Killing us Softly 3 Advertising’s Image of Women
Filed in Politics on Jan.06, 2009
This video deals with the very important subject of how women are treated in advertising. It is not safe to be viewed in the work place due to the frank nature of the discussion.
Thanks to Leslie for sending this to me.
January 6th, 2009 at 8:27 am
If I buy a Porsche 15 hot chicks will fuck me
I see nothing wrong with that ad
/sarcasm
January 6th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
I’m using my new laptop. Woo hoo
January 6th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
SPECS
January 6th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
also, keep in mind then men are pictured in similar ways
Sage Reply:
January 6th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
Not nearly as often as women and it is a relatively new thing…..it isn’t right for men to be portrayed as objects either
January 6th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
I watched the movie and see several problems. Sure, ads are seixist, but if our culture wasn’t, then they wouldn’t be. She is not looking at that picture.
The problem there then is the fact that I personally like smaller women, ones shorter than myself, usually as smart as me (i like smart people, and i do care baout personality), and ones that seem more innocent. Thta is not due to sexisim or anything else (trust me, if you knew my mother…), but simply a personal preference. This is the nature of a man, in all honesty, due to our biology, and really beyond control. Provided we care about more than the pussy (I like my girlfriend to argue with me, debate me, etc.) then it is okay.
Also, as I say many times on my blog, parents are our biggest issues. Our parents teach us what is okay or not; violence, sex, drugs, everything she mentioned, is effected by parents. Read my blog (can link to the specific posts if you request) for more on my views on that
-Let the firestorm start
Sage Reply:
January 6th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
Ummmm, that’s the problem-our society is sexist and the ads just reinforce the sexism.
January 6th, 2009 at 3:33 pm
I am not sexist, please accept that
the problem is not our society, find me one that doesnt share similar traits… The problem is our nature, our BIOLOGY, something we can not change. We just need to work on controling it, and understand we shouldn’t always listen to it
Sage Reply:
January 6th, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Are you saying that men are just victims of their hormones? You don’t think what they see and hear effects them? I do. Garbage in, garbage out.
January 6th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Biology as entitlement?
January 6th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Thank you so much for this video! If you don’t mind, I would like to put this on my blog also, the message is so important. After seeing the hatred and sexist remarks thrown around in the MSM during the last election, this is the answer as to why this behavior has become so acceptable.
I must say to Barga, our culture is sexist because society has allowed it to be that way, not because it’s “ok” or “natural”. That’s the point of this film, to make it NOT acceptable, to wake people up to the reality of what is going on in advertising. It takes seeing these ads, one after another, to realize how deeply embedded this has become. It’s not just a few incidents, it’s an epidemic! You can’t just “control” a virus, you have to stomp it out and make it unacceptable in society to treat women this way, and I don’t mean just on the surface, but always, even behind closed doors. We shouldn’t have to ignore it…it shouldn’t be there to ignore in the first place!
Excellent post, and thank you again! I’ll put this on my blog tomorrow and link to your blog. I’m not sure how many will take the time to watch it but it’s worth the effort.
Sage Reply:
January 6th, 2009 at 4:57 pm
You’re quite welcome. A link to it was sent to me by Leslie who comments here. I thought it was a powerful video.
January 6th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
I am not saying that it is good or that it being natural (see apes, monkies, lions, etc to see how it is in nature) is an execuse. I am merely saying that the cause is nature, not society
Then, I am saying that as a society et all (mostly from parents though) we need to fix this
January 7th, 2009 at 8:46 am
So it’s nature? Do male apes, monkeys, lions, etc. expect their mates to be physically “perfect” in a way that is not seen in nature? Do they have to be not just smaller, but of a very specific size and proportion?
The ads are sexist because our society is sexist. Our society is sexist because men, by virtue of their superior physical strength, have achieved control and sexism just adds another way to maintain their superior position. In addition, by insisting that women are only of value if they conform to a specific physical model, men have given themselves a convenient target to blame for their own failures .
Women who support this bias are just as much to blame. I don’t care how much brainwashing they have undergone – at a certain age, they should be able to wake up.
Barga Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 9:07 am
Do male homonids expect that? I really don’t think so
I was talking more about abuse of women than their look.
Maybe you should, instead of blaiming just men (which makes your post sexist) bnlame the Greeks, they concieved of this setup
January 7th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Unfortunately, I am looking from the outside in on this issue, because I haven’t seen any of the advertisements, and have never seen almost all of the examples that were used in the video. I don’t know whether I fit into the target profile that is implied by the video, or if I am an outlier.
From this perspective, there is little mention of advertising as a business or a critical examination of how advertisers make their ad decisions. The video seems to suggest an attempt is being made in the ads where advertisers are trying to define and manipulate a target market for the product. The video also implies that there is social and cultural engineering taking place here that is attempting to define the psychology of self esteem for girls and women.
The video shows many examples of what is considered sexist advertising, but gives no details of how sexist advertising is approved, and who is involved in getting it published. For those of us who aren’t involved with advertising, it would be helpful to develop a case study of a sexist advertisement so that we can understand some of the basics such as how an agency defines its market segments (age, gender, gender preference, race, socio-economics, region of the country, pop culture, etc. or if several, how are they weighted by importance), how the ad is targeted to a market segment, what information is used to develop the ad, are the ads different based on the publication in which they will be run, what goes into getting the right subjects to photograph or images, and a whole host of other decisions that result in the final advertisement. After an ad is published, how do advertisers determine whether a sexist ad is effective ad for the product they are representing, or a failure? Some ads are more provocative than others, so do these really sell more product? Does gender violence or disrespect really sell, or is it used to start controversy to get market attention? Do advertisers try to provoke their target markets by antagonizing a competing market i.e. kids rebelling against their parents, gender against gender? Some ads are in foldouts, full page, half page, etc… why? Another dimension to this is how advertising is taught in our schools. Are students being taught that one has to produce sexist content and make sexist decisions to get and maintain a job in the advertising industry? Some advertising agencies are multinational and develop advertising for other cultures, especially Europe, which is much more explicit that what we see in the US. Is part of the European advertising culture bleeding over into what are considered sexist advertisements in US publications? In advertising, how many women are in the final decision making process or actually make the final decisions before sexist advertising goes to print?
The moderator in the video has been compiling examples of sexist advertising for many years and has been tracking how sexism in advertising has been evolving over these years. She is trying to make a point with examples she considers sexist without exploring the reasons why, some of which I have tried to ask in the questions above. If she could concentrate more on the causes rather on the outcomes in her next video I think that we all would be more enlightened. Also, by addressing the specifics of the topic, concrete suggestions would emerge which could help change current advertising policy, processes and attitudes and hopefully tone down the rhetoric.
Again, I am viewing this from a pragmatic point of view but I also realizing there are and have been real problems that women have faced with sexist behaviour and this is a very emotional topic for many. But I also believe in taking an issue apart to find the root causes so it can be understood, addressed and improved.
Sage Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
No offense, but I think the why of it is pretty simple…..sex sells. Given that sex sells and businesses exist to make money it becomes quite difficult to convince business that they need to lead the way and do the socially responsible thing, thus putting the onus on the consumer. If sex quits selling then business stops using sex to sell. It’s really a vicious circle and one that isn’t likely to end without society rising up and declaring females as a commodity off limits in advertising.
Barga Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
I think that you are missing his greater point:
That is, he is contending that it can not be just society, as it exists (and is much worse) in other cultures.
Basically, the movie star is contending that our society has problems because of the ads, and implies that they are unique to us. She misses the fact that almost every culture has the same ads/requirements, and that violence against women has been there from the start of humanity.
Sage Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 5:04 pm
So, when do we demand the violence stop?
Mbousa Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Sage, your right.. sex sells and I am not disputing that simple fact. I was trying to get at the root of why decisions are made to use sex and how it is packaged. The diversity of sexist packaging as shown in the video ranges from both the subtle and in your face. Where does it cross over from being a subtle hint to being sexist?
Barga Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
NOW
we demand it now
but i do not think that ads have anything to do with that (look at any other species of upper level mamals)
Sage Reply:
January 7th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
And you don’t think that what one sees and hears affects how they think.