The trailer for the 2012 documentary film Miss Representation opens with a quote from author and activist Alice Walker:
“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.”
When it comes to our entertainment, many of us consume what is put before us. We don’t feel that we have any power to influence the multi-million dollar investors who back terrible TV shows and awful advertising. How valuable are our voices in competition with their wallets?
Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s award-winning film “explores the under-representation of women in positions of power and influence in America, and challenges the media’s limited portrayal of what it means to be a powerful woman.” According to one advertising study, American young people spend 13.6 hours a week watching TV and 16.7 hours a week online. During that time, they are bombarded with images, many of which idealize certain body types, promote certain lifestyles and lack diversity of race and gender. Young people who don’t see people they can identify with on TV are more likely to feel unwelcome and “othered” (“not one of us”) by society, and by peers who better fit physical and cultural stereotypes that are represented.
The film inspired an online movement, The Representation Project, to call out sexism in the media. One of its most enduring campaigns takes place during one of America’s most visible cultural touchstones: the Super Bowl. For the past four years, thousands of Twitter and Facebook users have been working hard each Super Bowl Sunday to let corporations and advertisers know that using sexism, racism and classism to sell their products is not okay. They’re talking back with the hashtags #NotBuyingIt and #MediaWeLike.
Much to the pleasure of those who participate (myself included), the last two years have seen a remarkable drop in offending ads, and an uptick in ads that promote nuanced views of gender. It might be a direct result of the massive social media campaign, or it might be because these issues are more present in our collective consciousness these days, and the needle of progress is slowly moving across our culture. Regardless, this year featured several great ads, as well as some total duds.
Here are a few favorites:
The first ad of the evening came from Toyota and featured badass Paralympic snowboarder Amy Purdy doing what she does best—being a badass athlete, dancer and fashionista.
