Women are frequently objectified in the media. Media often objectifies women, portrays women as physical objects that can be looked at-- and fail to portray women as subjective beings with thoughts, histories, and emotions. In reality, human beings are both objects as subjects, as they are physical collections of molecules as well as individuals. To objectify someone, then, is to reduce someone exclusively to the level of object.
Men are sometimes objectified as well--and this is not a good thing-- but the objectification of women is far more common. When we see an image of a woman who is presented passively, and who demonstrates no other attributes aside from her physical or sexual being, that's objectification.
Sexualised images of women in music videos, pinup posters of sexualised models are very common. The issue of objectification isn't just about individual women's decisions. It's about the impact of this kind of representation on society. That is, a woman may choose to model for Playboy-- but once her image is in the magazine, the issue isn't just her choice anymore.
It's about how that representation of women affects the world. We live in a world filled with the objectification of women, and this objectification contributes to social problems. These problems include sexual violence and other forms of violence against women. When women are portrayed as objects without subjectivity, it may be easier for some to justify violence against them. If a woman is just a thing to be looked at, her feelings and concerns might seem less important.
The enormous pressure that young girls and women feel to live up to an unrealistic image is fuelled by images that suggest the importance of being a beautiful object. Women in advertisements are also represented as sexual objects used for the sole purpose of giving men pleasure.
The sexualisation and objectification of women in the media appear to teach girls that as women, all they have to offer is their body and face and that they should expend all their effort on physical appearance.
I think this type of objectification should be stopped immediately.