The paradoxical portrayal of the risk of sexually transmitted infections and sexuality in US magazines Glamour and Cosmopolitan 2000–2007

Abstract

This paper reports on an exploratory, qualitative content analysis of the portrayal of the risk of sexually transmitted infections or diseases (STIs or STDs) and sexuality in the United States (US) versions of the most popular women's magazines in the world, the English language magazines for young women Cosmopolitan (Cosmo) and Glamour from 2000–2007. The data studied here demonstrate contradictory messages. On the one hand, there is a frequent and powerful portrayal of STIs and STDs as ubiquitous, dangerous, and disgusting, and on the other, there are numerous stories promoting casual sex for women's pleasure. Biomedicine is positioned as the most appropriate system of knowledge for understanding and explaining sexuality and STIs/STDs. The substantive, theoretical, and practical consequences of this paradoxical and contradictory social construction of sexuality and the risk of STIs or STDs are discussed as the major contributions of this paper.

Keywords:

• risk
• risk communication
• sexually transmitted disease
• sexuality
• portrayal
• magazines
• Cosmopolitan
• Glamour

Acknowledgements

We would like to gratefully acknowledge the support of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council for funding for this project.

Notes

1. ( http://www.cosmomediakit.com/r5/cob_page.asp?category_code=circ; http://www.conden astmediakit.com/gla/index.cfm).

2. ( http://www.cosmomediakit.com/r5/cob_page.asp?category_code=circ; http://www.conden astmediakit.com/gla/index.cfm)

3. ( http://www.cosmomediakit.com/r5/cob_page.asp?category_code=circ; http://www.conden astmediakit.com/gla/index.cfm)

4. The numbers in parenthesis after the quotes refer to the media reference. This is not in the reference list but available from the author.