{"id":1052,"date":"2014-09-08T20:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-09-08T20:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mlecharbinger.wordpress.com\/2014\/09\/08\/a-big-year-for-companies-women-empowerment-commercials-a-rehash-or-necessary-by-rachel-rnoh\/"},"modified":"2014-09-08T20:00:00","modified_gmt":"2014-09-08T20:00:00","slug":"a-big-year-for-companies-women-empowerment-commercials-a-rehash-or-necessary-by-rachel-rnoh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mlecharbinger.org\/?p=1052","title":{"rendered":"A Big Year For Companies\u2019 Women Empowerment Commercials: A Rehash Or Necessary? by Rachel Rnoh"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dove_Camera_Shy_self-esteem_campaign_2013\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a big year for women empowerment.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Companies such as Pantene, Always, and Cover Girl have bombarded the advertising world with commercials that refute negative stereotypes and prejudices towards women.<\/p>\n

However, it is hard to tell whether their messages are graciously and thankfully taken by the girls, or if they\u2019re just viewed as an extraneous promotion of feminism that is either responded with exasperation or indifference.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dove, the leader of women empowerment ads, released two viral beauty commercials that sought out to shoot down women insecurity and assert that all women are beautiful just as they are.<\/p>\n

In their \u201cCamera Shy\u201d ad, women avoid the camera and are then asked, \u201cWhen did you stop thinking you\u2019re beautiful?\u201d It then cuts to small clips of little girls who distinguishably, exert self-confidence as they dance around and laugh in front of the camera.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although beauty is the main product of these cosmetics, and feminine care companies, their message has shifted from voluminous, glowing hair, flawless skin, and bold lashes, to real, strong, and bold women who all deserve to have a voice. Pantene\u2019s \u201cNot Sorry\u201d commercial in their Shine Strong campaign poses the question, \u201cWhy are women always apologizing?\u201d urging woman to stop apologizing unnecessarily and to be more assertive.<\/p>\n

In Cover-Girl\u2019s \u201cGirl\u2019s Can\u201d commercial, influential artists, actors, and business women such as Katy Perry, Ellen Degeneres, and Pink all start the commercial by saying, \u201cgirls can\u2019t,\u201d a comment that girls often hear, but mostly feel. \u201cGirl\u2019s can\u2019t rock.\u201d Girl\u2019s can\u2019t dance.\u201d \u201cGirl\u2019s can\u2019t sing.\u201d \u201cGirls can\u2019t own their own business.\u201d Then comes a dramatic transition to Queen Latifah saying, \u201cGirl\u2019s can.\u201d<\/p>\n

But, there is no denying the conception that \u201cbeing a girl\u201d is usually associated with weakness, un-athleticism, and materialism. Girls are always told to act feminine\u2014 remain poised and look pretty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Always\u2019 \u201cLike a Girl\u201d commercial shows how young girls are affected by gender stereotypes as \u201cbeing a girl\u201d or \u201crunning like a girl.\u201d In response to the shift in public opinion, athletic companies and non-feminine care companies, such as Nike and Adidas have released commercials to encourage women to strive for great heights in sports, and to keep winning.<\/p>\n

However, although it is inspiring to some, it is insulting to other women. To some, the commercials suggest that women need constant reminders from Always, Pantene, or Dove that they are valuable.<\/p>\n

This prejudice against women decreased in the sense of a patriarchal society. Unfortunately, prejudice still affects women today.<\/p>\n

Even after women made strides towards equality and strengthened their voice, and even after women became 50 percent of college graduates in the Unites States, men still take hold of a vast majority of leadership positions in government and industry.<\/p>\n

Despite the dramatic change in women\u2019s roles, the number of women in high leadership positions is minimal. In Fortune 500 companies, women constitute only 4% of the top officers, 3% of the most highly paid officers, and 0.4% of CEOs, and in U.S politics, only 13% of women are senators, 14% congressional representatives, and 10% state governors, and although 30% of lawyers are women, women make up only 15% of law firm partners and 5% managing partners in large firms.<\/p>\n

A new Verizon commercial relays a powerful ad that cites an unfortunate statistic from the National Science Foundation: 66% of 4th grade girls say they like science and math, but only 18% of all college engineering majors are female. The commercial shows little girls who wander curiously around nature, observing and experimenting, but then they are reminded not to ruin their dress, shoes, or hair. A little girl is building something but is then stopped by her dad because it is too dangerous. The ad shows how social stereotypes that drive girls away from science and math, male dominated subjects, from an early age.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although many women have come a long way in society, numbers and statistics resurface a gender hierarchy that was much more visible in the past. These commercials may only suggest that women are submissive and the only insecure creatures in the world, which is not true. As a result, companies are encouraging women to not only feel beautiful, but to also feel assertive, independent, and feminists such as Sheryl Sandberg, the author of the book Lean In<\/em><\/span>, urge women to have a strong voice and seize the day.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s been a big year for women empowerment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[12],"tags":[1437,1457,2861,3292],"class_list":["post-1052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-opinion","tag-feature","tag-feminism","tag-news","tag-rachel-rnoh"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t