The research further disclosed that the entertainment industry and the general media has presented light skinned women as more appealing than the darker skinned ones by giving them greater prominence. This is especially so in music videos.
Manipulative marketing
Many media corporations manipulate audiences through advertising, making people believe that with lighter skin, they have more chances to succeed. Evidence from this paper demonstrates that the entertainment industry only portrays the “good” part of skin bleaching, completely hiding the dangerous part of it.
The study controversially reveals that lightness of the skin is thus considered a vital element in constructing female beauty worldwide, thanks largely to these cultural biases propagated by the media.
The study also stated that this belief that “light is right” is common in sub-Saharan Africa. That’s why, the study reveals, in this region, the culture of bleaching has become common among dark skinned Africans
In order to look “good”, women in this region have viewed the practice of beautification (read bleaching) as a means to an end and caused them to go beyond lightening specific parts of the body but instead they tend to lighten the whole body. This, they believe, will make them more attractive.
What is bleaching?
According to the study, skin bleaching is a process of permanent or temporary alteration of the outer (uppermost) layer of the skin, otherwise known as epidermis. This is done through the use of different substances such as creams, including those that contain hydroquinone or ammoniated mercury.