Am I blind? After reading the assigned articles I am seriously considering this possibility thinking about how I have missed so many signs in my years of television watching. One of the articles that struck me the most was Poniewozik's article about what shows are directed towards what gender. I have always known there are certain shows that are geared towards specific genders. Examples of this may be What Not to Wear (a makeover show that mainly focuses on women and what they should not wear), The Good Wife (based on the story of a housewife-turned-lawyer who has to prove herself in a male-dominated world -- everyone should watch this because it's awesome), and The Bachelor (a show based on putting twenty five women together going after one guy and finding "true love"). All of these shows mentioned above are what I believe to be geared towards women more so than men. However, maybe more men should be watching these things. Maybe they'd gain a little insight and, in the case of The Bachelor, they'd learn what NOT to do because clearly those relationships just about never work out.
Looking back on the examples given in the article though, a lot of those shows mentioned, such as New Girl, Game of Thrones, and The Playboy Club that are supposedly geared towards attracting male viewers came as surprises to me. I don't know many girls that dislike New Girl and don't want to be like Jess in some way. But then again, I have turned some of my guy friends onto this show, explaining it's not just about a woman. Is that what's supposed to happen? Sometimes I feel like the middle man, having to explain to guys that it's not a "girly" show and they should give it a chance. This happens more often than one would think, and 9 times out of 10, they like it and I get the satisfaction of being right. One of the larger issues here is that it all has to be labeled "for guys" or "for girls". It's evident that television is consumed mainly by women and therefore, it's become the norm to excuse guys for watching certain shows when those shows were actually meant for their viewing all along! I think it's good that women are less criticized for watching "men's" television than a man would be for watching a "woman's" show, but let's be real! People should be allowed to watch whatever they want! I will gladly support a guy that watches a show to gain some insight to what we females are talking about. Or if he likes it? Good for him. And good for the girls that watch sports games by themselves, something often portrayed as "guy time". In conclusion, television shows are said to be geared towards a certain gender but it's clearly not working from the results we have seen from the viewers.
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