Gender Stereotyping: Women's Roles

Katherine Frith, author of "Undressing the As: Reading Culture in Advertising," states that "Not only does advertising shape American culture; it shapes Americans' images of themselves." This statement can be seen to be true in the following ad where a Mr.Clean product which is a cleaning brand is being advertised along side a two females. For many decades now even till this day, women are seen as caretakers and in charge of the home. This includes tasks such as cooking and cleaning. In this ad a mother is seen cleaning while showing her daughter how to clean. This implies that girls are taught at young ages the value of housework. This ad also says, "This Mother's Day get back to the job that really matters." This statement basically says that being a mother is a job and not a privilege. I disagree with this advertisement and believe it to be a direct sign stereotyping that says women are housewives.

Diversity in Television: The Voice

A television show that I watch on a weekly basis is The Voice which is on NBC network usually it airs on Monday and Tuesday nights. I choose this show because I feel that is shows both racial and gender diversity throughout the multiple seasons it has been aired. 

The Voice shows racial and gender diversity because all four judges are different in many ways. Throughout the seasons, there has always been one female who is either Christina Aguilera or Gwen Stefani who are both American, or Shakira who is Columbian. The other three judges are males who are usually either Adam Levine or Blake Shelton who are both American, or CeeLo Green, Usher, and Pharrell who all are African American. They not only are racially diverse but come from different musical backgrounds, some of them compose R&B, Hip-Hop, Pop, Country and Latin music. Both racial and gender diversity are important in media because shows such as The Voice are viewed by thousands globally which ultimate makes a positive impact in showing that diversity is important. 

I don't think that this television shows any racial or gender stereotypes which is a good thing. I feel like the thing that prevents this is the way the show is set up. The Voice is a show where singers can have the opportunity to showcase their talent with blind auditions, which is where four celebrity judges have their backs turned while the performer sings, this only allows the judge to choose the participant solely on their musical talent. If a judge decides that they would like the performer to be a part of their team, they then push a button and their chair turns finally seeing the participant's appearance. This set up, allows for all participants to have an equal opportunity with their backgrounds not having an impact on the judge's decisions. 

Racial Stereotyping

I do not believe that racial stereotyping is ever okay because that means we the people are just feeding the stereotype and make it appear to be true. Some may be funny I will admit that although is a 30 second commercial that advertises a product really worth mocking certain races. Advertisers clearly know that they need some way to let the audience connect 
so they use stereotypes to connect to the public. 

Racism is not a thing of the past, some commercials may not show a racial stereotype directly but the audience is aware of what they are implying. Racism can be seen in 3 different Mountain Dew commercials which were produced by Tyler The Creator an African American Hip-hop icon, who is known for pushing the boundaries. These commercials feature his own friends who are also African American, with typical gangster names and are seen as criminals. This is a clear example of racial stereotyping. 

I do believe that advertisers have ethical responsibilities because they have the power to influence a large audience. Although I also understand that advertisers need to come up with something that will capture a large audience and lead them in a direction of a particular product. On the other hand that still does not make racial stereotyping okay. 

Semiotics: Print, TV & Outdoor Ad's

Print Ad: Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping Mascara 

Denotation:

• Bold black Revlon Logo
• Black and White Ad/Portrait
• Mascara tube is in color 
• Full Eyelashes
• Revlon mascara tube 
• Female: Emma Stone
• Traditional hairstyle
• Paragraph on bottom left corner

Connotation:

• Revlon logo is made to stand out to show what brand the product is
• Mascara tube is made to stand out so consumer knows how product looks
• Ad is a Portrait which draws your attention to the eyes
• Emma Stone is a well known actress 
• If you want Emma Stones look then use this mascara
• Paragraph at the bottom explains that this mascara gives you beautiful eyes, strengthens your lashes

Myth: Buying this mascara will help achieve luscious lashes making your eyes beautiful.



TV Ad: 2015 Chevy Super Bowl Commercial 

Denotation:

• Large stadium 
• Thousands of cars in parking lot 
• Appearance of losing signal 
• Grass
• Buildings 
• Black background with white print
• Black Truck 
• Chevrolet Logo 

Connotation:

• White stadium is where the 2015 Superbowl took place was chosen as the location of the ad because millions of people around the world tune in to watch this football game
• Cars in parking lot show the thousand of people arriving to watch the game in person
• The commercial continues with a black background with questions appearing in white to stand out. The questions are like "What would you do if your TV went out?"
• The black truck is the new 2015 Chevy Colorado that is being advertised which includes 4G LTE Wi-Fi
• The commercial starts with the appearing that your losing signal when in reality your not because they want to make the point that the Chevy Colorado has built in Wi-Fi so you will never loose signal
• Chevrolet Logo at the end of the commercial shows the brand of the truck

Myth: By purchasing this truck you will have 4G LTE Wi-Fi anywhere you go in this new 2015 Chevy Colorado. 

Outdoor Ad: Odrive.com Billboard

Denotation:

• Pink background 
• Bold white print 
• Emoji's
• Company name/Website

Connotation:

• Pink background gets your attention on an outdoor billboard because of blue sky surrounding so it is a pop of color
• Bold white print in center of ad centers your attention to the font 
• Emoji's are used a lot now by many especially by those who use technology on a daily basis, so by using and Emoji many can relate
• The saying on the billboard states "GET ALL YOUR 'Shit' TOGETHER"
• Odrive.com is the company website which is actual similar to iCloud where one can store all their data in on place
• The slogan is funny and makes people remember it

Myth: By using odrive.com you can store all your files, documents, pictures in one place.

#LikeAGirl

Super Bowl XLIX, The New England Patriots vs. The Seattle Seahawks who cares?! If the San Francisco 49ers aren't playing then it's irrelevant. Just kidding... No seriously. Super Bowl Sunday is like almost like a holiday where Football is the most important thing that day millions of people tune in to watch the two top teams of the NFL go head to head.When the Super Bowl is mentioned some things that come to mind are the parties, food, drinks and most importantly the commercials which is what I and many others look forward too. I heard that a commercial spot during the Super Bowl can cost millions of dollars, that is CRAZY! Brands pay millions just for a commercial that is probably about a minute long to play on air, that is mind blowing. I did not watch the Super Bowl, not even a second of it, so after looking at many of the commercials my favorite by far was Always #LikeAGirl. 

This to me is not a typical commercial you see on air, especially during the Super Bowl! Which is why I liked it so much. The commercial starts with a director telling girls that she will give them some "Actions" to do and all the individuals have to do is the first thing that comes to mind. I noticed that the first individuals shown are older in age than those who are shown towards the end. This commercial features both older girls and boys, along with younger girls and boys. Viewers observe how all these individuals interpret run, fight and throw "Like A Girl." The older the individual the more their actions appear to be mocking a girls actions and making it an insult. The younger the individual specifically the girls try their hardest in perform these actions. This shows that a girl's confidence goes down during puberty and "Like A Girl" becomes an insult. 
Once the commercial comes to an end we the viewers and consumers see that Always, a brand that sells feminine hygiene products was behind this commercial. I was surprised because they did not necessarily promote a product but rather choose to take their Super Bowl commercial spot which was probably millions of dollars, and stand up for girls by sharing a powerful message that "Like A Girl" should not be an insult but something for girls to embrace making it my favorite Super Bowl XLIX commercial.