Playboy+Magazine

=Playboy Magazine=

University of Illinois alum, Hugh Hefner, is the creator of //Playboy Magazine//. This magazine is geared towards men and features nude photographs of woman and also includes articles, short stories, and interviews. Sanburn (2011) states that in 1953 the first issue of //Playboy// was created in Chicago with $1,000 from his mother and other money Hugh Hefner raised. The first issue contained nude photos of Marilyn Monroe and was ex tremely popular with over 50,000 issues sold. In current days, about 3.3 million copies of //Playboy Magazine// are sold monthly. It has become an international magazine and sells in South America, Europe, Australia and Asia. The magazine has led to a larger empire including Playboy merchandise and a television show. Beggan and Allison (2003) states, “//Playboy Magazine//, an icon for the 20th century, has had a significant impact on American society.” The magazine was very popular during the 1960’s and 1970’s which is during the generation of sexual revolution. Information about sex was provided through magazines like //Playboy//. There are controversies concerning the message the magazine communicates to the public.
 * Background:**

Some believe the images in //Playboy// communicate a positive image for women because the pictures highlight the beauty of the female body. //Playboy// celebrates women’s body parts and curves and many girls strive to be a Playboy bunny or girl featured in the magazines. Some girls feel it is an honor to be considered beautiful or have a good enough body for //Playboy//. Not only can //Playboy// boost a few women’s self-esteem, but the magazine also strives to support certain rights for women through their articles. Pitzulo (2008) states//, “Playboy// took a progressive stance on women's rights throughout the 1960s and 1970s and was particularly vocal in support of abortion. Evidence of this position can be found in the magazine's articles and editorials as well as in the charitable donations of the Playboy Foundation.” //Playboy Magazine// through their articles supported the thought that women had the right to choose abortion and also contributed money to abortion rights organizations. Many people say that //Playboy Magazine// objectifies women. Beggan and Allison (2003) conducted an analysis of many issues and found that the magazine did not objectify women. He states that the study, “found that Playboy provided Playmates with complex identities that, in many cases, contained a number of traditionally masculine abilities (e.g., kickboxing, karate), occupations (e.g., police officer, truck salesperson), and goals (e.g., ambitious careers in business and elsewhere, post-graduate training in law).” The Beggan and Allison (2003) article also discussed how the playmates were never exposed to harmful or aggressive situations in photographs. Instead, the photographs of the playmates portrayed them with respect and awe. The article also found no effect between consumption of Playboy and rape rates, as reported in the Uniform Crime Reports. An article also written by Beggan and Allison (2001) stated that, “We have found that the magazine did not relegate women to a subordinate status. Rather, it actually gave them a significant amount of authority by advocating their values, by suggesting that men incorporate key feminine attributes into their own identities, and by implying that men should conform to women's preferences.” Some believe that the magazine is very supportive of women’s wants and needs and tries to convey an image men should strive for.
 * Playboy communicates a positive image of women:**

**Playboy communicates a negative image of women:** Not all agree that //Playboy Magazine// is supportive and respectful to women. Beggan and Allison (2003) discuss both sides of the topic and explain that many believe //Playboy Magazines// with nude pictures of girls objectify women and reinforce power differences between men and women. Most men looking at the nude photographs are looking at the women as objects, but not as people. In “Playboy’s Sexy Girls Next Door” (2011), the women did not explain themselves as a person, yet the 96 pages of nude photographs allowed the focus to be on the breasts, bodies, and genitalia of the girls. Beggan and Allison (2003) said, “The Playboy Playmate alienates men from their own sexuality and creates unrealistic expectations about women and romantic and sexual relationships.” If men are exposed to only a certain body type (thin and large breasts) in //Playboy//, then men will have unrealistic expectations for women. Studies have examined the typical hair color, body shape, and degree of objectification of the average Playboy Playmate. The images shown in //Playboy// present an unrealistic average body type of the population. The ideas of a thin body type are portrayed in //Playboy// and this contributes to negative effects on women’s psychological and physical health (Beggan and Allison, 2003). Due to readers’ of //Playboy// objectifying the women in the images, many readers may also expect self-gratifying sexual experiences (Beggan and Allison, 2001). This article continues to discuss the issue by saying, “According to feminist and pro-feminist writers, the visual and written images of women presented in //Playboy// degrade women. By this argument, then, exposure to these images encourages men to perceive themselves as superior to women (Beggan and Allison, 2001). Women in //Playboy// are not shown for their excellence in education, heroic acts, or life stories, yet are naked and posing in sexual ways where the focus is strictly on their bodies.

**Conclusion:** //Playboy Magazine// has become an icon and is well-known in today’s culture. The ways in which the magazine communicates women and sex can be either positive or negative depending on your view points, morals, and perspective. In many movies and television shows, teenage boys hide their //Playboy Magazine’s// from their parents and secretly look at the naked pictures of girls. The magazine has an image as something that needs to be hidden and secret. //Playboys// are communicated about in movies and television shows in a way that make them seem wild, naughty, and inappropriate. Sex in the media and literature is continuing to be more accepted compared to the 1930-1950’s, but it is still not an open and comfortable topic for everyone. With an increase in availability of internet porn and other emerging men’s magazines, //Playboy// has not seen an increase in sales, but it is still the most popular men’s magazine and continues to be an iconic part of American culture.

**References:**

Beggan, James K., & Allison, Scott T.. (2001). The Playboy Rabbit Is Soft, Furry, and Cute: Is This Really the Symbol of Masculine Dominance of Women? Journal of Men's Studies, 9 (3), 341. Retrieved April 10, 2011, from GenderWatch (GW). (Document ID: 506104881).

Beggan, James K., & Allison, Scott T.. (2003). "What Sort of Man Reads Playboy?" The Self-Reported Influence of Playboy on the Construction of Masculinity. Journal of Men's Studies, 11 (2), 189. Retrieved April 10, 2011, from GenderWatch (GW). (Document ID: 506103301).

Collins, Stacy. //Playboy’s sexy girls next door.// 5 April, 2011; Print.

Pitzulo, C. (2008). The Battle in Every Man's Bed: Playboy and the Fiery Feminists. //Journal of the History of Sexuality//, //unkown//. Retrieved April 1, 2011, from the EBSCO database.

Sanburn, J. (2011, January 24). Brief History. //time//, //177//, 20. Retrieved April 1, 2011, from the Academic Search Premier database.

Images found: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playboy http://smallscreenscoop.com/hugh-hefner-stoli-vodka/38142/ chefsnews.wordpress.com