Substantial evidence has shown that negative perceptions of women on television or in film may affect women in real life. A study has found that emotional desensitizing towards women can occur after watching just two pieces of media with sexually degrading and violent themes. The same study concluded that Men who are desensitized after watching a couple of films are less disturbed by violence against women and are less sympathetic to women who are the victims of violence. In addition, shows or films that are at first found to be demeaning to women are considered to be less so after time goes by.

Most people in our society would say that pornography is most prone to portray women in an offensive and degrading manner. A study of prisoners in 1988 revealed that eight-six percent of men charge with rape admit to using of pornography regularly. Of this eighty-six percent, fifty-seven percent admitted to imitating a pornographic film during while they were raping. More studies have concluded that men who watch pornography with violent scenes tend to commit sexual assault without realizing the pain they are causing to the female victim. A study taken at various colleges revealed that students who are shown pornographic films tend to be more unsympathetic toward women's rights and to their great effort for equality.

Despite society’s contemptuous look on pornography, mainstream films have been deemed more violent than porn. In America, there is a high rate of movies that are demeaning and degrading towards women. Sixty-eight percent of the American Public believes that the portrayal of women in movies, more often that not, leads to the high amount to mistreatment of women. American horror films falsify reality the most by sending out the message that violence, even sexual in nature, against women is acceptable in our society. All the popular horror films (Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, the Ring, etc.) include scenes of graphic violence, sometimes sexual in nature, towards innocent females. Studies taken in 1996 at various colleges found the men who have seen a few of these popular horror films tend to side with the rapists rather than the innocent female victims. In many cases these college men say that the female victim deserved it and the do not agree that the rapist should be charged or punished for their crimes.

The media of television may be the worst source of violence towards women as it has a very high rate of violence towards women. On network television, during the primetime hours, it has been found that for every ten male characters who bring about violence, eleven other men will become the victims of violence. The problem is that for every ten female characters who bring about violence, sixteen other women become the victim of violence. Recent studies have proven that the people who are overly sympathetic for the female victims of violence feel more uncomfortable and vulnerable in the real world. It has been conclude that these viewers eventually become the victims of violence against women in the real world. Since more of the young viewers of televisions are becoming exposed and desensitized to violence against women, most televisions and DVD players now carry a “V-Chip”. The V-Chip allows a certain age rating to be watched unless a password is correctly entered.