In our society today, the media is effectively telling us either to be thin or to consume large amounts of fast food. McDonald’s advertises their toys on television to draw the kids in, so they go back and forth between being told to not gain weight and to eat happy meals because they can get a free toy. The toys are also quite gender specific and I remember that when I was little I received a “Barbie” doll instead of the “Hot Wheels” car that I truly wanted. The workers assumed that since I was a girl I would naturally want the Barbie doll. It is interesting how the Barbie doll symbolizes what an “ideal woman” should look like and McDonald’s are selling them at fast food place where the fries are made of potatoes that have been altered so completely that they do not even decompose over time. By looking at just the happy meal we find out a little more about our culture that shapes us so greatly.
McDonald’s has been finding fresh ways to promote their food. For instance, the franchise on 51st Street in Saskatoon has renovated and now looks like a stylish restaurant. There is also an advertisement on television with a model who is dressed up in a clown costume and holding a burger. In my opinion, this is telling young girls that they can look gorgeous and slim, and eat McDonald’s at the same time. The influence that the media has on our community is to swing us from one extreme to another. Fast food places such as McDonald’s are successful in capturing the eyes and stomachs of our society, but then the other side of the media comes into play. Right after you eat your delicious Big Mac, you walk past a magazine stand with advertisements of how to keep those few extra pounds off and pictures of women with slim figures. This shows very clearly how our culture throws us back and forth between eating fast food and then not eating fast food or hardly eating anything at all.
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