Advertisement has arguably
become the most important priority for all companies. Structured in a
patriarchal capitalist society, there is an abundance of sexism, racism, and
display of power hierarchy in the business. With advertisements, the main
objective is to maintain or create a purchase response from a target audience.
Given the environment of advertisements, whether the media is televised, printed,
or displayed on billboard, there is bound to be intentional or unintentional
slight to a specific gender, race, or class. This is the result of non-personal
communication from companies to the masses. Sense the incarnation of
advertisement, the influence of culture has been substantial with persuasive
imagery playing on insecurities of the target population in order to trigger
sales. “Advertising is an over $130 billion a year industry and affects all of
us throughout our lives. We are each exposed to over 1500 ads a day,
constituting perhaps the most powerful educational force in society. The
average adult will spend one and one-half years of his/her life watching
television commercials. They sell values, images and concepts of success and
worth, love and sexuality, popularity and normarky. They tell us who we are and
who we should be. Sometimes they sell addictions. (Killbourne)”
[ Female: Sexual object, male gaze, male magazine, soft porn.]
With advertisements
having such an impact on us, the representations of women in relation to men,
race, and the messages that are portrayed are very important, and most commonly
affect culture negatively. The most vulnerable and affected are usually the
adolescence due to younger people searching for an identity. However, that does
not mean adults are not affected just as much. The businesses profiting off of
their marketing would not be successful if it were not for the purchases of
adults who contribute to the popularity and sales of these images. Women are
particularly fed images and almost peer pressured into achieving a slim physique
with the repetitive display of weight loss commercials, magazines, and
branding. That’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to faults in how
portray women in society. The sexism continues with advertisements being
directed towards women as housewife roles and products, to even more reductive
advertisements made just for the male gaze…displaying women as nothing more
than sex objects. This becomes more blatant in comparison to male-targeted audiences.
“Carmakers were still draping blondes in evening gowns over the hoods like
ornaments. Authority figures were almost always male, even in ads for products
that only women used. (Gloria Steinem)”
[Male: BMW AD, insinuates boys/men only aspire to drive BMW's, slights the female consumer, race representation hints a white male driver is the target for company]
A great alternative
for these outdated and offensive types of advertising would be to better
represent both male and female, and especially with gender neutral products or
companies like cars, household products, etc. With a population that’s
progressed and has become more diverse there are no excuses for any intentional
race representation with products, as the potential sales have now expanded to
a more culturally diverse audience. In fact, with less offensive material, more
people would be willing to support and purchase certain products without having
to avoid protecting their sense of pride. With advertising companies spending
astronomical amounts of money in marketing their business, they are going to be
less than encouraging to make necessary changes to move away from their archaic
ways of marketing. However, in a day an age of modern technology, we now have
access to communicate directly with companies and express how we feel about
their products and ads. With more people speaking up and contacting companies
via phone and online, there will eventually be a positive change in the representations
and influences of gender, race, and class.
[Female: Gender neutral product, housewife stereotype, male body language towards female(mother) is demeaning/not accepting..also shows male has more important duties than to spray air freshner, women is Febreze's target audience.]
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