Superbowl Commercials

    Hello reader! Happy February! The most exiting part of February for some is probably watching the super bowl but for many others, it's watching the super bowl commercials. Super bowl commercials have been a part of the American TV tradition and during the months leading up to the super bowl, all large companies are basically going crazy throwing their money away to come up with the best ad campaign. Companies need their ad agency to come up with the most attention catching and memorable commercial and Advertisement 101 taught every ad agency out there that sex sells, so as a result: super bowl commercials are always jam-packed with sexist messages and gender stereotypes.

    The super bowl commercials have been a repeat offender of sexist jokes and objectifying women for years and although some ads are banned each year from airing on TV, commercial agencies still seem to be very convinced and women or men’s sexuality is the best tool to sell their product. Today I would like to share a few super bowl commercials from the past few years and ones that are currently airing, and prove how commercials can send very gender stereotypical and sexist messages to its viewers. 

   First lets start with this Motorola super bowl commerical in 2010 featuring super model and actress Megan Fox:

What did Megan Fox's taking a bath have to do with Motorola or cellphone in general? Nothing. But the video has more than 2 million views on YouTube and according to the YouTube stats on the video, the video was first embedded onto Facebook the day it appeared on YouTube the link received more than 30 thousand views.  People want to watch this because sex sells. They might not remember what it's selling, but they will remember that Megan Fox was lying "naked" in a bubble bath and that's enough to make couples fight, phone line explode and teenage boys hide in the bathroom to masturbate.  This commercial is sending a clear message: Buy a Motorola, because Megan Fox is holding one, and she is hot. All they said about the phone was that it can hold a lot of information and can send things just like every other phone in 2010.Therefore they are clearly not interested in actually describing the benefits of the product but more interested in using her body as a tool of advertisement and Megan Fox is well aware of the fact when she accepted the role. The female body is not a tool and is definitely not for sale, but commercials like this may send that message to the viewers and deepen stereotypes such as women need to use their sexuality for money. 

  Next lets take a look at this extremely sexual Carl's Jr. with Kim Kardashian in 2011:

Well, that was unnecessary. A salad is a salad, with leaves and dressing and other healthy stuff, but the ad agencies just couldn't resist to relate that to sex too. From when Kim crawled into bed in her lingerie with her salad to when she got naked in the bathtub with her salad, the commercial just screamed sex. Everything about this commercial was sexually suggestive and inappropriate.  Kim K ate the salad with her bare fingers while doing voice over in a sensual tone and says she likes it messy as the salad dressing drips past her cleavage. Again, this commercial is using a females body and sexuality to sell. And unlike the previous one that tries to be discreet, this one is loud and proud about it.  The tagline to the commercial is "who says salads cant be hot" which goes perfectly with the rest of the commercial.  But my question is, why does a salad need to be hot? The advertisement and commercial world is so obsessed with the notion that sex sells and are so sure that half naked female are their answer to everything, they feel a need to throw one into every commercial. 

  The past has been disappointing but I am happy to announce that sex sells is in the past and we can finally have a super bowl without 20 commercials featuring naked ladies attached in 2013. Actually...No, not really...the 2013 super bowl commercials are just as bad if not worse.

  Yes that completely makes sense because if you drive an Audi, then you have every right to just kiss whoever you want to kiss without their consent. And the worst part is when the camera caught the girl's face and she seems to really have enjoyed getting kissed by this stranger.  The message this all sends is:  If you drive an Audi, girls will like you and not get mad even though your technically sexually assaulting them, because hey, girls like rich men. And it also implies that doing things you want without consent is called being brave. Also there's the part when the boyfriend comes and punch the boy in the face. It displays gender stereotypes about men such as that men need to figure their stuff out using their fists. That part is also sexist because it makes it seem like the girl is the boyfriends property he punches the boy because his stuff got stolen. 

  The video was posted by AudiofAmerica's official YouTube account and it comes with the description:" A slightly insecure teenager is unhappy about going to the Senior Prom without a date. But when Dad lets him borrow the new Audi S6 for the night, he gains more and more confidence with every mile, arriving at the Prom a changed young man. You'll have to watch this Super Bowl spot to see if his newly found bravery pays off." How does driving an expensive car suddenly change a person in one night and how is sexually assaulting a poor girl called bravery.  Respect for women is bravery, asking for consent is bravery but rape and sexual assault is the farthest thing from it.  It is funny that even in 2013, even a huge company that should try to hold a reputable name would send out such a terrible message to its viewers.