Advertising's Image of Women, unatainible ideals.

Morag

Advertising always has sold illusions, some times those illusions are concepts and other times they are the tricks of lighting and of makeup which offer us a distortion, a pretty distortion but a distortion all the same. As the art of making such illusions has grown more and more complex the ideals which pretty much surround us on a day to day bases become more and more surreal and I think it's a good thing from time to time to remind ourselves, esp now that it's mean to be summer time that even the models don't look like the images we see.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTlmho_RovY

baby and crumble

That's actually really interesting. I'm not sure I quite agree with the idea of 'women becoming things', but I'll think some more on it.

I will say, I used to be fine with myself, but now that my body is altering (due to some health problems), and becoming less womanly, I'm really struggling with my confidence and what it means to be a woman, you know? I see these pictures all over the place, of these gorgeous women, of these 'perfect' specimens, and I just get so... I don't know. it's not depressed, as such... more resigned to looking (as I see it) ugly and horrible.

thanks for that, Sharrow. Might bookmark it to watch when I'm feeling extra low...

sambuka41

That video is really insightful, I think there is a point to the way women are portrayed in advertising. I hadn't really thought about it until I seen that video a couple of months ago and now all I see are women dismembered for the sake of ads, its either just their legs, or ass, hair, hands, there are the occasional shots of the full woman but few in comparison to the 'parts' of women.

A lot more damage can be done to not only the way women see themselves because of this, but it effects men's perceptions of us too. Everyone is regularly being exposed to women as 'part objects', and the effect of that is that women are dehumanized and objectified.

As well as that how many adverts that women are the center of where what is being sold is sex? There are provocative poses, dialogue. Even watching the soaps women are being shown that what we should aspire to is to be overtly sexual. Its in the perfume ads, the drink ads, even selling runners Kim whats her face is selling sex.

We are being flooded with this all the time. I agree OP its important that we are aware of what ads are really saying to us and about us. :)

gargleblaster

This statement really stood out for me.

"Girls tend to feel fine about themselves till they're 8, 9, 10 years old - but they hit adolescence, and they hit a wall."

She's right that this is a public health issue. I hope at some point that these things stop getting worse, and start getting better.

flutterflye

The thing is though that the vast majority of people don't actually see this, or else aren't too bothered.

It is becoming worse and worse as time goes on.

Everyone thinks we have come so far in equality etc...
But in reality, it is absolutely no different!

Yes we can vote, yes we can work, and so on.
Don't get be wrong - massive leaps have been made in practical terms.

It is the people's views that hasn't changed much.

I don't think the sex industry has much of a part to play, they are what they are.

It is more the media that I see to be problematic, and in my opinion advertising is the worst culprit.

Chicken + egg - Well sex/beauty, mainly women, sells doesn't it?
Advertising wouldn't use the images if it wasn't socially accepted.

It's a never ending cycle that progressively becomes more outrageous as time moves on.

The arguments you will hear will be things like 'well they use men too', 'don't take things too seriously' and so on.

It is ingrained in most societies - women are objects.

Alot of men will treat their own girlfriend/mother/sister with respect, yet still make jokes about women in the kitchen, profusely make derogatory comments and jokes about women and their looks.

It is not just the men's fault though.

It is equally women's fault for allowing it, and for further more feeding it.

Women these days seem to believe that they respect themselves - bullsh1t!

There are very few 'strong, confident women'.

Grooming yourself, taking care of your body, creating your own image - this is all natural and positive.

Hating your body, plastering on 5 inches of slap and fake tan, obsessing about weight/skin and so on - not right.

It is one thing wanting to look nice, or wanting to appeal to guys, but no matter how much else women have to offer, the vast majority are ridiculously insecure.

I don't blame advertising, I don't blame the sex industry, I don't blame our celeb culture, I don't blame wealth, I don't blame men, I don't blame women.

It is a collective problem of everything in our culture, and very few people actually question it, so it continues to push more limits.
Where will it end?!

Logical Fallacy

flutterflye wrote: »

Where will it end?!

It won't, there is money to made. Serious amounts of it. Just look how the saturation of the female beauty products market suddenly led to all the "male beauty products" ideal...then kids...then dogs...and now you have Justin Bieber selling perfume to 14 year old girls on the promise that he will LOVE the way it makes them smell.

It's gonna get a whole lot more disturbing before it swings round and starts to get better i'm afraid.

Eve_Dublin

I'm as susceptible to the impact as any woman and living in a culture more obsesssed with physical appearance than my own, it's something I've thought about more than I ever have since moving here. It seems it's a lot more full on here in Spain. The advertising is a lot more aggressive and you can see the affect it has on women in this country . Obsession with looks and weight is the height of importance here and even the manequins in the windows of shops are about half the size of the ones back home. I applied for a job the other day and was told to send a photo of myself...I'm not even sure if that's legal back home but there ye go. Men have no problem whistling and shouting comments at women and making no bones about gawking at them as they walk by. Spain has the heightest rate of plastic sugury in Europe. I see many obviously anorexic women wandering the streets (and no, not just very thin) etc. There seems to be a lot less tact and subtly in advertising directed at women here and particularly young women. It takes it's toll sometimes and occasionally I'm finding myself thinking in ways I never have before. I don't like it one bit.

The only way I try to deal with it is with humour. I think were so bombarded with photoshoped women at this stage with very serious, sexy poses that it's become a bit of farce at this stage. I laugh at it. I try to take it with a pinch of salt. At the end of the day do I really buy into it all? Am I so impressionable to believe that any woman can look that way? So "perfect" to the point of lacking in pores? With advertising so humourless and lacking the self-awareness to not acknowledge publically the transparency of what it's doing and taking me for a mug? There's a desperation about it now because it's been so overdone. Look at these photos....look at them and try to see the ridiculousness in them. It works if you make a consciouos effort. I try to make a conscious efffort to force myself to think, "Feck it, it's all an illusion.".....because it is! I'm only telling myself the truth.

The world they portray is so boring and mundane to me...if I use my cop on I realise that these images are not really desirable. I don't want the lives portrayed in them. My own life full of ups and downs has been twenty times more interesting than the life they portray and believe we all secretly want....or make us believe we want.

I think we just have to make a conscious effort and to shut ourselves off from it and to see this agressive marketing for what it is....a farcical, humourless ploy to make you feel insecure so you'll spend money to "improve" yourself to the point of perfection. But we're more intelligent than that and we have to realise what a load of vapid, vacuous bunch of lies it all is.

I liked this video...straight to the point and unbiased. Thanks Sharrow.

Acoshla

I actually don't understand how the type of advertising referred to in the video works. They show unattainably perfect and flawless images of everything from skin to relationships and family, and people actually believe that if they buy X product they will get that? Please. I can't comprehend fragrance ads, they make no sense, they show people (photoshopped models) in ridiculous situations doing things that have no relevance to the fragrance, do these actually convince people to buy them? At the end of the day it's just nice smelling water, why do they need an empty gothic mansion with a celebrity running through it in a couture dress to advertise it? Madness. Although I suppose they must work, or they wouldn't still be making them.

Maybe I just don't get it. I would never buy something based on the advert, it might make me think "Hmm that looks good/useful, I'll check it out in real life and see", but I have never thought "Wow if I get that I'll look that", and anybody who does think that is delusional and more than a little bit naive. If I check it out in real life and it doesn't suit me (my shape, my style, my life) I won't be buying it, simple as. Even things like all these girls buying the dress or shoes that Kate Midleton wore, wtf? Why buy something just because she has it? It won't make you a princess!! You are you, not anyone else or not any of these fake representations of people, so there is no point comparing yourself to them.

I really agree with what she's saying, but as she said herself nothing has changed in 40 years, it's only gotten worse, I'd say it'll be at least 50 years before they realise how ridiculous these types of ads are.

flutterflye

Logical Fallacy wrote: »

It won't, there is money to made. Serious amounts of it. Just look how the saturation of the female beauty products market suddenly led to all the "male beauty products" ideal...then kids...then dogs...and now you have Justin Bieber selling perfume to 14 year old girls on the promise that he will LOVE the way it makes them smell.

It's gonna get a whole lot more disturbing before it swings round and starts to get better i'm afraid.

Yup, unfortunately I think you're right.

Really can't see how it could get worse, but no doubt it will.

Makes me quite sad actually.

gargleblaster

Advertising is most often designed to work not by aiming the message at our conscious mind, but rather at our subconscious.

Here is a quickly googled expert opinion to explain (emphasis mine):

However, the conscious mind is not the only one we have. There is also the unconscious mind, the one that carries with it all those millions of years and thousands of generations of our ancestors living, reproducing, and evolving with and without the conscious mind. Deep down inside every one of us we carry the baggage of the past, the unconscious reactions to stimuli, the ones that kept our ancestors alive, let them reproduce, let them gather resources more efficiently than their competition -- in short, that allowed our ancestors to be our ancestors. All of these biological necessities, self-preservation, sex, and greed, still influence our reactions to stimuli, no matter how much we think (using "think" very deliberately) our reactions are arrived at consciously. No matter what or how we think, we automatically respond to danger, the opposite sex, or opportunities to get a larger piece of the pie. Exactly how we respond, however, is strongly influenced by our being social creatures.

Biological necessity is not the only influence on our unconscious minds. Humans are among, if not the most social creatures on earth. Everything we believe and do relates to others, from how we feel about them to how we feel about ourselves. That the feeling may be negative, positive or neutral, for either them or ourselves, is irrelevant -- the fact is, we have the feeling, automatically, unconsciously. These unconscious reactions to stimuli are (for the purposes of this book) self-esteem, personal enjoyment, constructiveness, destructiveness, curiosity, imitation, and altruism. Although grounded on the biological necessities of self-preservation, reproduction, and gathering the resources necessary to do the first two, stay alive and have babies, these latter reactions are socially based. That is, how we react comes from millions of years of living together in groups of more than one in such a way that we continued to live, reproduce, and gather resources more efficiently than any competition.

...

Advertising takes advantage of the fact that stimuli don't have to be real to cause mental responses and resulting behaviors. By presenting the stimuli though the use of words and images, advertising can trigger the reactions in much the same way that reality does. By linking the psychological appeals to a product being advertised, an advertisement can make that product seem more attractive to a consumer. If an ad can make it appear that buying the product can improve a person's chance of staying alive, reproducing, gathering resources, improving rher self-esteem, having more fun, be more constructive, destructive, answer questions, be able to imitate desirable abilities or appearances, or help others, then the consumer may be more likely to buy the product. That the ad rarely overtly states that one or more of these things will happen is not the point (besides, few products could actually fulfill an overt promise that it will keep you alive or get you a sex partner, and thus would be deceptive and illegal). The implied benefit a buyer could get from the product, implied by the words or, especially, the images, is what makes the product attractive.

The use of psychological appeals is not subliminal advertising. It is the use of overt words and images that trigger subconscious responses. You don't need to print the word "sex" nearly invisibly all over a picture to plant a desire in the subconscious mind: sex is already planted there. To trigger the response an ad only has to show an attractive model and imply that he or she is attracted to the kind of person who uses the product. The same is true of the other nine appeals.

What must be borne in mind is that advertising cannot force anyone to do anything. The most it can do is make a product attractive. The decision to buy or not to buy is up to the consumer. But the more attractive the product seems, the better the chance the consumer may buy. "Our intelligence is imperfect, surely, and newly arisen; the ease with which it can be sweet-talked, overwhelmed, or subverted by other hardwired propensities -- sometimes themselves disguised as the cool light of reason -- is worrisome." (Sagan and Druyan, 1992, p. 407) Nonetheless, our intelligence can counter the subconscious blandishments of advertising, if we are aware of those blandishments, where they came from, and how they work.

Still, the use of psychological appeals takes advantage of the millions of years of evolution and the effects of those millions of years on our minds and our behavior. And that behavior is to buy.

http://public.wsu.edu/~taflinge/adcon.html

The author is only looking at advertising as a means of selling, and in that context he is right that it is our decision whether or not to react in the way that the advertisers intend for us to - which is to buy something.

What Jean Kilbourne is saying is that these images are affecting us on a subconscious level not in the way the advertisers intended, but in a way that is unintentional and (as most of us seem to agree) unhealthy and even destructive. Not everyone is affected to the same degree of course, but we all are to some degree or another. Especially young people.

fiona-f

I find advertising in general hugely depressing. The two main roles in adverts are the sexy woman whose mission is to be looked at / admired / desired and the goofy helpless male. In a way, both genders are demeaned, although it seems that demeaning affects women's behaviour more than men's.

flutterflye wrote: »

Chicken + egg - Well sex/beauty, mainly women, sells doesn't it?
Advertising wouldn't use the images if it wasn't socially accepted.

It's a never ending cycle that progressively becomes more outrageous as time moves on.

The arguments you will hear will be things like 'well they use men too', 'don't take things too seriously' and so on.

It is ingrained in most societies - women are objects.

Alot of men will treat their own girlfriend/mother/sister with respect, yet still make jokes about women in the kitchen, profusely make derogatory comments and jokes about women and their looks.

It is not just the men's fault though.

It is equally women's fault for allowing it, and for further more feeding it.

Just on this, I put up a thread the other day in Health and Fitness about a ridiculously sexist ad in my gym - after a bit of pressure on the management and staff it thankfully got removed but I knew before I even put the thread up that the first response would be "you're taking it too seriously, there are ads with men in them too" and so it was. But I have to say I was pretty chuffed that by speaking up we managed to get the ad removed. One small step for women and all that.

Morag

Seems irish pr firms are just as bad,

http://www.byjenniferoconnell.com/2011/06/gratuitous-female-nudity-is-marketing.html

Silverfish

I don't watch ads. We don't get any tv stations in my house, so I probably went the guts of 2 years or more having not seen ads.

Went down home one weekend, and was watching telly, and I have to admit, during the ad breaks, myself and Mr Silverfish sat there, mouths open in shock..

Any ad relating to a kitchen (cooking / washing up / washing powder / set in a kitchen) had a woman in it.


All ads for cars, had men driving. Unless it was for a family car, then there was a woman.


Interspersed with buy this shampoo to make your hair look like hers or else you're not worth it / this lipstick / this anti-aging cream / this mascara / this flawless foundation...

It certainly made for some pervasive subliminal viewing. Can imagine how this stuff would pervade your brain after a few days / weeks / years, and make you think that this is the status quo.


I'm perfectly happy to spend the rest of my life not being bombarded with it, even if the cost is having no clue how to get that stain off my living room carpet.

liah

I recommend watching 'The Century of the Self' tbh. Gives a bit of insight into the foundations of advertising and the psychology of it. It's a little dated, mind, but a lot of it is still very revealing.

krudler

Silverfish wrote: »

I don't watch ads. We don't get any tv stations in my house, so I probably went the guts of 2 years or more having not seen ads.

Went down home one weekend, and was watching telly, and I have to admit, during the ad breaks, myself and Mr Silverfish sat there, mouths open in shock..

Any ad relating to a kitchen (cooking / washing up / washing powder / set in a kitchen) had a woman in it.


All ads for cars, had men driving. Unless it was for a family car, then there was a woman.


Interspersed with buy this shampoo to make your hair look like hers or else you're not worth it / this lipstick / this anti-aging cream / this mascara / this flawless foundation...

It certainly made for some pervasive subliminal viewing. Can imagine how this stuff would pervade your brain after a few days / weeks / years, and make you think that this is the status quo.


I'm perfectly happy to spend the rest of my life not being bombarded with it, even if the cost is having no clue how to get that stain off my living room carpet.

I never got the "real beauty" campaign, its basically saying women who are thin and beautiful arent "real women". I get what they were going for, that not everyone has to be stick thin and beautiful in the model sense, but that doesnt mean the women who do have beautiful looks or a body to kill for are to be seen as "the enemy" its that kind of nonsense that makes women look at other women as a threat and encourages low self esteem.

or Gok Wan, dont try lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle, no no lets get you into clothes that cover you up and new hairdo and makeup, that'll solve all your problems,your arteries may be clogged and you're still obese, but flaunt it girl! jesus christ like...

Morag

While many of us do drop out and filter most people don't and we can't usually filter all of them out of our lives.

gargleblaster

krudler wrote: »

I never got the "real beauty" campaign, its basically saying women who are thin and beautiful arent "real women".

Did you watch the video? It explains how the women featured in these ads aren't 'real' fairly well, I thought. Especially Cindy Crawford's quote.

(I'm speaking only about the tendency of some women to talk disparagingly about women in the media as not being 'real women', not any company's campaign attempting to capitalize on that tendency.)

Morag

krudler wrote: »

I never got the "real beauty" campaign, its basically saying women who are thin and beautiful arent "real women"..

you have to just follow the money, Dove is own by Unilever and it was just a way of trying to cover as much of the 'market share' as possible.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unilever

Going for that real beauty dollar.....

baby and crumble

Can't figure out how to quote on the mobile version, but as regards the Gok Wan thing- most (if not all) the women in the shows where he stuck with one woman per show (haven't really watched his newer shows) were perfectly normal, size wise. I don't remember anyone seriously overweight: max was probably a size 16, and tall. Yet most of them had no confidence at all, some hadn't been naked in front of husbands or whatever for 5 or 10 years!!! That's not about health, or about not being obese- that's about confidence and thinking you're jot pretty enough.

Also, I have to say one thing. Thin does not necessary equal healthy and perfect arteries, just as fat does not mean you must be swimming in lard. I am overweight but my cholesterol, blood sugars, arteries are all in better shape than my friend whos a size 10. Dont make those assumptions.

desolate sun

zoegh wrote: »

Thin does not necessary equal healthy and perfect arteries, just as fat does not mean you must be swimming in lard. I am overweight but my cholesterol, blood sugars, arteries are all in better shape than my friend whos a size 10. Dont make those assumptions.

Medical professionals say that a waist measurement* over 35" is risky for women for a whole number of reasons so I think that is why people make the assumption that overweight equals unhealthy.

(*I am not assuming or implying Zoegh that this is your waist measurement)

Logical Fallacy

zoegh wrote: »

Can't figure out how to quote on the mobile version, but as regards the Gok Wan thing- most (if not all) the women in the shows where he stuck with one woman per show (haven't really watched his newer shows) were perfectly normal, size wise. I don't remember anyone seriously overweight: max was probably a size 16, and tall. Yet most of them had no confidence at all, some hadn't been naked in front of husbands or whatever for 5 or 10 years!!! That's not about health, or about not being obese- that's about confidence and thinking you're jot pretty enough.

Also, I have to say one thing. Thin does not necessary equal healthy and perfect arteries, just as fat does not mean you must be swimming in lard. I am overweight but my cholesterol, blood sugars, arteries are all in better shape than my friend whos a size 10. Dont make those assumptions.

To get a little technical on things however excess fat can be a bad thing for the body even when all those health markers are fine. There is an "ideal" bodyfat margin for males and females to ensure a healthy endocrine system which will never get tested for in normal check ups.

This can be adversely affected by being too thin or too fat.

The guideline is , generally, there for a reason...it's best not to be too far to one side or the other as both could be indicators of future health issues stemming from lifestyle.

The funny thing is that one is deemed to be aesthetically pleasing, the other is not, so they have been vilified or praised as has been deemed fitting...small movements have been made to rectify this in advertising...like the aforementioned "Real Beauty" campaign, but they normally just come down on the same line as what they are objecting too...saying "X" is beautiful "Y" is not.

Gauge

krudler wrote: »

or Gok Wan, dont try lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle, no no lets get you into clothes that cover you up and new hairdo and makeup, that'll solve all your problems,your arteries may be clogged and you're still obese, but flaunt it girl! jesus christ like...

Health is mental as well, and I hate to see Gok Wan's shows targeted because he's telling women to enjoy their bodies as they are instead of criticizing them and sticking them on a treadmill and a diet. His show gives women a makeover and a confidence boost, nothing more, nothing less. And unless you are the doctor of the women in the show I don't see how you can possibly judge the state of their arteries.

Sorry to target this post but in a thread about advertising and unrealistic ideals I found it a bit depressing to see one of the few shows that actually celebrates body diversity being criticized- if someone wants to watch a show about weight loss or fat people believe me there is absolutely no shortage of them out there.

lace

The thing about this whole issue is that women realize that the bodies they see in advertisements are unattainable. The models in these images are unreal, almots etheral. By portraying unrealistically thin figures as the epitome of femininity and creating the illusion that the viewer is gaining a privilaged glimpse into the model's world, advertisers establish these stick-thin models as the “other”. This allows the viewer to gain pleasure from objectifying these "exotic"(for lack of a better word) figures.

The general public are not as naive as some experts make them out to be. Studies have shown that hey know that media images of thinness and beauty are highly constructed and that the skinny models they view in magazines and on billboards are not normal. If I remember correctly, subjects in one study used words such as as “fake”, “airbrushed” and “ill-looking” to describe modles portrayed in fashion magazines. They understand that their own ideals of thinness and rules of femininity are “learned” from the media. The problem is that most feel powerless against it. They know they'll never achieve their (learned) ideal body, yet still strive to be skinny.

flutterflye

lace wrote: »

The thing about this whole issue is that women realize that the bodies they see in advertisements are unattainable. The models in these images are unreal, almots etheral. By portraying unrealistically thin figures as the epitome of femininity and creating the illusion that the viewer is gaining a privilaged glimpse into the model's world, advertisers establish these stick-thin models as the “other”. This allows the viewer to gain pleasure from objectifying these "exotic"(for lack of a better word) figures.

The general public are not as naive as some experts make them out to be. Studies have shown that hey know that media images of thinness and beauty are highly constructed and that the skinny models they view in magazines and on billboards are not normal. If I remember correctly, subjects in one study used words such as as “fake”, “airbrushed” and “ill-looking” to describe modles portrayed in fashion magazines. They understand that their own ideals of thinness and rules of femininity are “learned” from the media. The problem is that most feel powerless against it. They know they'll never achieve their (learned) ideal body, yet still strive to be skinny.

What studies? Do you have a link handy?

There is a massive difference between cognition and emotion.

You can think one thing, yet feel another.

While people know that it is all advertising fantasy, they may still feel insecure and societal pressure that is being constantly and consistently fed to them.

lace

The study was “Flawless is Fabulous: How Latino and Anglo Women Read and Incorperate the Excessively Thin Body Ideal Into Everyday Experience” Robyn Goodman, J. (2009). Can't seem to find the text online though.

Emoi

I really wish I had seen videos like this when I was 18.

I used to cut out photos of any stunning models, actresses, etc and put them into my pocket before going for a walk. When I started to get tired I would pull out the photos for inspiration to keep going.

I also used to have notebooks filled with images of 'flawless skin', TINY waists and cellulite free thighs. Then I would draw pictures of my own body and 'edit' my body, and write notes beside the areas that I felt needed to be fixed and improved.

The thing was I had a SAVAGE body!!! But when it still didn't compare to the images in magazines I would get depressed and angry, and just give up on healthy eating and keeping fit.

Now I'm in in my twenties and can finally see through these adverts for the bullshit they really are.

They are a pain in the arse for women of all ages to look at but they are incredible dangerous when subjected to them throughout your teen years.

It drives me bloody MENTAL :mad::mad::mad: when people be-little the effect these images can have on girls/women.

PK2008

flutterflye wrote: »

It is a collective problem of everything in our culture, and very few people actually question it, so it continues to push more limits.
Where will it end?!

I agree with this statement, but I dont see this as a problem for me- maybe because I am a man (although Im sure some men do feel a need to conform to advertising image's of ideal men) but generally on a day to day basis I dont notice this and when I do I feel more sorry for women who are affected rather than anyone else., but I do agree- I wouldnt like my daughter (if I had one) or my wife (if I had one) to feel under this kind of pressure

Does that sound bad- its meant to be honest...

flutterflye

PK2008 wrote: »

I agree with this statement, but I dont see this as a problem for me- maybe because I am a man (although Im sure some men do feel a need to conform to advertising image's of ideal men) but generally on a day to day basis I dont notice this and when I do I feel more sorry for women who are affected rather than anyone else., but I do agree- I wouldnt like my daughter (if I had one) or my wife (if I had one) to feel under this kind of pressure

Does that sound bad- its meant to be honest...

Where's my pitchfork?!

No, it doesn't sound bad.
It is just your opinion, one that you have expressed tactfully and truthfully imo.

Nice to get male perspectives.

Emoi

PK2008 wrote: »

but generally on a day to day basis I dont notice this

I think that would be common enough.

I've discussed the problem with adverts and how they have affected ME personally when I was a teenager numerous times with my boyfriend and other male friends.

So far, they have never been able to see my point of view, at least you can acknowledge the damage they can have even if it doesn't directly affect yourself!!

Usually they just reply, 'sure it's harmless, why does it bother you, are you jealous or something?!'

Bottle_of_Smoke

I'm not gonna post much on this because I'm not a woman but I think it needs to be remembered this is inevitable under capitalism.

Unfortunately socialism and communism wouldn't work in other areas, but under those systems you wouldn't have a need for using sex appeal to make money.

I've often heard countries with hot climates have less body image problems, the logic being people are so used to seeing normal bodies in the flesh that seeing airbrushed models advertise products isn't as influential.

Think about it - in ireland the only naked bodies we see are in advertisements and on tv. Everyday life people keep themselves covered up so you don't see typical bodies with their so-called flaws.

gargleblaster

Emoi wrote: »

I think that would be common enough.

I've discussed the problem with adverts and how they have affected ME personally when I was a teenager numerous times with my boyfriend and other male friends.

So far, they have never been able to see my point of view, at least you can acknowledge the damage they can have even if it doesn't directly affect yourself!!

Usually they just reply, 'sure it's harmless, why does it bother you, are you jealous or something?!'

Or even worse, claim that you're looking for reasons to be offended. :rolleyes:

Catari Jaguar

Just watched that Club Orange advert in the other thread and now am in 100% supportr of this campaign.

All so unneccesary. Advertising people are the lowest form of life.

krudler

cherub rock wrote: »

All so unneccesary. Advertising people are the lowest form of life.

Except lawyers :pac: