Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Communication and Gender

One thing that I have found super interesting is how weight loss is communicated to women and men on the TV. Seriously, for the last two days I have done nothing but blow my nose and watch countless episodes of re-runs and multiple commercials from Weight-Watchers, Jenny Craig, etc. One company especially has caught my attention because of their specific targeting methods. For Women, Weight Watchers shows Jennifer Hudson, singing, dancing, talking etc along with other women who have been successful using their product. They also have a commercial especially for men with Charles Barkley with their slogan "Lose Like A Man." Isn't it interesting that losing weight has to be categorized by gender? Why would losing weight be more like a man or more like a woman? Why is there a more "feminine" or "masculine" way to lose weight? And apparently men who are overweight don't watch as much TV because the advertisement from Weight Watchers for women airs about ten times more than for men. I'm not saying that is actually true but I do think it is interesting how much more it is catered to women to look a certain way and to lose weight.

3 comments:

  1. Yeah, I've noticed how crazy advertisements are too! One thing that makes me mad though is how the media advertises alcohol to young ladies. Fruity drinks like Mike's Hard Lemonade and Smirnoff Ice Fruit flavors are geared towards women, but they have just as much or more alcohol content than a normal beer... So why are these "bitch beers" only for women!? Sorry about my little rant, I've just noticed that and thought it was a bit ridiculous.

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  2. In Miss Representation, it showed this perfectly!!!
    I think it is sad to how much peoples lives are based off tv.
    I work at an Elementary School and I work with 5th graders, and you can already see the effect that the media has on them. It makes me sick about how they are already trying to be skinny, I wish they were focusing more on being healthy!!!! I hope you feel better!

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