Jessica Ranstead Source #3

Step 1:
A) Why are "pro-ana" websites popular?
B) Lipczynska, Sonya. "Discovering the Cult of Ana and Mia: A Review of Pro-anarexia Websites." Web.a.ebscohost.com. United Kingdom: Taylor and Francis, Aug. 2007. Web. 5 Mar. 2015.

Step 2:

This article was about the growing of pro-ana websites, which are websites that promote anorexia and how to continue with this disease. The argument that the author is making is that the website are wrong and sad, yet unfortunately will continue to grow as long as the internet grows. She mainly looked at two websites one she thought was the best, and one she thought was the worst. The one that she thought was better was more of a warning website, and was a place for recovering girls to go to get help, and receive guidance. The worst website was basically a how-to website, for becoming anorexic  bulimic, and even engaging in self-harm. 

This source completely changed the way I view social media in relation to body image issues. I always knew that Facebook, and instagram had influence on young women, but now the fact that there are websites out there that are made completely for this problems sheds whole new light on the topic. It makes me wonder why women even go to these sites in the first place, and why do people create them, knowing that they're promoting such harmful behavior. I agree with the source that these types of websites are totally inappropriate and should not be promoting eating disorders, and body image issues like the do. I disagree with the author regarding the website that she thinks is the "best" I personally don't think there should be any websites regarding "pro-ana" out there whether you think they're good or bad, and that they're still sending the wrong message. It definitely answered my question because it seems like these websites are popular because it gives young girls a sense of community and like they're not the only ones out there with this disease. 

This article transitions well with my first article. My first article touched briefly on pro-ana, and pro-mia websites, and how they glamorize eating disorders. This article then goes deeper into those websites and is more the "why" behind them. I tend to agree with my first article more because it seems like although this article did put down those websites, the fact that the author did agree with one of the sites doesn't sit with me well. In contrast the other author completely thinks that pro-ana and pro-mia websites glamorize eating disorders when they're not something to be glamorized. 

This source has led me to wonder why people make these sites and use social media as a platform to spread this awful disease. It also makes me wonder about the young women behind the computers and why they go through the trouble of seeking these websites out. The answers I have so far are probably that their self-esteem is so low that they feel like they need a sense of community, so I want to delve into the psychological side of it, and why these websites fuel their need for this.