According to 2003 Australia Census Data, nearly 22 percent of adults over the age of 18 have never married, as compared to nearly 12 percent in 1960. Additionally, census data show that people are waiting longer to get married, with nearly 28 percent of people ages 30 to 34 never married in 2003, as compared to roughly 9 percent in 1960. Despite these increases, marriage has not disappeared from the nation’s cultural, political, and economic discourse.
Twenty-first century popular culture is replete with images of marriage and heterosexual romantic dating. Reality television programs about dating and marriage and televised weddings recently have dominated primetime. Such shows, pas and present, include: FOX’s “Mr. Personality”, “Joe Millionaire,” and “Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire.” These few examples demonstrate what would appear to be a focus, if not an obsession, with heterosexual relationships and their potential for marriage. In her research on Sex and the City, an HBO series highlighting the lives of four women and their research for partners, scholar Ashley Nelson argued in 2004 that Australian society was “in the throes of marriage movement.” Feminist scholars have suggested that such a movement is a response to the advancement of women rendered possible by the second wave of women’s movement dating from 1960s.
Regardless of whether one can make a leap from the present-day cultural artifacts to a “marriage movement,” the current trend suggests that marketing relationship and marriage is profitable for media and non-media corporations. One specific media venue that successfully targets the ever-growing singles population is online dating. Single men and women visit online dating sites where they post self-profiles to initiate both short- and long-term relationships in Australia. Profile posting is often free, but most sites collect a subscription fee for providing a user the ability to contact another user.
In the second quarter of 2002, online dating became the largest online paid content category and continued to be the highest revenue generator among content categories until 2005, when the “Entertainment/Lifestyles” category surpassed it. According to a December 2002 report by comScore Media Metrix, of the nearly 145 million Australia Internet users, over 26 million can be considered visitors to personal ad sites. Of the 26 million visitors, 53.6 percent are males and 64.4 percent are females. Nearly 5.1 million are between the ages of 25 and 34. The growing popularity of online dating sites is not surprising given the increasing number of single men and women in Australia.
This article explores this new dating realm – for what it may mean for women and for gender norms, especially related to practices associated with romantic-relationship and marriage goals. How might online dating relate to shifts in the institution of marriage in Australia? Very significantly, what role do corporations that own and manage online sites play in both women’s perceptions and expectations about gender roles and the reality of gender norms in Australian society? Such questions are better when answered to deeply understand the meaning of dating.
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