Susan Douglas takes a very interesting approach to discussing similar fictional and non-fictional events.
Her second chapter, titled Castration Anxiety, details the very real events of Lorena Bobbitt, Tonya Harding and Amy Fisher. These string of attacks made it appear that women had gone wild and this is what happens when feminism is taken to the extreme. Males were suddenly emasculated and women were totally empowered. The cases listed gained so much attention due to our new scandal- addicted news media. Increasing numbers of stories about celebrities, scandals and melodramas were being reported. Stories about female accomplishments were quickly dwindling. Thus, a system of supply and demand developed between the media and audience. We wanted trashy sleeze / sexuality and they gave it to us.  All three of these violent cases turned into media circuses, in which both the male and female were denigrated to fit societal norms. Tragically, serious issues such as rape, domestic abuse and violence were turned into entertainment which we became addicted to, instead of revered.

I really enjoyed Douglas' discussion of Janet Reno. Her public admiration stemmed from her candid approach, which proved to be refreshing in the political sphere. However, as much as people respected her as a politician, she was routinely mocked on late night shows for her outright rejection of femininity. Janet chose not to conform to societal norms, which made her very threatening. She didn't invest in her appearance and thus was not a part of our hyper consumer culture. This of course sent a message to many women that they could also disregard their appearance/ accessories and be successful. This did not sit well with the media, who sexualized her to undermine her authority.  Thus, Reno was able to achieve political success, but at a steep cost to her personal status. She was ostracised because she did not conform. On a personal note, as I was reading this section I googled Janet Reno to find a picture of her. When I saw what she looked like I found myself thinking that the Will Ferrell skit would probably be very funny. I was born in a media filled household and thus I cannot easily escape it, even when I know how degrading it can be.
Janet Reno Dance Party

Douglas also delves into the fictional world of warrior women, such as Xena and Buffy. Although I appreciate her points and ideas I found many of them to be redundant. Her most interesting analysis came with her discussion on the trade off that needed to be made for these shows to succeed. Yes, these shows were totally promoting female power, independence and awesomeness. But in order to draw in the male demographic these women were in seriously skimpy clothing. Additionally, as discussed in class, these super heroines had to make a personal trade off, namely being their personal relationships. For the most part they did not have family or serious romantic interests, besides the people who they were fighting with. This is similar to real life situations in which women must carefully and meticulously balance their personal and professional life.