Sexism in Advertising

Definition of SEXISM

1: prejudice or discrimination based on sex; especially: discrimination against women

2: behavior, conditions, or attitudes that foster stereotypes of social roles based on sex

(source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sexism )

According to Enloe (1989), gender relations ‘makes the world go round.’ It is hegemony that masculine dignity and feminine sacrifice are seen as essentials to sustain the works of the world order (Cohen & Kennedy 2007). This form of advertising reinforces the ideology that the male gender is the more dominant one, and has an advertising discourse that sexism works.

Gender stereotyping in advertising is not a new issue, there have been, and still are numerous ads that have a sexist or insulting tone or content to it and it is mainly affecting women. The widespread usage of these images has been accepted as part of the landscape of modern times and is recognized as an effective form of marketing (Perera 2010 & Gifford n.d.).

The concept behind this peripheral route of advertising is that sexist ads may not directly make the audience want to buy the products, but it will gain their additional attraction time to expose them to the products (Artz, Munger & Purdy n.d). According to Lundstrom and Scilimpaglia(1977), four of the most used gender stereotypes of women in advertising are:

1. That a woman's place is at home.

2. That women don't make important decisions.

3. That women are dependent on men.

4. That men regard women primarily as sex objects.

Examples of sexism in advertising include WKD’s world cup advertisement, with their slogan: "THE OFFSIDE RULE FOR GIRLS: IF THE FLAG'S UP, IT'S OFFSIDE," which insults the intelligence of women (Perera 2010). Another example is Hoover advertisement for their vacuum cleaners, which reinforces the ideology that women are responsible to clean the house. However, the most used form of sexism in advertising is the hegemony of idealized bodies and sexuality (Artz, Munger & Purdy n.d and Lundstrom & Scilimpaglia 1977). For examples of ‘sex sells’ ads, click here.

WKD's advertisement that portrayed male dominance

(video source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGCax1MQi_Q&feature=player_embedded )

Hoover's advertisement that portrays women's

responsibility as the cleaners of the house

(image source: http://beverlyhillshoneys.com/category/battle-of-the-sexes/)

Sexism in advertising is constantly degrading women, it generates the audience’s negative feelings towards women from the ads and is causing a continuous struggle for gender equality (Cohen & Kennedy 2007). The first step to reducing or eliminating these practices is for consumers to complain and demand authorities, such as UK’s The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA), to regulate this form of unethical publishing (Perera 2010). In order to achieve social cohesion and social progress, society should learn and recognize boundaries, such as the fine line between sexy and sexism, to avoid further gender bias and discrimination.

(image source: http://www.cafepress.com/+no_to_sexism_35_button,306046026)

References:

Cohen & Kennedy 2007, Global Sociology, Palgrave Mcmillan, New York.
Gifford, A n.d., 15 Ads That Prove Sex Sells, InventorSpot, as viewed 11th November 2010, <http://inventorspot.com/articles/ads_prove_sex_sells_5576?page=1 >.

Merriam-Webster 2010, Sexism, as viewed 11th November 2010, < http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sexism >.

Perera, K 2010, Time to kick sexism out of advertising, Guardian 29th June, as viewed 11th November 2010, < http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/29/kick-sexism-out-of-advertising >.

Artz, N, Munger, J & Purdy, W 1999, Gender Issues in Advertising Language, Women and Language, Vol. 22 No. 2, pp. 20 -26.

Lundstrom & Scilimpaglia 1977, Sex Role Portrayals in Advertising, Journal of Marketing, vol. 41, no. 3, pp. 72 – 79.