Masculinity in media

Something that really caught my attention in class the other day was when I heard the possibility that with science, one day there would be no need for men on this planet because women could reproduce for themselves. That was a scary thought.

Watching a basketball game on television last night, I decided to pay closer attention to the commercials than I normally do. Products that were advertised were pickup trucks, fast food, credit cards and beer. Obviously, the media knows that on a sports channel, the majority of the audience is male and they design their ads sell to them. In the commercials, men were usually portrayed in ways that showed as if they were in control of a situation.

Next I looked through the ads in a Sports Illustrated magazine. I found those to sell HD TVs, iPods, tool sets, watches, SUVs and cologne. The same principles from tv ads applied to the magazine ads. These usually pictured a well-known athlete with the product, also looking as if he were powerful, rugged and in control. Or, for example, in the cologne ad the athlete was made to look sexy lying in the woods with his shirt unbuttoned and a woman leaning on him. I don't know about other men, but when I occasionally put on cologne I don't end up like this.

So adding a male athlete to endorse a product certainly sells to other men reading the magazine. How about the ad at the very end of the magazine that showed racecar driver Danica Patrick, who is a woman, looking tough to sell an antifreeze product? This one is interesting to me because, although I don't follow racing, I know that most men either love her or hate her for succeeding as a woman in a male sport. So I'm not sure if most men see this ad and want to go buy the product or refuse to buy anything from this company now because Patrick is a sponsor.

Paying attention to commericals and ads can give you some good sources of masculinity. If you look beyond what is on the surface and break it down, you can always find a subtle clue. Advertisers spend a lot of time on their ads and everything the choose to put in it has been carefully thought out. So look a little closer next time you are watching tv or reading a magazine.