Erica Mitchell’s Reviews > Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves > Status Update

Remembering how I watched celebrities break down through magazines and word of mouth as a child is dizzying. It’s interesting how today we’ll mock celebrities like Zendaya for intentionally being undetectable through media but like, are we forgetting how being perpetually visible ruined many women’s lives and reputations?

It’s so jarring how the porn industry is so deeply veiled into modern American culture. Especially frightening how violent it is and how it’s literally everywhere: on tv, in music, movies, social conversations, social media, etc. I really hate this

It’s crazy to read about scenes from the Kardashians when I remember watching it in real time as a kid! I haven’t thought about how they set the tone for modern day “influencing” and creating a bridge between that and modern day celebrity in a very long time. This is all so weird, disconcerting, and fascinating.

I heard of the reality show, The Swan, from the early aughts from a podcast this week and now I’m learning about it in more detail in chapter 5. Women undergo sometimes dozens of painful plastic surgeries and dental work and see their results at the end. Gilbert says that some women’s children did found them unrecognizable. I couldn’t help my curiosity and found a YouTube video of an end of finale reveal.