), the film provides an up-close look at how women in positions of power are scrutinized by members of the media in ways that their male counterparts are not.

The filmmaker hopes her work will help to bring about change in this area, making it easier for women to achieve leadership positions and ultimately empowering the average woman. MissRepresentation addresses ways in which the media shapes cultural norms, identifying one as the sending of messages that a woman's value and power lie in her "youth, beauty, and sexuality" as opposed to her capacity as a leader.

"While women have made great strides in leadership over the past few decades, the United States is still 90th in the world for women in national legislatures, women hold only 3% of clout positions in mainstream media, and 65% of women and girls have disordered eating behaviors."

The film features stories from real teenage girls as well as thought provoking interviews with politicians, journalists, entertainers, activists and academics. (Condoleezza Rice, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rosario Dawson and Gloria Steinem, to name a few). Audiences will definitely leave the film with some new information and hopefully gain new perspective through viewing it.

http://vimeo.com/18985647

Have you seen MissRepresentation? We'd love to hear your thoughts about it! And as always, FletcherPR is so proud to be an organization devoted to the empowerment of women and girls. This film is changing stereotypes and challenging the status quo and for that, we think it's SO Empowered!