MALE REPRESENTATION IN SUPER BOWL COMMERCIALS 2019
Main Article Content
Abstract
Gender, especially female, representation in advertising has been extensively studied in recent decades; however, few studies have looked into male representation in the current media landscape. This article presents a multimodal critical discourse analysis (CDA) study on the contemporary depiction of men in Super Bowl commercials. Focusing on 57 advertisements aired during Super Bowl 2019, the research finds that male representation in TV advertisements is still largely confined by traditional male norms, despite the recent transformation in societal male roles. Besides, the findings also suggest that in negotiation with the rise in female power, male power does not decline, but varies in manifestation. Other findings include the dualistic view in male portrayal, and the normalization of men as the target of jokes. The study serves as an appeal for the reinvention of masculinity in today’s world, and for more visible, creative efforts to challenge traditional male stereotypes in advertising and media.
Article Details
Keywords
male representation, multimodal CDA, masculinity, advertisement
References
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Harrison, S. (2008). Masculinities and music : Engaging men and boys in making music. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars.
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Hatzithomas, L., Boutsouki, C., & Ziamou, P. (2016). A longitudinal analysis of the changing roles of gender in advertising: A content analysis of Super Bowl commercials. International Journal of Advertising, 35(5), 888–906. https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2016.1162344
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Holt, D. B., & Thompson, C. J. (2004). Man-of-action heroes: The pursuit of heroic masculinity in everyday consumption. Journal of Consumer Research, 31(2), 425–440. https://doi.org/10.1086/422120
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McConnell-Ginet, S. (2012). Linguistics and gender studies. In R. Kempson, N. Asher, & T. Fernando, Handbook of the philosophy of science: Philosophy of linguistics (pp. 503-530). North Holland. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2009-0-16474-7
McConnell-Ginet, S., Borker, R., & Furman, N. (1980). Women and language in literature and society. Praeger.
Messner, M. A., & Montez de Oca, J. (2005). The male consumer as loser: Beer and liquor ads in Mega Sports Media Events. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 30(3), 1879–1909. https://doi.org/10.1086/427523
Mosse, G. L. (2010). The image of man : The creation of modern masculinity. Oxford University Press.
Munson, B. (2018). AppNexus tracking 748% explosion in connected TV ad sales. Retrieved from https://www.fiercevideo.com/video/appnexus-tracking-748-explosion-connected-tv-ad-sales
Myers, G. (1997). Words in ads. Arnold.
Nakayama, T. (n.d.). Images of men in advertising. Retrieved from http://www.medialit.org/reading-room/images-men-advertising
Nixon, S. (2003). The culture of advertising. Sage.
Oláh, L. S., Kotowska, I. E., & Richter, R. (2018). The new roles of men and women and implications for families and societies. A Demographic Perspective on Gender, Family and Health in Europe, 41–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-72356-3_4
Prewitt-Freilino, J. L., Caswell, T. A., & Laakso, E. K. (2012). The gendering of language: A comparison of gender equality in countries with gendered, natural gender, and genderless languages. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 66(3-4), 268–281. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-011-0083-5
Schroeder, J. E., & Borgerson, J. L. (1998). Marketing images of gender: A visual analysis. Consumption Markets & Culture, 2(2), 161–201. https://doi.org/10.1080/10253866.1998.9670315
Schroeder, J. E., & Zwick, D. (2004). Mirrors of masculinity: Representation and identity in advertising images. Consumption Markets & Culture, 7(1), 21–52. https://doi.org/10.1080/1025386042000212383
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Sunderland, J. (2006). Language and gender: An advanced resource book. Routledge.
Tannen, D., Schiffrin, D., & Hamilton, H. E. (2018). The handbook of discourse analysis. Wiley Blackwell.
Thompson, E. H., & Pleck, J. H. (1986). The structure of male role norms. American Behavioral Scientist, 29(5), 531–543. https://doi.org/10.1177/000276486029005003
Thomson, R., Murachver, T., & Green, J. (2001). Where is the gender in gendered language? Psychological Science, 12(2), 171-175. Retrieved from www.jstor.org/stable/40063606
Tosun, S., Faghihi, N., & Vaid, J. (2018). Is an ideal sense of humor gendered? A cross-national study. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00199
Vierra, N. (2014). Gender stereotypes in television advertising during Super Bowl XLVIII and the Sochi Winter Olympics. Communication Studies Undergraduate Publications, Presentations and Projects, 60. Retrieved from https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Gender-Stereotypes-in-Television-Advertising-During-Vierra/23da891640299b17e6adf11520fccafbbe5d3f0c
Vokey, M., Tefft, B., & Tysiaczny, C. (2013). An analysis of hyper-masculinity in magazine advertisements. Sex Roles, 68(9–10), 562–576. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-013-0268-1
West, C., & Zimmerman, D. H. (1987). Doing gender. Gender & Society, 1(2), 125–151. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243287001002002
Wolk, A. (2018, July 26). Ad-supported OTT keeps growing, and advertisers would be wise to take note. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/
Wright, B. (2002). Gender and language: Challenging stereotypes. Retrieved from https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/documents/college-artslaw/cels/essays/sociolinguistics/wright5.pdf
Zaitchik, M. C., & Mosher, D. L. (1993). Criminal justice implications of the macho personality constellation. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 20(3), 227–239. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854893020003001
Atanga, L. L. (2010). Gender, discourse and power in the Cameroonian Parliament. Langaa Rpcig.
Baldwin, J. R., Coleman, R. R. M., González, A., & Shenoy-Packer, S. (2014). Intercultural communication for everyday life. John Wiley & Sons.
Bon, S. (2015, February 3). Super Bowl most watched television show in US history. Financial Times. Retrieved from https://www.ft.com/content/cbc8df2a-aafd-11e4-81bc-00144feab7de
Coates, J. (2004). Women, men and language. Pearson Education.
Danna, S. R. (1992). Advertizing and popular culture: Studies in variety and versatility. Bowling Green State University Popular Press.
Debonnah, D., & Brannon, R. (1976). The forty-nine percent majority: The male sex role. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.
DeNinno, N. (2012, May 10). The Mark Zuckerberg hoodie and 13 other CEOs who casually dress down [PHOTOS]. Retrieved from https://www.ibtimes.com/mark-zuckerberg-hoodie-and-13-other-ceos-who-casually-dress-down-photos-700424
Drewniany, B. (2003). We’ve come a long way maybe: An analysis of the portrayal of women in Super Bowl commercials from 1989 to 2002. In P. M. Lester & S. D. Ross (Eds.), Images that injure (2nd ed., pp.149-155). Praeger.
Fairclough, N. (2001). Language and power. Routledge.
Gentry, J., & Harrison, R. (2010). Is advertising a barrier to male movement toward gender change? Marketing Theory, 10(1), 74–96. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470593109355246
Gough, C. (2019). Share of Super Bowl viewers in the U.S. 2017, by gender. Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/683227/super-bowl-viewers-by-gender/
Green, K., & Van Oort, M. (2013). “We wear no pants”: Selling the crisis of masculinity in the 2010 Super Bowl commercials. Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 38(3), 695–719. https://doi.org/10.1086/668618
Hall, S. (1997). Representation: Cultural representations and signifying practices (Culture, media and identities series) (1st ed.). Sage Publications & Open University.
Harrison, S. (2008). Masculinities and music : Engaging men and boys in making music. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars.
Hartley, R. E. (1959). Sex-role pressure in the socialization of the male child. Psychological Reports, 5(2), 457–468. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1959.5.h.457
Hatzithomas, L., Boutsouki, C., & Ziamou, P. (2016). A longitudinal analysis of the changing roles of gender in advertising: A content analysis of Super Bowl commercials. International Journal of Advertising, 35(5), 888–906. https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2016.1162344
Hatzithomas, L., Outra, E., & Zotos, Y. (2010, June). Postmodern advertising: A longitudinal study of Super Bowl commercials [Conference presentation]. The 39th EMAC Conference, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Holt, D. B., & Thompson, C. J. (2004). Man-of-action heroes: The pursuit of heroic masculinity in everyday consumption. Journal of Consumer Research, 31(2), 425–440. https://doi.org/10.1086/422120
Kim, T. (2019, September 18). What can brain scans tell us about Sex? The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/18/magazine/sex-brain-scans-men-women.html
Kolbe, R. H., & Albanese, P. J. (1996). Man to man: A content analysis of sole-male images in male-audience magazines. Journal of Advertising, 25(4), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/00913367.1996.10673509
Krans, B. (2013, March 3). Hypermasculinity in advertising: Selling manly men to regular men. Retrieved November 22, 2019, from Healthline website: https://www.healthline.com/health-news/mental-masculine-ads-distort-mens-perceptions-030313#1
Kress, G. R., & Van Leeuwen, T. (1996). Reading images: The grammar of visual design. Routledge.
Kutsch, T. (2016, August 19). Men who act as breadwinners face negative health effects, study finds. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/money/2016/aug/19/men-breadwinners-health-effects-wellbeing
Lakoff, R. (2004). Language and woman’s place: Text and commentaries. Oxford University Press.
Maff, A. (2018). Masculinity in advertising today. Retrieved from https://blog.sellerschoice.digital/masculinity-in-advertising-today
Maitland, E. (2018). Masculinity in advertising is failing to represent the reality of being a modern man. River Group. Retrieved from https://www.therivergroup.co.uk/what-we-think/masculinity-in-advertising-is-failing-to-represent-the-reality-of-what-it-means-to-be-a-modern-man/
Marketing Charts. (2018, February 14). Super Bowl 2018 data [Updated]. Marketing Charts. Retrieved from https://www.marketingcharts.com/television-82221
Mbabazi, D. (2018). The effects of toxic masculinity. Retrieved from https://www.newtimes.co.rw/lifestyle/effects-toxic-masculinity
McConnell-Ginet, S. (2012). Linguistics and gender studies. In R. Kempson, N. Asher, & T. Fernando, Handbook of the philosophy of science: Philosophy of linguistics (pp. 503-530). North Holland. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2009-0-16474-7
McConnell-Ginet, S., Borker, R., & Furman, N. (1980). Women and language in literature and society. Praeger.
Messner, M. A., & Montez de Oca, J. (2005). The male consumer as loser: Beer and liquor ads in Mega Sports Media Events. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 30(3), 1879–1909. https://doi.org/10.1086/427523
Mosse, G. L. (2010). The image of man : The creation of modern masculinity. Oxford University Press.
Munson, B. (2018). AppNexus tracking 748% explosion in connected TV ad sales. Retrieved from https://www.fiercevideo.com/video/appnexus-tracking-748-explosion-connected-tv-ad-sales
Myers, G. (1997). Words in ads. Arnold.
Nakayama, T. (n.d.). Images of men in advertising. Retrieved from http://www.medialit.org/reading-room/images-men-advertising
Nixon, S. (2003). The culture of advertising. Sage.
Oláh, L. S., Kotowska, I. E., & Richter, R. (2018). The new roles of men and women and implications for families and societies. A Demographic Perspective on Gender, Family and Health in Europe, 41–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-72356-3_4
Prewitt-Freilino, J. L., Caswell, T. A., & Laakso, E. K. (2012). The gendering of language: A comparison of gender equality in countries with gendered, natural gender, and genderless languages. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 66(3-4), 268–281. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-011-0083-5
Schroeder, J. E., & Borgerson, J. L. (1998). Marketing images of gender: A visual analysis. Consumption Markets & Culture, 2(2), 161–201. https://doi.org/10.1080/10253866.1998.9670315
Schroeder, J. E., & Zwick, D. (2004). Mirrors of masculinity: Representation and identity in advertising images. Consumption Markets & Culture, 7(1), 21–52. https://doi.org/10.1080/1025386042000212383
Siltanen, R. (2014, January 29). Yes, a Super Bowl ad really is worth $4 million. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/onmarketing/2014/01/29/yes-a-super-bowl-ad-really-is-worth-4-million/
Sunderland, J. (2006). Language and gender: An advanced resource book. Routledge.
Tannen, D., Schiffrin, D., & Hamilton, H. E. (2018). The handbook of discourse analysis. Wiley Blackwell.
Thompson, E. H., & Pleck, J. H. (1986). The structure of male role norms. American Behavioral Scientist, 29(5), 531–543. https://doi.org/10.1177/000276486029005003
Thomson, R., Murachver, T., & Green, J. (2001). Where is the gender in gendered language? Psychological Science, 12(2), 171-175. Retrieved from www.jstor.org/stable/40063606
Tosun, S., Faghihi, N., & Vaid, J. (2018). Is an ideal sense of humor gendered? A cross-national study. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00199
Vierra, N. (2014). Gender stereotypes in television advertising during Super Bowl XLVIII and the Sochi Winter Olympics. Communication Studies Undergraduate Publications, Presentations and Projects, 60. Retrieved from https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Gender-Stereotypes-in-Television-Advertising-During-Vierra/23da891640299b17e6adf11520fccafbbe5d3f0c
Vokey, M., Tefft, B., & Tysiaczny, C. (2013). An analysis of hyper-masculinity in magazine advertisements. Sex Roles, 68(9–10), 562–576. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-013-0268-1
West, C., & Zimmerman, D. H. (1987). Doing gender. Gender & Society, 1(2), 125–151. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243287001002002
Wolk, A. (2018, July 26). Ad-supported OTT keeps growing, and advertisers would be wise to take note. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/
Wright, B. (2002). Gender and language: Challenging stereotypes. Retrieved from https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/documents/college-artslaw/cels/essays/sociolinguistics/wright5.pdf
Zaitchik, M. C., & Mosher, D. L. (1993). Criminal justice implications of the macho personality constellation. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 20(3), 227–239. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854893020003001