A very controversial topic in the media ethics definitely comes back to stereotyping in advertising. These stereotypes are not made up in the advertising business, rather these are stereotypes that are formed in our society and taken by advertisers to tell a certain product a certain way. Stereotypes such as women stay at home while men work, all African Americans are athletic, or even any type of ethnic role are assumptions made throughout our culture that somehow resonate in the advertisements we see on a daily basis.
Of course, this is an ethical issue of the media. Not only have advertisers given light to these stereotypes, but they have also created other harmful stereotypes about body image and beauty. For example, as used in the text book “Media Now, Understanding Media, Culture and Technology,” it is pointed out that in almost every ad that contains female models, the girls are not only abnormally thin, but have not one imperfection, anywhere. This type of image sends a message to females, as well as males, the beauty is all about being thin, and that beauty equates to perfection. Girls now see themselves as never being good enough, and men compare the women to these fake infectious beauties we call models. The advertising industries stereotyping has put a harmful spell on our society, causing sicknesses such as bulimia, anorexia, and extreme low self esteem in adolescents.
The link I have posted below is a commercial that I think anyone who watches any sort of TV has seen way too any times, the Kelly Ripa Electrolux advertisement. I chose this commercial as an example because I think it portrays two very common stereotypes that have been detrimental to our society. The first stereotype displayed by this advertising is the one of women stay at home to do the cooking and cleaning while men work outside of the home. Here, Kelly Ripa displays all of her daily duties, cooking a meal and cleaning up after her husband and kids, all while looking perfectly cool, calm and collected. With that, comes the second stereotype which I previously described. Kelly Ripa is an exceptionally beautiful and thin celebrity, so it’s no coincidence that the advertisers behind Electrolux chose her to be their spokeswomen. This advertisement speaks to people as saying that not only do women have to beautiful and super thin, but also it is the woman’s job to stay home too cook and clean.
Personally, my stance on advertising stereotyping is that it has become more and more harmful as time goes on. Although we don’t know it, advertising effects our thoughts and expectations. I think that because it is so well known how much of an impact advertising has on us, those companies should take it upon themselves to promote healthy images and positive attitudes, rather then something that for most people is quite unachievable.
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Link to Kelly Ripa Ad:
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