Attitudes toward men and women in Taiwan

Even though Taiwanese people talk about the rise of women's status and power, certain attitudes remain the same. I will not be able to articulate well, but I hope that the following two examples from two talk shows are good starting points for us to think about attitudes about men and women in Taiwan.

Talk Show A (showed in November 2011): While on the topic of "Things that Women should absolutely not do when preparing for or when having sex," two male celebrities expressed their anger toward and disappointment of women's breast size. They were angry that many women in Taiwan wear push-up bras that create the illusion of their breasts as one to two sizes larger. When the opportunity of getting into the bed with women they met/were dating, they became extremely disappointed that what they thought was C cup was actually A cup. Men (at least these two guests) also became angry at what they perceived to be "false advertisement."

Talk Show B: The topic was "What do pretty/cute girls on the internet look like without make-up?" (showed on Nov. 30, 2011) The hosts showed these girls' pictures from the internet- all cute and/or pretty. These girls had big followings on the internet. The hosts then asked invited male celebrity guests to bring in these girls, one-by-one, while wearing pajamas and without any make-up. Perhaps somewhat exaggerated, these guests all complained the plainness, or even ugliness of these girls (without make-up). They made nasty comments about these girls' looks (such as: "I have no more appetite." "I cannot eat for three days"). They highly doubted if these were the same persons. These girls brought their make-up tools with them, and put on make-up in the duration of the show. At the end of the show, each girl reappeared with fashionable clothing with high heels, and most importantly, (heavy) make-up. The concluding remarks of one of the hosts was: "Very soon, there would be no ugly girls. Men need to watch out."

Questions: How has the sense of beauty that globalization (global media) brings influenced expectations of women? What is the relationship between consumerism and the growing gap between rich and poor? Have women been "liberated" by global consumerism in having the freedom to consume? Or have women used global capitalism and consumerism to express their liberation? Have women become less "liberated" as they conform to some sense of beauty that emphasizes big eyes, lighter skin, big breasts, small waist, and thin and long legs that can be created by cosmetics and fashion? While we focus on women's liberation, what about men's attitude? Have their attitudes toward women changed over time? Can we continue to "excuse" some of men's attitudes simply by saying "."