dear seventeen magazine: thank you for killing teen girls

Dear Ann Shoket-
My name is Kassandra Larson. I am a student at Brigham Young University studying to be an art therapist working with teen girls with eating disorders and depression. As your magazine has a target audience of the age group of women that I will be working with, I have found some interest in evaluating the themes and messages of your magazine. I have read your magazine, and I must say that every time I have I am often surprised at some of the articles it includes. In addition to the often sexual and loose morals that are discussed or encouraged in Seventeen, I would, in particular, like to bring attention to the disfigured and inaccurate portrayal of women used not only in your advertising but in essentially every article in your magazine. Teen girls are already so hard on themselves and when they open up a magazine and see only women under size 4, this can only discourage them further.
I find it particularly incredulous when some of your feature articles are about self-esteem or finding peace with one’s body type, which is so contradictory to the real and overall messages that this magazine sends to women and teens. Not only are the pictures and the ads telling girls that what men really want is a stick figure girl who starves herself, but many of your other articles tell girls how to lose weight fast, how to get the butt that will get the boy, and so many other messages that basically tell girls they aren’t good enough the way they are, and that if they don’t change now they will never be happy.
I am not trying to tear down the establishment of Seventeen magazine, but only make you aware of the hypocrisies in your publishing and hopefully further encourage a change. I do realize that articles about staying healthy and fit are often included in your articles, for which I applaud you, but it is important that girls know they do not have to be rail thin to be healthy. There are so many different body shapes and types of women, and including healthy types of all of these in all areas of your magazines is crucial to women’s self-esteem. The number one predictor of anorexia is the inaccurate view of themselves that women develop when constantly exposed to inaccurate depictions of women. Girls need to know that they do not have to be 6 foot and weigh less than 100 pounds to be considered beautiful and healthy. In fact, most models in magazines are not healthy by any standard.
As a magazine dedicated to women, I believe it is your duty to help them survive in a world that is so harsh and critical of all that women do and are. By adopting the unrealistic and unhealthy views of pop culture, Seventeen magazine is increasing the pressure and potentially decreasing the self-esteem of all women who read this magazine. The obsession with the world’s view of beauty and a focus on unrealistic outward appearance, not to mention the completely selfish and materialistic nature of most glorified celebrities, should not be the main focus of a magazine for women. Women need to know that they are valued for who they are and what they do, not just what they look like and how much weight they can lose. If Seventeen were to shift their focus to helping women build skills, self-esteem, personality, service, and health, letting each women know that she can be beautiful and valued with the body that she has been given, I believe that it would be a great step in helping to curb and prevent the increasing numbers of depression and eating disorders in young girls.
Thank you for your time. Sincerely,
Kassandra Larson