Fashion, beauty and media

This introduction considers how the four research articles in this issue address the relation of fashion and/or beauty with media: specifically, the ‘older’ media of journalism and film, and ‘new’ media such as video blogs and TikTok. All of these venues have the capacity to communicate various visual and verbal concepts, with different relations to their audiences. The emergence of newer, digital platforms has disrupted the extent to which media can dictate visual codes and narratives, opening up fragmented and decentralized spaces where multiple, often conflicting, discourses of fashion and beauty coexist. These platforms also potentially articulate alternative beauty ideals and subcultural fashion trends that challenge the hegemonic standards of older media. At the same time, the responsibility of older media to foster ethical journalistic standards and social justice awareness to their audiences becomes intensified. The articles in this volume represent these potentialities for both older and newer media.