Sexism in Television Ads

The FCC today has become so strict to the point that some television shows are not allowed to show certain content during their window frame. On television today, any swear word that is said is bleeped out, any questionable clothing attire that is worn is pixilated so there is no longer the chance for a wardrobe malfunction. It is pretty much impossible to get away with saying and doing what you wish on television. If television shows are put through such a rigorous code of conduct, should advertisements be put through the same test? Throughout our society we are exposed to thousands of advertisements every day. Some good, some bad, and some just wrong.

Our advertisement can be found at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vBMH5DcPts

Pretty sexist huh? How come its not okay for television shows to post questionable material, but Dr. Pepper has free range to say anything that it wants? And talk about being stereotypical! Everything that a man loves? Well women are going to be one less thing if commercials like this keep popping up.

Here are some questions:

If you are working for Dr. Pepper and you could control the content that people will see in order to purchase your product, would you allow advertising like this to be released?

What does this say about humans as a society today?

Are we that different that men and women cannot enjoy the same things?

Just because something is better for us, does it mean that men cannot enjoy as well?

Can you name other instances in which companies have been sexist in conveying their product?

Does this commercial change your view of Dr. Pepper?

Will you continue to drink Dr. Pepper even after this commercial was released?

Do you have any suggestions as to how Dr. Pepper could still portray their message of great flavors and less calories that even guys will find masculine?

Ohio University Students vs. ‘Racist’ Halloween

As it is Halloween, we thought it would be fitting to find a blog on Halloween costumes. Halloween is about dressing up and acting like something you aren't. People can be sexy, scary, and funny while they can also change their gender and ethnicities. However, some students form a group called STARS (Students Teaching About Racism in Society) at Ohio University think Halloween costumes are beginning to cross the line.

Link to the blog: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2011/10/ohio-university-students-hit-racist-halloween-costumes/.

The students made a series of posters that depict people from different ethnic backgrounds holding pictures of what appears to be examples of racist costumes. An example of one is of what appears to be "A Mexican boy [holding] a photo of someone in a sombrero, colorful poncho and exaggerated mustache riding a stuffed donkey." The tagline for the posters is "We're a culture, not a costume", there is also a sentence below that reads, "This is who I am, and this not okay." The blog got a lot of attention on the day that it was released and there were a lot of mixed reactions. Some said their campaign was ridiculous and others agreed 100%. Something to consider is that Ohio University is ranked as America's #1 Party School.

So some questions:

- Let’s be honest, for Halloween if you celebrated, did you or a close friend dress as something STARS would consider racist?

- If so, do you still feel that it was okay to wear a “racist” costume?  or would you now agree with the blog? Other?

- What about sexist costumes?

- What’s your reaction about how this was started by such a small group of people, and is now a nationwide conversation?

- What kind on line should be drawn when it comes to costumes?

- Do you find it ironic that OU posted this even though they are #1 Party School in America?

- If you were the Dean of Students for OU (Ryan Lombardi), do you think that #1 Party School is a good reputation to have?  Would agree or disagree on his immediate actions to these posters?

- How does this affect popular culture?

Got milk? Got sexism?

We see "Got Milk?" commercials in almost every magazine we pick up. The typical milk mustache on some prominent person in today's society or the latest athlete usually grazes the ad, but this time the ad takes a new approach with incorporating direct sexism. The link to the blog:

http://mommyish.com/stuff/got-milk-give-your-children-some-sexism-with-that-calcium/

The advertisement features a weary looking man carrying several milk cartons and reads, "I'm sorry I listened to what you said and not what you meant." According to nutritional findings by the California Milk Processor Board, calcium helps reduce the symptoms of Premenstrual Syndrome, states the article. The ad takes advantage of women by showing young children that women are vicious monsters that men should try to steer clear of at all costs and no matter what you do to please them, you will still be wrong. They even went as far as to create a website that offered "sensors" and "data" on how to tell if a woman is "PMS-ing". Ironically, the website www.everythingidoiswrong.org no longer exists.

Here are some questions to respond to:
How do these types of ads affect children?
How do you think children's parents would respond to these ads?
Do you think that this ad is sexist?
If so, how could this message be conveyed that would not be in a sexist manor?
Do you think the ad imply's that women are monsters, like the article says?
What will a loyal customer of this milk think when he/she sees this ads?
Where else in advertisements can blatant sexism be seen?

In 1992 Sir Mix a Lot’s song “Baby Got Back” was introduced to the American public and had quite the reaction. It was played all over the country in clubs, on MTV, and the radio. Even though the song was so big, the message behind it was highly degrading to women. All through the song is about women’s backsides. This blog (http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/2011/05/sir_mix-a-lot_fat_baby_got_back.php) is about an interview with Sir Mix a Lot who has some interesting comments on what he intended the song to be and how he actually feels. From the comments below there are a mixture of opinions on how the song is supposed to be. Some of the comments were harsh; the others were supporting the song and how it’s supposed to be “sexy and fun”, not taken too seriously. The intended audience for this song is mostly teenagers. Burger King tried to sell SpongeBob Squarepants kid meals with this song to try to win younger audiences. Also, movies like Shark Tale, Shrek, and Happy Feet feature this song to the younger demographic. This song shows how women are degraded to just a body part. In this case it’s a whole song about their backsides. It shows men sometimes like the curves, which goes against societies views of having rail thin women. This song is a product of American culture.

Here are some questions to consider:

-How do you feel about some women responding by trying to prove themselves with this song by conforming their own behind?

-How do you feel about this song being more popular with white people?

-How do you think different women react to this song?

-How do you think society reacted to the song when it first was released?

-If you were a parent when the song was released, how would you react to it?

-If this song was made 20 years before and after it was released do you think it would be as popular?

-How do you think other cultures would react to this song?

-On the blog, what do you think of Burger King using this song to sell kids’ meals?

-This song was in the movies Shrek, Happy Feet, and Shark Tale. Do you think this song is acceptable in Disney movies?

Gender Representation in Video Games

http://hcireflections.wordpress.com/2009/03/30/gender-representation-in-video-games/

The blog that our group chose focuses in on gender representation in video games and the blogger is analyzing an article that they read on the subject. People are always looking at ways that women are exploited sexually, and video games are no different. Women characters in video games are mostly shown in as little clothes as possible with an emphasis on their busts. This blog opens up the discussion about women being present in video games, but it also examines the ways that men are hyper-sexualized in video games. In video games, men are frequently displayed with unrealistically large muscles. The images of men and the few images of women that gamers are exposed to are an impossible reality and there is much controversy over both male and female representation through video game characters.

Why do you think that the majority of characters in video games are the stereotypical “buff” men?

When women do appear in video games, they are represented as extremely thin with abnormally large boobs and they are dressed in revealing clothing. Why do you think that is?

Do the attitudes of the male characters towards the female characters in games translate to the ways that men treat women in real life at all?

Do you think that there are more male gamers than female gamers because of the ratio of male to female characters and the ways that they are represented?

What other ways are video games made more appealing to boys than girls?

Are men supposed to be playing video games to fulfill a “perfect” role in society that they can’t achieve in reality?

Masculinity in Disney

The blog we chose is a visual presentation on Disney’s portrayal of masculinity. It is at: http://youtu.be/8CWMCt35oFY . This video takes something as innocent as a Disney movie and analyzes it, looking at male characters and how they are developed. Sanjay Newton takes us step by step through different Disney videos, describing how males are portrayed. He shows us how the male lead is developed through his relationship with women, his physical appearance, and his dominance. Outside of the video, there are many comments defending Disney movies and some who agree with the video. It seems to have sparked controversy and intrigue over something some people find very important to their childhood.

Conversation Starters:

· Have you ever thought about how Disney, or other childhood movies, portray men and women? Do you with agree with the video's opinion?

· Do you think this is avoidable to portray characters this way in youth movies/shows? If not, do you think this is acceptable to do?

· What affect, if any, does this pattern in characters have on children who watch them?

· Is there a specific movie you liked as a child? Do you think this movie has these same patterns? If so, do you think this had an effect on you?

· Looking back, what else as a child shaped your beliefs of how men and women should act/be?

· Is there a particular comment about the video that you agree or disagree with? Explain.

· The attitude of the comments range from mild to aggressive, why do you think some people have such strong reactions?

Women in Food Advertisements

The blog I have selected draws on the representation of women in popular advertising ads, particularly with food ads. The blog can be found at http://jezebel.com/5726834/six-overly-popular-lady+images-and-what-they-mean. Please copy and paste this to your browser. The blog overall focuses on a variety of topics ranging from popular music, culture, entertainment, news, etc. The intended audience seems to be for young adults looking to check up on the latest celebrity gossip, stories around the world, and popular culture. This article talks about the ways in which people learn to associate women as being healthy, eating less than men, and as generally happy people because they buy the products that are being aimed at them. This blog discusses how certain foods (salads, nutrition bars, etc) are aimed at women and how as a society we tend to naturally think that women gravitate towards these products. As we previously discussed, the women that we see in popular media are typically young and attractive (meaning that the elderly are often excluded, or when they are included it's to sell us medication).

Conversation starters:

What kind of impression do you receive from these ads about women? In other words, what is the representation of femininity here (how is it being manufactured –can we buy our femaleness)? What are women being led to believe about themselves? And how are men in turn taught to think about women?

How do food advertisers attempt to induce a ‘feeling’ in their audience (how is happiness/satisfaction tied to their product)?

What do people commenting on this blog agree/disagree on? What kinds of things do they pay attention to? Can you expand on any of their ideas?

Can you think of other ways in which these images repeat in advertising? How does this connect to food/drinks targeted towards men (like the craze over Red Bull and Rockstar sports drinks)? What foods are specifically ‘male’ centered?

How to Respond to a Blog

Suggested Prompts for Respondents:

As a respondent, you want to provide an insightful, engaging analysis of the featured blog. Approaching the role of respondent without some specific analytic lenses will not provide material that your classmates will want to discuss. Below is a set of prompts that will serve as analytic lenses as you consider the blog that is under consideration in a given week. You only need to choose one of these prompts each week. You’ll find that some will work well for some blogs and not for others. You might find it interesting to use the same prompt more than one week, which will allow you to reflect back on past blogs and draw comparisons. As the quarter progresses, you may want to suggest new prompts to your instructor and your classmates.

1. Analyze the interface of the featured blog. Focusing on visual elements on the home page, make an argument in your comment on the class blog about what the interface implicitly suggests about the blog's central theme(s), values, or identity (see Writing Analytically on how to make the implicit explicit). Make an inference that could be a topic for class discussion and debate.

2. Look for an argument or disagreement occurring in the comments on a particular post on the featured blog. In your comment on the class blog, analyze the key issues and points of contention in the comments. Based on your observations, develop a theory about what blog’s readers value as a community. Use the following questions to get you started:

•What issues or ideas do people seem to agree upon despite the larger disagreement?
•Do people on the blog think some comments are rude or inappropriate, and if so why do you think this is?
•What rhetorical strategies do commenters use to construct their arguments?
•How do commenters reference other comments, and what does that suggest about the nature of interaction within the community?

3. Look for an argument or disagreement occurring in the comments on a particular post on the featured blog. Respond to that argument with a comment of your own on the featured blog. Explain your comment on our class blog and ask our class how they might respond. If you receive a response to your comment on the blog we're analyzing, post an update about how readers responded to your presence or ideas.

4. Look through several posts for any claims about a writer's or several writers' ethos on the featured blog. In your comment, develop an analytical theory about how ethos is working on the blog. Here are some questions to get you started:
•How do writer(s) invoke their education, status, experiences, beliefs, or identity? Do these methods ever backfire (do readers ever respond negatively to a writer's identity, education, etc.?)
•If there are multiple writers contributing to the blog, do you see any similarities or differences in appeals to ethos across posts? What assumptions can you make about the community based on what appeals to ethos bloggers seem to rely upon most? (For example, is education seen as particularly important? Political beliefs? Gender? Anything else?)

5. Look through several posts for any direct references or appeals to the audience on the featured blog (you might look for the use of the pronoun "you"/"we" or for more subtle techniques, such as posing a question to the audience or inviting the audience to respond). Write a comment on our class blog that states your theory about what those appeals to the audience suggest about who the writer believes the audience is, what they believe the audience values, or what the relationship between the writer/audience seems to be (for example, does the writer ask for the audience's opinion or position herself as an authority, or something else entirely?).

6. Look for one instance or several instances in which an author of a post makes a claim or introduces a new idea on the featured blog. In your comment on the class blog, write an interesting analysis of the rhetorical techniques the author uses to make this argument. You might consider the following questions:

•Are any of the ideas particularly controversial, and if so, how does the author attempt to persuade the audience or account for the controversy in advance?
•Look for whether readers generally agree or disagree. Formulate a theory about what the trends you notice suggest about the nature of the community, their values, the purpose of the blog, etc.
•Does the author cite any evidence or an authority on the subject, and if so, who or what is considered persuasive? Do the readers agree? What kind of knowledge does the community seem to value or disagree upon?
•Does the author introduce a new idea by referencing or attempting to improve upon someone else's idea? What might we learn as writer's about how arguments can be built off of or proceed from other arguments? (What's effective and what's not effective?)

7. Read through several posts and comments and formulate a claim about whether or not you think the featured blog actually does anything. In other words, does the blog seem to have any effect on people's knowledge, values, ideas, etc? Provide evidence for your claim in your comment on the class blog.

Blog Project Overview

Hi, Students.

At this point you have been assigned to a group and you are starting to become familiar with the blog project objectives.

When it is your groups turn to facilitate a blog, make sure that you include:

1. The title of the blog and its URL
2. A brief description of the blog
3. How this blog is relevant to the course theme.
4. A few conversation starters

Now, step one is fairly simple, just make sure to put the title in quotation marks. In step 2 you should include a description on the nature of the blog (maybe something on the visual elements of the blog or perhaps what seems to be the intended audience, etc). Step 3 is where you should include a brief paragraph (3-5 sentences) on how this particular blog we are reading is connected to our class discussion on gender in the music industry. The site as a whole might not always be relevant, but a specific article in it could be, but you need to explain why. In any case, you should always be able to relate the blog you have selected back to the thematic concerns of the course.

It is also important to note that facilitators will not just simply be posting a blog for everybody else to see, but actually leading and keeping track of the online discussion and making sure that the conversation keeps moving. Essentially, this means that all group members are responsible for reading the featured blog in order to create proper discussion.

In addition to your group collaborating and posting a blog for the week, you will comment on featured blogs by all other groups (so you will also be a respondent).

After a blog is posted, you will need to answer the question "What's going on here?" and using one of the suggested prompts (see blog project handout), provide insight as to how this blog functions and what it is trying to achieve.


If you ever have questions concerning the class blog, including instructions on how to be a facilitator when your turn comes and/or responding to a blog, you can always refer back to the "Blog Project" handout on Carmen, e-mail me at meza.7@osu.edu, ask me at the beginning of class (I will try to have at least 5 minutes open at the start of each class meeting to take questions about anything), or see me during office hours.