Girls websites criticised for ‘lad mag’ tactics -the Daily Telegraph, Wed Sept 19

Websites aimed at girls from the age of 10 are asking them to rate their bodies.
Bliss website is asking girls between the ages 14-17 to rate themselves in the feature ‘How sexy am I’, ranging from ‘beautiful’ and ‘ewww’. Similarly, Mizz website, owned by the same company as Bliss targets girls between 10-14. Gary Cleland discusses how these websites are conveying messages to young girls by using rating methods in the same way that Nuts use rating programs such as ‘Rate my breasts’.

What interests me is the way that the media contradicts itself on all different levels. LFW have introduced a ban on under 16s, through fears of exploitation and eating disorders, yet Mizz and Bliss are undermining this rule. Women in journalism (WIJ) are attempting to change the perception of women in the media. And OK, I am not sure that all women are wanting to be perceived differently than they are but at least they are old enough to decide for themselves - naive teenagers are being told how they should look by their fave mags, and as young as 10, of course they will believe the media.

What baffles me is the fact that the editorial features in these websites encourage teenage girls to be happy with the way they look. Seemingly, these teenage mags do not know what they want to do which is unfair and undoubtedly confusing to their target readers who are at their most vulnerable stage.