Advertising Mister-y

The trailer for Miss Representation has been getting a lot of play over the past week and I applaud that. It is a powerful eight minutes and if you haven't taken the time to watch it, I highly recommend it. The way the media handles women is appalling and we can't do anything about it unless we're aware.

There is an incredibly sexist ad out right now that has really had my ire raised for a while. See below:



No, there are no boobs flashing. No girl is being told that she can't do what her male counterpoint can. There's nothing in this ad that is overtly sexist.

If you're a girl, anyway.

But in addition to being the mother of two daughters, I'm also the mother of two'of sons. And I've got to tell you, ads like the above hurt all of my kids.

That ad tells my sons that if they marry a strong woman, they are going to be emasculated for every decision that they make. It tells them that if they don't make a certain level of money, their wives are going to resent them. It tells them that they are perceived as stupid and untrustworthy.

I definitely want to see change happen for my daughters. I want them to know that they can do absolutely anything that they want. But I don't want that change to happen at the expense of my sons. Advancement that is achieved strictly by tearing down the perceived competition leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

AT&T asks us to rethink possible. I'm going to ask them to rethink running ads that make men and women look like assholes. Is that possible?

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What do you think? Can we achieve some level of equality by simply by treating people well rather than tearing down those who are on top? Do you have a sexist ad that you want to rant about?