Over the weekend I learned that Fifty Shades of Grey made a movie and it's coming out in 2015.
For those of you who know me, I'm pretty quiet and easy-going. However, there are a few topics I get incredibly passionnate about. If any of these topics come up in conversation, my inner dragon comes out:
1. Child abuse
2. Objectification of Women
3. Sexual abuse due to #2
Well, I got curious and looked up the plot of Fifty Shades of Grey. It looks like it magnifies #2 and #3. And I'm a bit disgusted.
This series is anything but okay. I cannot stand any piece of media that portrays weak women being sexually exploited by powerful men. Furthermore, I cannot stand it when women read it and call it a good book or a good movie! The reason these tasteless books and movies are released is because they target a tasteless audience, which sadly constitutes a wide population of this increasingly tasteless planet.
Can you tell I get passionate about this?
Men are not sex fiends. And women are not sex objects. At least they shouldn't be. The fact that this series is all about a sex fiend who wants to control a women who gives her "consent" to be sexually abused is incredibly horrifying.
I wish I could fight it. But the best thing to do is not give it publicity. How can we make that happen?
If you want to read a really good article about this, look here: https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/to-the-christians-who-think-50-shades-is-all-sorts-of-awesome-please-stop-a
End of rant. :)
Monday, December 1, 2014
Letter to Carl's Jr
So, I know this is a long shot, especially after Dr. Coyne mentioned that she has written Carl's Jr. dozens of times and has heard no reply. This letter also may not be that persuasive. However, it's worth a try. I do like the idea of writing professional letters to clean up the media. Media, however, runs more like a business. It supplies the demand. The real way to clean up media is for consumers to want something more clean and family-friendly. The best way to fight against filthy media is for the majority of the population to ignore it. I don't know how to make that happen though.
Anyway, here is the letter I wrote to Carl's Jr this week.
To whom it may concern,
My name is Brianna Fox and I am currently a student at Brigham Young University. I am writing on behalf of the hundreds of females that have been injured and offended by Carl's Jr's unthoughtful advertising. I have been shocked by Carl's Jr's recent ads that portray sexualized women in an attempt to sexually arouse male consumers. This objectification of women is harmful, crass, dehumanizing, and offensive; it needs to stop.
There are dozens of studies that analyze the effects of sexual advertisements on consumer behaviors, though there are gaps in the literature. Still, several studies have found that sexualized advertisements do not leave lasting impressions on consumers. Brad J. Bushman, a PhD in the Department of Psychology, conducted a study in 2002 that found that sex advertisements reduced viewers' likelihood of remembering the advertised brand, their interest in buying that brand, and their likelihood of selecting a coupon for that brand, regardless of gender.
Similarly, Ellie Parker and Adrian Furnham of University College London conducted a study in 2007 that found that viewing sexual content in programs reduced the likelihood of recalling advertisements. This suggests that viewers are distracted by sex and put more interest into sex than in advertised products. The Carl's Jr. advertisements encourage consumers to think about sex; the ads may be doing very little to persuade consumers to purchase Carl's Jr. hamburgers. Women especially do not respond well to sexualized advertisements due to their preference for deep and meaningful relationships. Using sexualized advertisements effectively alienates the female population from potential consumers.
I am aware that some studies support the claim that sex sells to male consumers. However, the use of sexualized advertisements is unethical. It involves dehumanizing and objectifying the female population, which subsequently alienates a large percentage of potential consumers. This causes harm to both the company and its consumers. These offensive advertisements have also stirred men to action; they, too, are offended by the sexual ads. Hundreds of men and women have sworn off Carl's Jr. until the offensive ads are removed.
I strongly encourage Carl's Jr. to change its target audience from male adults to families. I came across an article on The Daily Signal which reports that Chick-Fil-A's family values have led to a higher customer satisfaction among kids than McDonalds: their strongest competitor. McDonalds made $55,856 million in net income in 2014. McDonalds is known for its strong appeal to kids; McDonalds targets a wider audience and consequently brings in more revenue. Feeding families will bring in more revenue than feeding single men. By shaming and alienating women, Carl's Jr is chasing away both mothers and children. These populations constitute a vast majority of fast-food consumers.
I politely request the removal of your offensive advertisements from television. These ads glorify the objectification of women, which teaches children the wrong message about how women should be viewed and treated. This may lead to the further dehumanization of women. Women should not be portrayed as mindless sex objects, nor should men be portrayed as mindless sex fiends. Please keep your restaurants family-friendly. It will be beneficial to both your business and your consumers. Thank you for your time.
Best,
Anyway, here is the letter I wrote to Carl's Jr this week.
To whom it may concern,
My name is Brianna Fox and I am currently a student at Brigham Young University. I am writing on behalf of the hundreds of females that have been injured and offended by Carl's Jr's unthoughtful advertising. I have been shocked by Carl's Jr's recent ads that portray sexualized women in an attempt to sexually arouse male consumers. This objectification of women is harmful, crass, dehumanizing, and offensive; it needs to stop.
There are dozens of studies that analyze the effects of sexual advertisements on consumer behaviors, though there are gaps in the literature. Still, several studies have found that sexualized advertisements do not leave lasting impressions on consumers. Brad J. Bushman, a PhD in the Department of Psychology, conducted a study in 2002 that found that sex advertisements reduced viewers' likelihood of remembering the advertised brand, their interest in buying that brand, and their likelihood of selecting a coupon for that brand, regardless of gender.
Similarly, Ellie Parker and Adrian Furnham of University College London conducted a study in 2007 that found that viewing sexual content in programs reduced the likelihood of recalling advertisements. This suggests that viewers are distracted by sex and put more interest into sex than in advertised products. The Carl's Jr. advertisements encourage consumers to think about sex; the ads may be doing very little to persuade consumers to purchase Carl's Jr. hamburgers. Women especially do not respond well to sexualized advertisements due to their preference for deep and meaningful relationships. Using sexualized advertisements effectively alienates the female population from potential consumers.
I am aware that some studies support the claim that sex sells to male consumers. However, the use of sexualized advertisements is unethical. It involves dehumanizing and objectifying the female population, which subsequently alienates a large percentage of potential consumers. This causes harm to both the company and its consumers. These offensive advertisements have also stirred men to action; they, too, are offended by the sexual ads. Hundreds of men and women have sworn off Carl's Jr. until the offensive ads are removed.
I strongly encourage Carl's Jr. to change its target audience from male adults to families. I came across an article on The Daily Signal which reports that Chick-Fil-A's family values have led to a higher customer satisfaction among kids than McDonalds: their strongest competitor. McDonalds made $55,856 million in net income in 2014. McDonalds is known for its strong appeal to kids; McDonalds targets a wider audience and consequently brings in more revenue. Feeding families will bring in more revenue than feeding single men. By shaming and alienating women, Carl's Jr is chasing away both mothers and children. These populations constitute a vast majority of fast-food consumers.
I politely request the removal of your offensive advertisements from television. These ads glorify the objectification of women, which teaches children the wrong message about how women should be viewed and treated. This may lead to the further dehumanization of women. Women should not be portrayed as mindless sex objects, nor should men be portrayed as mindless sex fiends. Please keep your restaurants family-friendly. It will be beneficial to both your business and your consumers. Thank you for your time.
Best,
Brianna Fox
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)