Sexism in Advertising

It is no secret that the 1960's gender gap was a large, gaping hole. Men worked in offices in positions of authority. They made decisions and they made money. And while women did work in offices, such as the ones on Mad Men, most of them were accessories to the men; answerig their phone calls, taking their messages, and not given the authority to make decisions. Advertising did nothing to ill in this gap. In commercials, women were in a kitchen more than half of the time and almost always in the home. Food advertisments were directed towards women, convincing them that it is important to buy what is best for their family as that was their duty. Men in advertisements were often in sports, near cars, or relaxing in their homes. Men were the mediators and the voice of reason, often for the females in these advertisements. In commercials for things such as beauty products, men had the voice overs, convincing the women that they know what's best. Blatantly stated, advertising was completely sexist.

Examples include Barbie Dolls, who often portrayed women as a stylish, beautiful figure and only that to young girls; Ford, who rarely had women in their commercials and were always voiced over by men; and Tide laundry detergent, one particular commercial in which is woman is depicted as joyous as can be folding laundry by the seaside with a man's voice praising the detergent and the woman for using it.