Lisa and I are completely confused by these ads. We at least get the first one--her boobs are so big in a Wonderbra that they honk the horn while she drives. And the other I guess means she can't see to put out her cigarette?But the other two? Is the coffin one supposed to imply that her breasts are too big for the coffin to close? I shouldn't have to think this hard to understand an ad!
Weird Wonderbra Ads from Singapore
Paris Hilton Carl's Jr. Ad
Note: Youtube made me verify my age to see this ad...that ran on network TV.
Another Just For Men Hair Dye Ad: Former Athlete Gets His Masculine Vitality Back by Covering Grey Hair
Then Is Now
American Apparel now has it's own youtube channel. How much does this ad remind you of the old, banned, Calvin Klein (child porn) ads (see them here):
Correlations Of IQ With Income And Wealth
The relationship between IQ and income:
The relationship between IQ and wealth:
From Zagorsky, Jay. 2007. Do you have to be smart to be rich? The impact of IQ on wealth, income and financial distress. Intelligence 35: 489-501.
Thanks to Conrad H.
U.S. Fertility Rate Reaches Replacement Level
These two figures display the U.S. birth rate over time. They accompanied a New York Times article discussing the fact that the U.S. birth rate reached replacement level for the first time in 35 years. Interestingly, the article suggests it has something to do with the recent rise in home ownership.
There Are No Business Travelers, Only Male And Female Business Travelers
Chris M. noticed something bizarre on the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) website.
If you scroll about 1/4th of the way down this page, there is a list of pdfs and videos about security on airplanes. There are separate videos for the female and the male "business traveler." They both show liquids in a plastic bag, but apparently only men carry laptops and women are relieved from having to take off their shoes.
Chris thought it was especially interesting to see this on a .gov site. Nice find Chris!
Dell Computer Super Bowl Ad: Buy the Right Product = Be Hip = Get Beautiful Women
Coolness and access to hot women are the rewards of proper consumption:
Dell Computer Product Red Super Bowl Ad: XPS Laptop Draws Cheers
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"Witch Doctor" in Super Bowl Ad
Another ad using racial/ethnic images: Cars.com has a "witch doctor," clearly based on stereotypical images of African "tribes," as African peoples are always called:
Cars.com Super Bowl Ad: Witch Doctor To Shrink Heads as Plan B
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Ethnicity and Accents in Super Bowl XLII Ad
Here are two ads for http://www.salesgenie.com/SalesGenie/Index.aspx?bas_vendor=99831, both aired during tonight's Super Bowl and both, for no apparent reason, using animated characters with thick accents--in the first Indian, in the second, Chinese.
SalesGenie Superbowl Commercial: Boss Threatens to Fire Salesman
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Sales Genie Super Bowl Commercial
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Doing our best here at Sociological Images to provide immediate commentary!
In Honor Of The Superbowl...
...Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction (Superbowl 2003).
Here's the video (don't blink!):
I use this story along with this image to illustrate agenda setting. Because the media made such a huge deal about this, it was something that most people talked about with at least one other person and an issue on which most people formed an opinion. (I like the two-second video because it shows just how quick it was.) I contrast it alongside some genuinely newsworthy event that no one noticed because it didn't get covered and no one, now, remembers. (Richard mentions, by the way, that there were a ton of erectile dysfunction commercials during the superbowl that year that did not attract media outrage.)
Thanks to Ang! I stole the picture and the idea of using this issue to talk about agenda setting from her years ago.
t-shirts for babies and children
From an article in the UK TimesOnline via an article on a bed for little girls called "Lolita."
Yes, all these t-shirts come in children's and baby sizes...
Class Inequality Superimposed On Theoretical Height
This image illustrates what class inequality would look like if our level of income/wealth were reflected in our height (click to enlarge). Class inequality was first described this way by economist Jan Pen. The image was reproduced for an Atlantic article (view here). Even though the illustration is for 1971 and Britain, it would be useful, especially if we had evidence that income inequality is greater now than in 1971 and greater in the U.S. (or wherever you are) than in Britain (which I think is true... anyone?). An excerpt explaining the illustration is included below. (By the way, what first looked to me like a dark green blob behind the tallest guy is actually the foot of the next tallest guy.)
Excerpt:
"Suppose that every person in the economy walks by, as if in a parade. Imagine that the parade takes exactly an hour to pass, and that the marchers are arranged in order of income, with the lowest incomes at the front and the highest at the back. Also imagine that the heights of the people in the parade are proportional to what they make: those earning the average income will be of average height, those earning twice the average income will be twice the average height, and so on. We spectators, let us imagine, are also of average height.
Pen then described what the observers would see. Not a series of people of steadily increasing height—that’s far too bland a picture. The observers would see something much stranger. They would see, mostly, a parade of dwarves, and then some unbelievable giants at the very end.
As the parade begins, Pen explained, the marchers cannot be seen at all. They are walking upside down, with their heads underground—owners of loss-making businesses, most likely. Very soon, upright marchers begin to pass by, but they are tiny. For five minutes or so, the observers are peering down at people just inches high—old people and youngsters, mainly; people without regular work, who make a little from odd jobs. Ten minutes in, the full-time labor force has arrived: to begin with, mainly unskilled manual and clerical workers, burger flippers, shop assistants, and the like, standing about waist-high to the observers. And at this point things start to get dull, because there are so very many of these very small people. The minutes pass, and pass, and they keep on coming.
By about halfway through the parade, Pen wrote, the observers might expect to be looking people in the eye—people of average height ought to be in the middle. But no, the marchers are still quite small, these experienced tradespeople, skilled industrial workers, trained office staff, and so on—not yet five feet tall, many of them. On and on they come.
It takes about forty-five minutes—the parade is drawing to a close—before the marchers are as tall as the observers. Heights are visibly rising by this point, but even now not very fast. In the final six minutes, however, when people with earnings in the top 10 percent begin to arrive, things get weird again. Heights begin to surge upward at a madly accelerating rate. Doctors, lawyers, and senior civil servants twenty feet tall speed by. Moments later, successful corporate executives, bankers, stockbrokers—peering down from fifty feet, 100 feet, 500 feet. In the last few seconds you glimpse pop stars, movie stars, the most successful entrepreneurs. You can see only up to their knees (this is Britain: it’s cloudy). And if you blink, you’ll miss them altogether. At the very end of the parade (it’s 1971, recall) is John Paul Getty, heir to the Getty Oil fortune. The sole of his shoe is hundreds of feet thick."
Hasbro Teachers Girls to Be Good Housewives
Here is a video for Hasbro's Rose Petal Cottage. Could be good for discussing gender socialization:
Great find, Sherryl K.!
What Have The Unions Ever Done For Us?
A humorous video pointing out some of the things that unions have, in fact, done for us... or at least for Britons, eh em, the Australians (I've been corrected):
They forgot the weekend!
"DDT Is Good For Me-e-e!"
DDT was a pesticide marketed to housewives (and many others). We later discovered it to be a horrible environmental toxin. Below are two of the propaganda posters (Via Mindfully and KnowDrama and noticed thanks to John L.):
Text:
“The great expectations held for DDT have been realized. During 1946, exhaustive scientific tests have shown that, when properly used, DDT kills a host of destructive insect pests, and is a benefactor of all humanity.
Pennsalt produces DDT and its products in all standard forms and is now one of the country’s largest producers of this amazing insecticide. Today, everyone can enjoy added comfort, health and safety through the insect-killing powers of Pennsalt DDT products . . . and DDT is only one of Pennsalt’s many chemical products which benefit industry, farm and home.
GOOD FOR FRUITS – Bigger apples, juicier fruits that are free from unsightly worms . . . all benefits resulting from DDT dusts and sprays.
GOOD FOR STEERS – Beef grows meatier nowadays . . . for it’s a scientific fact that compared to untreated cattle beef-steers gain up to 50 pounds extra when protected from horn flies and many other pests with DDT insecticides.
FOR THE HOME – Helps to make healthier and more comfortable homes . . . protects your family from dangerous insect pests. Use Knox-Out DDT Powders and Sprays as directed . . . then watch the bugs ‘bite the dust’!
FOR DAIRIES – Up to 20% more milk . . . more butter . . . more cheese . . . tests prove greater milk production when dairy cows are protected from the annoyance of many insects with DDT insecticides like Knox-Out Stock and Barn Spray.
GOOD FOR ROW CROPS – 25 more barrels of potatoes per acre . . . actual DDT tests have shown crop increases like this! DDT dusts and sprays help truck farmers pass these gains along to you.
FOR INDUSTRY – Food processing plants, laundries, dry cleaning plants, hotels . . . dozens of industries gain effective bug control, more pleasant work conditions with Pennsalt DDT products.
Food And The Environment
This graphic from the New York Times illustrates the different environmental costs of meat and vegetable production (click on image to enlarge):
Ad Warns Moms Not to Let Themselves Go
Here is a link to TV ads for Suave shampoo (sorry, I can't figure out how to embed it; click on the "Beauty" tab on the left, then the "Advertising: TV ads" link). The first one claims that having kids makes both your hair and your breasts flat. The third ad says that "89% of women" say they have "let themselves go," but then announces that with Suave, "100% can get themselves back."
Here is a link to a report on a survey Suave conducted, titled "Can Motherhood and Womanhood Coexist?" Here are some excerpts:
A whopping 84 percent admit they’ve let their appearance slide since
becoming a mom and that taking care of their appearance has become more of a
wish than a reality. The majority (66 percent) say guilt is one of the barriers
to self care.
The brand’s 360 degree 'Say Yes to Beautiful' integrated marketing
campaign reminds moms that beauty has a place amongst the dirty dishes and piles
of laundry that are an inevitable part of motherhood.
Neighborhood Demographics Website
Here is a website where you can quickly get U.S. Census Bureau data for a particular zip code. I use it to get information for my classes to help students make a connection to things we're talking about sometimes. It has things like racial breakdown, educational levels, and average income.
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