the new man

The 80’s were the true beginning of media affecting men through representations and commercialism, according to John Beynon in “The Commercialization of Masculinities.” Beynon goes on to describe how the “man” changed through the decades, from around the 50’s until the 90’s (as current as this article goes). Before the 80’s, men were typically understood to be hard-working men supporting their family, with whatever appearances and clothing choices went along with that. The 80’s, however, introduced the yuppie when men were portrayed fashionably and attractively through media. An “ideal man” image emerged, but by the 90’s “Loaded” magazine came out and men were depicted as just looking to have a good time. It was a casual, we’ll do whatever we want, kind of emphasis and many young men could relate to the magazine. Beynon emphasized points made by writers such as Mort, Nixon, Edwards and Christian, but overall a single description of what media’s “new man” has become over the years cannot be pinned down.



I might as well stick with the “King of Queens” theme and describe how Doug is an example of ‘the new man.’ Beynon points out that there is no real agreement on what the new man is, but I’ll go ahead and say that there are a bunch of different “new men” portrayed in media. Doug is an example of a 90’s type of man who doesn’t necessarily care about how he looks, he has a sense of humor and likes to joke around, he likes hanging out with his guy friends and playing sports, and some of his hobbies include watching t.v. and snacking. He has an attractive wife, a job, and a house. It pretty much seems like he has everything a “new man” could want- which, in his case, definitely does not include fancy clothes or other things suggested by the media of earlier years. Doug is also similar to the men that Christian studied who live non-sexist lifestyles. He is pretty contemporary in his view of women and in the way he treats his wife Carrie. This new man seems like someone who a number of men in his generation could relate to.