Sexist Advertising

Wakeboard Nebraska Paper Bags Women

2008-06-30T09:07:00.002-05:00

Ever heard of paper bagging it? Apparently they have and they think it is the best way to sell wakeboards, besides who needs to see their face, they are just objects right? Not only does this ad barely picture its product, it shows women as nothing more than attractive bodies in bikinis. When I first saw this ad I didn’t know what it was advertising. Even now I wonder if they are really trying to sell wakeboards. I know five women in bikinis and Mardi Gras beads wearing paper bags is exactly what I think of when I see a wakeboard. It is clear this ad is aimed at men and created by men because all it does is grab the attention of the consumer by showing attractive, scantily clad women wearing bags. They are nothing but objects, they have no faces, they aren’t real people. That is all this ad tells the consumer. It says nothing for wakeboards except that they will get you sex objects to admire that have no personality and are meant to be mere objects.

Noxious Noxzema

2008-06-30T09:05:00.004-05:00

Apparently all women secretly want the cat calls from the construction site because they just love acting coy while being demeaned and degraded. In fact we wash our faces just to get noticed and then act offended because we couldn’t possibly let anyone know we like the degrading attention. That is all this ad seems to be saying. It portrays women as people who like to be treated as sexual objects and while they may act offended they secretly enjoy being treated in such a degrading way. Noxzema claims to want to help people treat acne but all they manage to do in this advertisement is show women as sexual objects that enjoy degrading attention. The advertising companies should know how offensive this is and how much it will hurt their sales just like every other ad mentioned in this blog.

Sexist Advertising Mania

2008-06-30T09:01:00.001-05:00

After having read through many magazines and therefore many multitudes of advertisements I have come to the conclusion that advertising has become not only sex obsessed but highly offensive. I feel it that many of the advertisements that are now prominent in magazines are very degrading to women and I have chosen a few of these advertisements to show my point. Below is the image of each advertisement. I think it is very important for advertising companies to see these advertisements in a new light because these ads are offending many consumers and that causes great concern from an ethical and moral standpoint. In addition to the issues of offensiveness are the issues that the advertisers are more focused on, sales. The offensive nature of these ads will cause many consumers to be alienated by the companies and sales will then decrease. Now it is important for the advertising companies to look at each ad and learn the reasons these ads are offensive. Perhaps if possible I may suggest an alternate advertising possibility in addition to pointing out the problems. Hopefully after having read this blog the advertising companies will realize how offensive their ads are. Perhaps then they will stop these ads, if not because of offensiveness but at least because it will hurt sales.

Stripper Poles & Shoe Sales

2008-06-18T22:57:00.003-05:00

Is this an advertisement for a strip club or a pair of shoes? The advertising agency that created this ad clearly has lost touch with the world of shoes, either that or they spend too much time partying at strip clubs. These two advertisements do nothing but offend and degrade the woman who happens to be wearing a nice pair of shoes. A woman lays splayed out on the floor draped over a sofa, seemingly unconscious. Perhaps after a long night of drinking she staggered home and passed out, on her feet are an attractive pair of shoes. Lucky for the advertising company they placed the shoes near the brand name or nobody would have known what the ad was for. In addition to this ineffective advertising comes the insinuation. This advertisement implies that the woman has passed out, for whatever reason. This may not be so bad in some ways, despite its lack of effectiveness, but it certainly puts her in a compromising position. Does it imply that women all women who wear these shoes will go out and party? If so great for them, but why then show them passed out on the floor as opposed to out at the clubs? Will this really sell shoes? Next we see a stripper pole, this is the one that offends more than the passed out woman. A woman lays on the floor legs stretched up and around a stripper pole while wearing red shoes and a dress that doesn’t even manage to cover all of her undergarments. To me this says nothing for the shoes but simply that all women are strippers or perhaps all women who wear these shoes are strippers. I find it highly offensive that advertisers believe portraying women as strippers is an okay form of advertising, let alone a successful form. Many women that sees this ad will be highly offended and this will severely hurt sales. I firmly believe that this ad is aimed towards men because few self respecting women would appreciate it; it is clear that society is still very patriarchal and this is just proof.

Orbit Objectifies Females

2008-06-18T22:55:00.003-05:00

“You light up my life,” because you’re nothing but an object in the eyes of a patriarchal society. A catchy new tune, or the message of this advertisement? You tell me. In past ads mentioned women have been portrayed as objects in a mostly figurative sense but here it becomes literal. The Orbit chewing gum company advertises a chewing gum to clean and whiten teeth. In this ad they put a lampshade on women and have them hold up a container of orbit gum. The assumption is that they are smiling after having used the product and their smiles light up like a light bulb but the use of women in this role as an object (literally) is highly offensive. It shows that the company, or at least its advertising agency, thinks of women as nothing more than an object, if not a decorative one.

Gucci stepping all over women?

2008-06-18T22:48:00.003-05:00

Walking on women must be the newest thing in fashion because that is all this ad manages to do. While this ad at least shows its product clearly it also manages to degrade women. The woman in this advertisement is literally being walked on. Not only that but she is grasping the boot of the person walking on her in a gentle way as if to say it is okay for you to walk on me. This ad may show the product but it also shows that its okay to mistreat women. I personally think that many women would be offended by this ad and it would severely hurt sales. This fact alone should be enough for the advertising company to discontinue this offensive ad.

Dolce & Gabbana . . . what happened to clothes?

2008-06-18T22:42:00.002-05:00

For a company that claims to sell clothing Dolce & Gabban certainly seem to be lacking something. What pray tell does a naked woman surrounded by men have to do with clothing? The last time I checked advertising clothing involved wearing clothes. This advertisement does nothing but insult women. It advertises clothing but she wears none, she is surrounded by a throng of men who are all fully dressed and aren’t in so compromising a position. It is as if to say if men buy these clothes they are buying themselves nude women and the implication of sex and power. This portrays women as merely a sexual object with no value whatsoever except as a decoration or a play thing. From the women’s perspective it says that women have to get nude to get the attention of men. This is so offensive to women that I am surprised that you, the advertising agency are still in business after pulling a stunt like this. Not only does it offend the female consumer it also objectifies women and alienates them which cannot be good for business. I know for a fact I would not want to buy clothing after seeing this ad, in fact I might even make it a point never to buy from Dolce & Gabbana at all because of this degrading ad.

Slimfast Attacks Buyers

2008-06-18T22:32:00.005-05:00

Apparently if a company has a product that claims to help you lose weight its okay for them to call you fat and make you feel horrible about yourself because they think you will buy more of their product if you hate yourself; who would have guessed? Not only does this ad play on women’s insecurities; it tells them you must be a certain size to be accepted. They even manage to play on the anxiety of the bride by showing her ripping her dress and even being too fat to be carried without collapsing into the cake. This company is telling women they have to be the perfect size to get married and they have to have Slimfast to do it. People who are trying to lose weight are probably insecure enough as it is so I find it odd, and horribly immoral for this company to play on the insecurities of women. What I find even worse is that they choose to play on these insecurities in a horribly mean way that if anything will make their consumers feel worse. “Need to lose a little weight before your wedding?” is what this ad says, no I don’t think you do, your husband will love you no matter your size and if he doesn’t he is not the man for you. Why would anyone buy from a company that is so cruel in their advertising. It is like Slimfast has become the bully of the weight loss world. If you can’t sell something in a positive way maybe you just shouldn’t be selling it.

Belvedere, are they really selling vodka?

2008-06-18T21:56:00.003-05:00

Vodka or sex, what are they really selling? In this particular print ad by Belvedere we see a woman reapplying bright red lipstick next to a man from the waist down. He is wearing jeans and a belt with a large belt buckle that shines silver and she appears to have been using it to reapply her lipstick before she was surprised by the person who took the picture. She also appears, quite conveniently, to be nude. Only on the right side of the two page spread do we see a white vertical strip that contains a picture of a bottle of Belvedere vodka. Below the bottle of vodka is the slogan “luxury reborn.” This ad, upon first glance, appears odd and says little about vodka. As I analyze this ad even further the woman appears to be surprised and embarrassed. It makes me think that perhaps she was doing something inappropriate prior to being walked in on. Now a person might ask, “How is this offensive?” It is not offensive unless, of course, you try to guess why you are only seeing the man’s lower half and why she appears so surprised. This has clear sexual implications and puts the woman in a degrading position. This would be highly offensive to female consumers and I think it should not be allowed in print. After all it is offensive and nowhere in the actual image does it say anything relating to vodka and I certainly don’t know what a woman in a sexually compromising position has to do with Belvedere vodka or “luxury reborn.” Perhaps if the woman was pictured next to a glass of vodka with lipstick smudges this ad would have made sense but as it is it not only does not advertise vodka; it offends females and female consumers and therefore reduces vodka sales.