Popular sitcoms from the 2000's: 30 Rock, CSI: NY, and The Big Bang Theory
30 Rock
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Tina Fey plays Liz Lemon, the main character of 30 Rock. Her character is the creator of a sketch-comedy show and also writes for the show. On the show she is portrayed as a nerd. She has business-like qualities but isn't much of a social butterfly. The other characters refer to her as "socially retarded" in the show. The type of image the character sets for women is that girls cannot be successful and have a life outside of work. This image could be compared to how some say a woman can have brains or beauty but not both. Liz is a great writer and good at her job which is a positive thing for women. That portrayal is more modern than the basic, old-fashioned housewife that used to be the norm for the first sitcoms. This character still has a stereotype but is empowering to the working woman and we can take that as a positive thing.
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Jenna Maroney writes with Liz on the show and is the classic 'dumb blonde'. The roll is played by Jane Krakowski and credit must be given to her character because she is very convincing. The character is ditzy and is over dramatic to keep the audience engaged. For women watching it may be annoying to see the cliche female character that is obsessed with attention and will believe what everyone tells her. Unlike Liz, Jenna wanted to be an actress and thinks her career is failing because she has settled.
CSI: NY
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Detective Stella Bonasera is played by Melina Kanakaredes. This woman was a lead character for 6 seasons on CSI: NY and represented smart, determined, working women. Her character was a crime-solver and she wouldn't stop until she solved the crime. During the seasons we find out that she started as a patrol officer but was able to work her way up. By seeing Stella as a valued worker showed women that they could be successful in any field. Stella not only is good at her job but she works side by side with a lot of men all day and is just as good as they are which also breaks old stereotypes about men being better workers than women. She has a powerful personality but she also is gorgeous. TV shows do choose actors that are pretty to attract a big audience but it can make women feel bad about themselves. Body image is a big problem for girls today and constantly seeing thin, beautiful women can make them self-conscious. Stella is another character that girls may aspire to look like and is just like every other female character in popular TV shows.
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Lindsay Monroe is also from CSI: NY and is portrayed as a good worker. Anna Belknap plays this role and does it well. The show does a great job of showing women being successful in their career and that sends a positive message to the female viewers. The one thing about most of the female characters in the show that we could complain about is that all the actresses are flawless. It would be wrong to just harp on this show because almost all TV networks hire actors like this. It has become the norm that those working on TV must be attractive. While the networks may get higher ratings it creates more pressure on women to look their best and have to compare themselves to TV stars.
The Big Bang Theory
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Kaley Cuoco plays the funny Penny from The Big Bang Theory. Her character is one of the 5 main ones. Penny lives across the hall from 2 geeks. She is an aspiring actress but finds herself becoming good friends with 4 geeks. Their lack of social skills make this sitcom very funny. Penny is the traditional pretty girl but during the 7 seasons she had some non-traditional things happen to her. We're used to seeing the pretty girl getting her gorgeous perfect husband but Penny dates one of the nerd for the 3rd season. They're good together but we don't typically see the gorgeous girl date outside of their own social group. This side of her character sets a good example for girls, it's encouraging to not judge a book by its cover. It's refreshing to see what looks more like a real relationship on TV. However, we see the same problem with all the previous sitcoms. She's picture perfect and it's hard for girls to see this and not be jealous. The same self conscious girls who see Penny and compare her to themselves may feel less confident.
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/kaley-cuoco/images/281989/title/kaley-big-bang-theory-photo
http://myupperwest.com/upper-west-side/30-rock-filming-on-the-uws-today-121712/
http://www.hdwpapers.com/csi_ny_wallpaper-wallpapers.html
http://popwatch.ew.com/2012/10/31/30-rock-season-7-episode/
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2013/01/30-rock-series-finale-recap-10-best-moments-from-hogcock-and-last-lunch.html
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/melina-kanakaredes/images/35375004/title/csi-new-york-photo
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/lindsay-monroe/images/2042255/title/lindsay-photo
http://myupperwest.com/upper-west-side/30-rock-filming-on-the-uws-today-121712/
http://www.hdwpapers.com/csi_ny_wallpaper-wallpapers.html
http://popwatch.ew.com/2012/10/31/30-rock-season-7-episode/
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2013/01/30-rock-series-finale-recap-10-best-moments-from-hogcock-and-last-lunch.html
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/melina-kanakaredes/images/35375004/title/csi-new-york-photo
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/lindsay-monroe/images/2042255/title/lindsay-photo