Hey, Did You Hear? Advertising Still Demeans Women.
Alex Leo over at HuffPo wrote a post on five sexist trends the ad world just can't shake. The following tropes "use stereotypes and violence to prey on our most vile desires" -- and probably aren't going anywhere, despite "cultural outrage" and "personal boredom."
The list (in far less detail than Leo provides):
o Bondage. One awesome example is the ad at left, for Remy Martin's "Things Are Getting Interesting" campaign. Experience has taught us naughty domina girls sell more than liquor, however; they also push PSPs with whip-cracking finesse.
o Rape. Illustrated by this ad by Dolce & Gabbana -- which I think had more of a "gang-bang" in mind than a "rape," per se. It's a feathery-fine distinction.
o Sluts. Lovin' the shameless BMW ad used in this example. It's so Gossip Girl! And we can definitely attest to the prevalence of sluts in ad culture. Whatever Lola wants...
o Girl-on-Girl Action. Yeah, baby, yeah!
o Cum Shots. No, baby, no.
Cool list, highly recommended idle reading. But Leo forgets a handful of our favourites: the voyeur, the coquette, the perpetual innocent, and the girl gone bad. (See graduates of Disney.)
As a culture, we've also come a long way in terms of building effective stereotypes for men. So come on, creatives, broaden your horizons to an increasingly-self-conscious XY populace. Ammo in? Then take aim -- and three cheers for gender parity!
Comments
"...most of the ads (not available online) have men between the two women in controlling positions. And even without that, these women are obviously putting on a show for an outsider, not having a passionate lesbian love affair for themselves."
Well, yeah. But isn't that ALL lesbian couples?
(Seriously, the bondage one is a bit of a stretch, and the insinuation is pretty demeaning in its own right.)
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