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Sexism In Advertising
A catchy jingle is necessary for every campaign. STAY HOME. SAVE LIVES has
become the UK's COVID-19 slogan, but its latest embodiment has proven problematic. A UK
Government advertisement was pulled in January 2021 for the sexist depiction of women
(Trafford-Owen). The ad showed a picture of four households who stayed at home. But the
problem lies in how three of the four houses demonstrate that women play archaic roles, such as
household jobs and childcare. Furthermore, the only male person is on a sofa with a female
partner.
Twitter users have called the advertisement out of touch, sexist and ignorant, adding that
misogyny spread. While the government insists that the ad does not reflect its attitude towards
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women, it is difficult to believe that the green light could be given to this tonic-deaf and
offensive in 2021. Unfortunately, even after the Advertising Standards Authority's stereotype ban
in June 2019, sexism in advertising has not yet gone away. It seems that the sexist pandemic in
the advertising world is still well and indeed raging along with Covid-19.
The ASA, which preceded the prohibition, revealed that gender stereotypes on
advertisements could lead to unequal gender outcomes in public or private life, showing that
changing what we see on our screens, magazines, and billboards every day could really have an
impact upon equality in our society. While this extreme sexism may feel like a thing of ancient
times, it still seems to be stereotyping, but it is just as likely to give a bikini and exude dangerous
levels of toxic masculinity and wear aprons and wedding rings. This campaign is an example of
how a small publicity with a strong message calling for minimal changes can initiate positive
talks.
I've always loved watching ads and grown-up humming and imitating ads. The short,
interesting phrases with catchy tunes and exciting visuals force us to memorize them, and we
finally pinpoint our conversations to ad slogans. The fact that they hide in our unconscious
headspace instantly and quickly enter our everyday discourse reflects the substantial ideological,
social and cultural impact they have shorn of our knowledge (Andersson Hanna). While
ideologies propagated by advertising are only a reflection of society, the powerful effects of ads
can also be used to question society's normative structures.
Advertising instilled in me the belief in sexism when I was younger. Children's
understanding of sex and their interests, conduct, and aspirations is influenced by toys and other
products advertising. For instance, girls learn to be attractive, cooperative, and caring, while boys
learn that they are strong, active, and independent. On the other hand, frequent exposure to
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objective images of women in publicity may lead young women to feel dissatisfied with their
bodies, lead to eating conditions, low self-esteem, and poor mental health and decrease physical
activity and participation in exercise.
To my future self, you won't see an instantaneous change in the advertisement world, but
I anticipate that some of the rough edges will be smoothened. It will be a small but essential step
towards ensuring that modern society is better represented in advertising. Advertising is only a
mild contributor to gender stereotyping (Cooke). The harms that gender stereotyping can cause
are increasingly recognized. Solely put, gender stereotypes can lead to a distorted sense of
perception. In advertising, seeing a variety of different and more realistic representations of
women would help society progress beyond simply appreciating the physical aspect of women,
allowing young women to embrace and appreciate themselves while participating more closely
and boldly in the community. On the other hand, advertising representations of diverse and
multidimensional women can help elevate the social status of women and the status of sexual
agencies.
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Works Cited
Andersson Hanna, Schytt Emilia. "Sexism in Advertising." May 2017. DiVA portal.
Cooke, Rachel. Sexism in advertising: 'They talk about diversity, but they don't want to change''.
14 April 2019.
Trafford-Owen, Kirsty. Sexism Sells: Gender Stereotypes In Advertising. 30 March 2020. 7 July
2021.