Killing Us Softly through Advertising Essay - 523 Words

â€Å"Killing Us Softly† through Advertising One of the films that struck me the most was â€Å"Killing Us Softly†, the documentary on how advertising and the whole media in general can basically run this entire world. Sounds a bit drastic, but I really believe that this statement is true because of the many horrible incidents that happen throughout the world today. The documentary effectively demonstrated how easy it is for advertising to send across many different hidden meanings that can cause tremendous effects like bulimia, rapes, murders, disrespect towards women and vise versa, and several other things like making a weak minded person go crazy. For example, if for decades all the media has been showing is women who barely weigh 110 lbs,†¦show more content†¦Another example that is extremely disturbing to even hear about is the J B Ramsey case. Obviously the person who committed this crime was a Bergen Pines basket case, but I think that if the media wasn’t so big on showing 6 yr olds as beautiful m odels dressed up to look provocative, these pedophiles wouldn’t get much of a chance to view such pageants. The more exposure we get of something, the more acceptable it becomes in our society whether it’s wrong or right. Personally I’ve realized that, the media brought about even my style of dressing. If you see a commercial on TV or in a magazine for a shirt you thought looked good, wouldn’t you buy it? I know I would. I guess that’s my problem. â€Å"Killing Us Softly† relates to several other works studied in the course. For example, in â€Å"The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter† the media basically controlled every American society by turning women into the reciprocal of what they were used to being. The film also shows that if media were used in a constructive way, it would help in a tremendous way to solve the many problems of racism and sexism that are discussed in the works studied throughout the course. For example, if th ere were commercials on how African Americans are treated differently than whites when applying for a job or doing anything for that matter, maybe people would start feeling guilty for being so narrow minded. Also if there wereShow MoreRelatedEssay about Women and Advertising2280 Words   |  10 Pages   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the year 1999, $120 billion was spent on marketing products to consumers (Killing Us Softly 3). Along with products, the advertising industry sells the intangible: â€Å"Ads sell a great deal more than products. They sell values, images, and concepts of success of worth, love and sexuality, popularity, and normalcy. They tell us who we are and who we should be. Sometimes they sell addictions† (Kilbourne, Beauty and the Beast). 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The third in a series of films on the advertising industry, body image, and women, Beyond Killing Us Softly is a 30-minute documentaryRead MoreDeadly Persuasion2809 Words   |  12 PagesGirls Must Fight The Addictive Power of Advertising. New York: The Free Press, 1999. The reason why I picked Deadly Persuasion: Why Women and Girls Must Fight the Addictive Power of Advertising is because it looked very interesting compared to the other two books I had also chosen. One book had to deal with TV living and the other book had to deal with detecting lies and deceit but when I ran across a book that was mainly focused on women and advertising, I was completely for it. I thought outRead MoreUnconsciously, We Have All Been Affected Or Can Relate1358 Words   |  6 Pagestraditions have not. In the gender stereotype, we commonly relate a boy with the color blue, and a girl with the color pink. Gender roles have been instilled in us from past generations, due to the way that society was. Gender labeling is still influenced today through children’s toys, where toys are designed differently according to each gender. Through media, society persuades into the ideology of how gender role should be considered acceptable or not. â€Å"Gender† and â€Å"Sex† are closely related but do notRead MoreGangster Rap - The Negative Impact on Identity Essay1170 Words   |  5 Pagespeople realize it or not, there is a direct correlation between the media and an individual’s identity. Along with products, the media also sells values, views, images, and concepts of normalcy. The media tells us who we are and who we should be. Unfortunately, many times the media tells us things that have a major negative impact on individual and collective identity. Without the media, we would see a positive shift in the way people view themselves as individuals and as a collective. From Beethoven