Dove and Steven Universe: Media and celebrities

We believe in giving children everywhere the tools to build confidence and self-esteem so they can reach their full potential. As part of this, we want to help young people navigate the pressures of body image and the media, and celebrity culture. So, we’ve teamed up with Cartoon Network’s Steven Universe to create a series of six short animated films to help educate and inform on topics from body image distortion to the negative effects of media on children. In this episode, Peridot explains why some images in the media make us doubt our own appearance and why we shouldn’t let everything we see affect our self-esteem.

We’ve partnered with Steven Universe which follows the magical Crystal Gems, and their half-human, half-Gem “little brother”, Steven - showing young people that real strength comes from the power of unconditional acceptance and celebrating who we are. From bullying to media influence on body image, every episode covers important topics that will help children build self esteem and grow in confidence. If a young person close to you is struggling with the impact of media and celebrities, remind them that they’re more than how they look, teach them media literacy, and talk about the amazing things their body can do.

How does media affect body image? We’re here to help you with tricky questions like this. Working with experts from the fields of psychology, health and media, the Dove Self-Esteem Project has developed a range of resources to help guide parents, teachers and mentors in addressing these questions and building young people’s self-esteem.