The methods in which advertising media influence and reinforce sexism in American society - Essay Example

?John Q. Doe English 344 8 May 2000 Sexism What topic would you like to investigate in your writing and research? I would like to investigate the methods in which advertising media influence and reinforce sexism in American society. Particularly, I am interested in examining how advertising portrays men negatively. 2. What do you have to say about this topic that would be of interest to an audience of readers? Advertising media of various types surround the average individual in American society. This media takes the form of advertisements on television, on radio, on the internet, and in print. The majority of these advertisements use sexism in order to sell a product to the consumer. Interestingly, most researchers have focused on how advertising objectifies and sells women. However, I am researching how advertisements present an unfavorable picture of men and how this affects men’s self-image as well as society’s treatment of men. 3. Why does your research of the topic matter to the audience? Advertising revenue is the major funding source for the majority of entertainment and information that Americans receive. Broadcast and cable networks use advertising to generate money to fund programming that is informative, such as news magazine shows, and entertaining, such as sitcoms. Social media sites use advertising to pay for the costs of running their business. Most individuals watch television, read magazines and newspapers, or gather information through social media and the internet. Because advertising is the source of funding for most of these entertainment and information outlets, the individual is exposed to advertising multiple times per day. If sexism exists in the advertising, the individual is exposed to the influence of sexism, even if this exposure is subconscious. In short, we all view advertising, and it has an effect on us. 4. What do you hope to discover about the topic? I hope to discover that advertising found in print, television, radio, and internet media employs sexism to sell a good or service. I also hope to discover that the sexism used in this advertising portrays men in a negative fashion. Specifically, I hope to find evidence that advertising paints men as incompetent fathers, inattentive husbands, and unintelligent uninformed citizens. 5. Why do you care about the topic? I care about this topic primarily because I am male. I realize that advertising objectifies women and uses sex to sell products to men. However, I have noticed that many companies have begun doing the same to men. These corporations often portray men as horrible fathers that are incapable of rearing their children, as horrible husbands who do not listen to their wives, and as beer swilling sports fanatics that have no interest in intellectual pursuits. I think that, just as sexism in advertising has led to poor body image and other issues in females, sexism against men in advertising is leading a generation of men to view themselves as incompetent and worthless. 6. Why would others care about the topic or why do you want them to care? There is little doubt that women have been subject to sexism in American society for generations. However, in recent years, researchers and advocates have succeeded in voicing the issue of women’s rights. Women have responded by overcoming much of this sexism and are now succeeding in school and career at a much higher rate than men. The same battle against sexism must be waged for men as well. If the negative portrayals of men continue to grow in advertising, we can expect that men will begin to devalue themselves and underachieve in school and career. This trend is already taking place within the male population, and our society must stop it. 7. Can you identify any significant connections to the topic that are taking place at this time in the world? Males in our education system are currently underperforming at an alarming rate. Fewer men graduate high school, college, and graduate school than women. At the same time, negative messages about men in advertising are growing. The number of advertisements that the average individual is exposed to daily is growing exponentially. American society has become intolerant of negative messages about women but has become tolerant of, and willing to laugh at, negative messages about men. 8. Who is your audience for this paper? I am writing this paper for my fellow classmates. I want both genders to read the paper because, though the paper concerns sexism against men, the issue is one that significantly affects both sexes. 9. What issues do you need to consider as you research and write for this audience? I need to consider the fact that many people are resistant to the fact that there is sexism against men. Because men have been the socially dominant sex for most of American history, most people refuse to believe that men can suffer from sexism. Because so many are resistant to the idea, I need to prove my position with an adequate amount of research and an argument that is valid and logically sound. I must prove that sexism against men exists in advertising. I also need to gather examples from a wide range of media. In order to build my argument, I must prove two different points. I have to prove that advertising affects the viewer by altering his beliefs and self-image. I then must establish that advertising contains negative statements about men and casts them as incompetent in many tasks. Once I have confirmed these two points, I must convince the reader that the messages about men contained in advertising are affecting men’s views of themselves and society’s views of them as well as men’s rates of achievement in education and other arenas. Finally, I must make sure to eliminate any of my own bias as much as possible. Since I am male, my readers will assume that I have some ulterior motive for my argument. They will likely assume that I am writing about sexism against men because I am angry with women. 10. What issues do you need to consider when evaluating source material for your paper? The bias of the author of the source material will be important for this paper. I especially need to consider the gender of the writer and his or her approach to the topic of sexism in advertising. To help eliminate bias, I will choose to focus on peer-reviewed journals. Since I will also be looking for a correlation between advertising and men’s views of themselves, I need to consider the research methods the authors of any source material use. I must evaluate their research to insure that it is valid. That is, I need to establish that they used proper scientific techniques, such as random sampling. The date of any source material will also be important. Any material over five years old will not be useful for this paper. Since advertising and beliefs about the roles of the genders changes so quickly, the material I use must be current. An analysis of advertising from the 1970s will not be helpful for this paper. Read More