Film festivals showcase socially relevant and provocative independent films that spotlight issues that do not typically pervade the national conversation but are nonetheless worthy of critical attention. At this month's Sundance Film Festival, actress Jennifer Siebel Newsom's poignant documentary, "Miss Representation," is turning heads for challenging widely held beliefs about the social status of American women. The film contends that American women continue to face a deep-rooted sexist culture - one hardly different from that of decades past. American society still consistently provides young women with a limited vision of self-worth by telling them they are valuable exclusively for their "youth, beauty and sexuality" - not for their intelligence, leadership or social contributions. Everyday, women are belittled in advertisements, magazines, television and music videos rather than recognized for their capabilities as world leaders, entrepreneurs and pioneers. As the American activist Marian Wright Edelman once said, "You can't be what you can't see." Our national misconceptions about the value of women have contributed to the fact that the United States currently ranks 90th world-wide when it comes to women's representation in politics. This year, Newsom's documentary is a must-see because it challenges all Americans to reconsider their values and confront institutions that perpetuated inferior images of female capability.
While it is true that American women have made significant strides during the past decade, progress has been limited. Female representation in the United States, for example, still lags far behind other nations. Today, women account for 51 percent of the U.S. population, yet they hold less that 20 percent of elected government positions. Currently, women make up 17 percent of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. This statistic pales in comparison to those of other nations. In Iraq, for example women make up 25 percent of seats in Parliament. In 2008, Rwanda became the first country in which women exceeded men in Parliament. Today, women comprise 56.3 percent of the Rwandan legislature. Not surprisingly, U.S. women are also grossly underrepresented in the workplace. Of the Fortune 500 CEOs, only 3 percent are women. In academia, the numbers are somewhat higher; as of 2009, 23 percent of college presidents were women. As Newsom's film emphasizes, if progress remains at the current rate, it will take another 500 years before women receive social equality in the United States.
As "Miss Representation" accurately portrays, the American media and entertainment industry are largely to blame for the underrepresentation of women in business and politics. This should come as no surprise, since only 3 percent of high-ranking positions in the mainstream media - including those in telecommunications, entertainment, publishing and advertising industries - are held by females.
To fully understand the impact the media has on women, Newsom interviewed some of America's most influential women from politics, film and media. Among the documentary's participants are Condoleezza Rice, Dianne Feinstein, Katie Couric, Nancy Pelosi, Rachel Maddow, Gloria Steinem and Jane Fonda, to name a few. These women reflect on the barriers women continue to face and the changes needed to create a more respectful society. The
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