Associate Professor, School of Communication and Journalism, University of Southern California, USA.

Stacy Smith joined the USC Annenberg faculty in the fall of 2003.  Her research focuses on 1) content patterns pertaining to gender and race on screen in film and TV; 2) employment patterns behind-the-camera in entertainment; 3) barriers and opportunities facing women on screen and behind-the-camera in studio and independent films; and 4) children’s responses to mass media portrayals (television, film, video games) of violence, gender and hypersexuality.

Professor Smith spoke at the Gender Summit 3 North America 2013 (GS3NA) on her research how girls and women and boys and men are portrayed in the media. A recent study of 129 top grossing G, PG, and PG-13 films theatrically released between 2006 and 2011 showed that less than 30% of all on screen speaking characters are girls or women and that females are still more likely than males to be depicted in a stereotypical (i.e. caregivers, romantically involved, lacking employment) and hypersexualized (i.e., sexy attire, nudity, thinness) light.  Females are far less likely to be shown in films as holding clout and powerful positions in political (e.g., Senators, Representatives), financial (e.g., CEO, CFO, COO, GM), or legal (Supreme Court Justices) arenas.