Men and Women and Hot Breakfast Bars

This week, as we were discussing gender representations in media, I came across a story about a new advertsing campaign by Holiday Inn Express. The article was on Slate.com. It was in the site's Ad Report Card section. I enjoy hitting this section every few weeks because my television viewing could be classified as sparse, and the television I do see on a regular basis (local news and syndicated shows) often do not have the big national ads on them.

Plus, I enjoy the writing in the ad report card section. It has helped me to understand the choices made in putting together an ad campaign, its desired affect, and its actual affect, according to Seth Stevens.

In the article found here, Stevens discusses how men are represented and how they may respond to the new Hot Breakfast Bar ads. More interesting, however, is the ad in the same campaign that features women as the central characters. Both ads are the same length, with the same message on the same set. The differences come in the characters, the storyline, and the humor. I believe that this could be a great curricular support for gender representations in a media literacy unit. The portrayals are not overtly sexual, so students can examine gender representations beyond the common ones in ads targeting teens and young adults. Students could be asked to express the central idea of each, the target audience, and how the message is presented.

This posting in Slate also made mention of the SportCenter ads. These ads, abundant on YouTube, could also be examined in a classroom environment to determine why they appeal to men, their target audience. I don't think that my wife ever really appreciated them, and she probably rolled her eyes when I would stop mid-conversation to watch whenever I happened to catch one. Just thinking about them now brings a smile to my XY chromosome face.

It was handy having both ads in the same article, and handy that this article was posted on a week when we focused on gender in Amy's class. But, I also encourage regular reading of this feature for those teachers who teach media. It is very readable and can bring lots of ideas about how advertising can be analyzed for its form, content, and effectiveness. Enjoy a future with Seth Stevens.

As a post script, I, too, grinned at the "Cinnamon roll? That's something you send your sister!" line. (Insert SportCenter theme here).