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04-28-2011, 11:18 AM
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#1 (permalink) | |
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warrior bodhisattva
Super Moderator
Location: East-central Canada
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ADvocacy: where advertising and advocacy meet
Have a look at this short video clip, regarding some controversy caused by a J. Crew ad:
Also take a look at this article: Quote:
There are two things at play here that interest me. First, there's the obvious, which is that gender issues have hit the mainstream. When you get children as a part of the focus, and it's contrasted to what people deem "normal," it raises a lot of attention to see what's considered a divergent if not disturbing departure from expected gender identities. This is a topic in and of itself worth discussion; however, what fascinates me about the whole thing (realize that gender issues aren't new to me) is this move by J. Crew. They aren't the first company to---as a part of their regular public corporate communications---advocate for an issue or a cause. What's interesting isn't so much that the company does this (though I applaud them for it) but the public reaction. For a long time advertising was a realm of representing mainstream culture. When race relations became a hot issue, you saw a progression of advertising that became more inclusive of minority groups. It would seem, however, that sexual and gender minorities are among the last groups to benefit from this inclusion. I think advertising is a great indicator of social expectations and acceptance. To have this sort of thing appear in ads, therefore, indicates that gender issues have hit the mainstream. Though it can be said that there is a long way to go before we get anywhere close to what most liberal-minded people would like to see.
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Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot |
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04-28-2011, 11:42 AM
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#2 (permalink) | |
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Junkie
Location: In the land of ice and snow.
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Quote:
I thought that the ad was cute. I think the critical reaction is ridiculous. It's indicative of a certain type of self-perpetuating gender/sexual insecurity that makes it wrong for men to even begin to embrace the parts of themselves that they associate with being female. It's an extension of the chickenshit "men shouldn't cry" meme. I'm probably the last person who should be expressing opinions of trends in popular culture, however, amongst the folks I hang out with there is a trend towards post-masculinity. On the other hand, I have guy friends who seem like they feel obligated to do all the "typical" man things. Like know how to cook every kind of red meat to perfection. Or make things out of wood. Or neglect their children in favor of their work. They put so much energy into living up to some completely arbitrary notion of what it means to be a man and competing with other men about their ability to be men. It seems like maybe they could enjoy life more if they didn't have these ridiculous hurdles to jump. 2. Do you think companies are taking too big of a risk to use advocacy in their advertising? Maybe. Probably more for brands like NASCAR than for clothing companies (at least with respect to inclusive definitions of gender). As our culture becomes more accepting of more inclusive notions of gender and sexuality, this type of thing will cease to be controversial to any large degree (outside of the people who lack the security in their own sexuality to required to avoid getting freaked out by a boy wearing pink). 3. Should it match their brand strategy? Or merely their corporate philosophy? I don't know. It would probably be good from an aesthetic standpoint for it to match their brand strategy, though I don't know that there are too many industries where "open and affirming" is all that relevant to brand. 4. Do you have any other examples of "ADvocacy" to share? Can't think of anything off the top of my head. |
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| Tags |
| advertsing, advocacy, meet |
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