Papers BMJ: first published as 10.1136/bmj.319.7225.1603 on 18 December 1999. Downloaded from Babes and boobs? Analysis of JAMA cover art Jocalyn P Clark Abstract Of the 15 covers depicting women, 12 included Department of babies and six showed nudity. In contrast, only one Public Health Objective To determine the representation of the Sciences, University male image included a child and none contained of Toronto, Toronto, sexes in JAMA cover art. nudity. In the cover depicting a man with a child, the Canada M5S 1A8 doctoral candidate Design Review of 50 consecutive issues. man is not the child’s father but its doctor. Babes and Setting JAMA, March 1997-March 1998. boobs were featured in 12 of the 50 covers. Correspondence to: Main outcome measures Numbers and nature of J P Clark, Centre for Research in covers portraying men and women. Women’s Health, Results Of the 50 covers, 34 depicted humans. 15 Conclusions Toronto, Canada depicted women, 13 men, and 6 were of mixed or M5G 1N8 Visual imagery associated with medical journals shapes
[email protected] indeterminate sex. 11 pictures of women included a our understanding of health and the human body. child and five included nudity. One cover showed a Images of babes and boobs in cover art emphasise BMJ 1999;319:1603–5 man with a child (not as a father) and none depicted women’s sexual and domestic roles, representing nudity. Men were depicted exclusively in authoritative women in traditional and stereotypical ways that under- roles. mine contemporary beliefs in the equality, autonomy, Conclusions Much of the cover art gives strong and status of women.34 These representations do not messages about sexual stereotypes that are reflect women’s contributions to the domains of science, inappropriate in modern society.