I’m sitting here with the TV going in the background as I try and get some work done and a commercial for a certain web hosting company comes across the screen. I would like to know what scantily clad skanks covered in soap bubbles have to do with web hosting. And I wonder as a web designer why this web hosting company thought it was a good idea to alienate me (and many other women web designers) by creating such a commercial. I don’t expect my male counterparts to understand my irritation, not having to spend every day of their lives barraged with partial male nudity and sexual innuendo by men to sell products on TV, billboards, magazines, radio, you name it! Though I’m fairly certain, despite whatever protests, that an exact duplicate of this commercial with role reversal would have them running for any web hosting company BUT this one. I do not know how to express this without being tagged as a feminazi (which I SO am not), a prude (now that is just funny), or being told I’m making more of this than it’s worth. But you know, I’m just fed up. I’m sick of the exploitation of women to sell products. I’ve long since grown tired of the unhealthy messages thrown at young girls making them believe that sexy is a skirt short enough to show their ass cheeks and a wet t-shirt. And before I start receiving messages that I’m giving sour grapes because I’m jealous, trust me when I tell you, I have far too much self-esteem to be envious of any tart whoring herself out to further line the pockets of a boardroom full of men. Yes honey, your parents must be so proud.
And for all those men drooling over these women, you know if that was your girlfriend, or heaven forbid, your daughter up there and all of your buddies were drooling on your coffee table as she’s writing on the hood of a sports car, you’d be the first to start throwing punches and demanding an end to the display. Yeah, yeah you claim otherwise but you know it’s true.
All I can say is, those clients of mine who have accounts with this company will be making a move come renewal time. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to don my super-sexy, yet very classy black high-heeled boots before heading out for a beer with my buddies.
1 comment:
There's this program they've been running in VH1 that's about video girls in Hip-Hop videos which is highly enlightening. Naturally it doesn't say what we don't already know, which is that these young women are being exploited, abused and used in their attempts to become "stars" but it's a message that bears repeating. What really bothers me is that so many of these women have deluded themselves into thinking that they're being 'feminists' by engaging in this behavior. Being a feminist is risking arrest and incarceration fighting for a women's right to vote, not taking your clothes off for money.
And the sad truth is that, like so many lower income males who believe they can only achieve success through athletics or rap music, these women believe their only way 'out' is to use their bodies to A. make money or B. snag a guy with money. They don't see any other way of improving their circumstances. The men know this and they take advantage of it, with the excuse of "She's grown, she's here willingly" to which I say - When did it come permissible to abuse, shame, humiliate, dehumanize and take advantage of someone just because they let you?
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