Objectifying Men

My Twitter timeline exploded last night as the British nation collectively exploded at the prospect of a natural milky treat - thanks to a Yeo Valley advert.  PME200 picks up the story on his clog and puts this latest advert into a wider narrative of the exploitation of men.  It's well worth a read; check it out in full here.

Netting a Mum and the Manmercial

The weekend papers had quite a few gender and sexuality stories (still need to read some) but one that caught my eye was about Mumsnet. This is the website that describes itself as 'by parents for parents' and it's increasingly been seen as a key player in the UK General election - giving access for politicos to a key demograph and a space that enables 'mums' to come together. It's probably be seen as sometimes a bit closer to Cameron's Tories (members get a 10% discount at Boden apparently) but as it is a collection of individuals it would be wrong to suggest the 'group' has a political leaning, rather it reflects the middle class nature of a group that log on and share info/ask for advice about being a mum (as opposed to Jeremy Kyle). Crucially, it is just about the Mum. What about Dads? That's the question that the Sunday Times asked this weekend and you can read what Matt Rudd found here.

From mums to Dad's and their hetero manliness. I've previously blogged on a recent Lynx advert and this morning I came across a US ad for 'Old Spice' (does anyone really still buy this?). It brightened up my Monday morning and made me laugh. Take a look and see what you think of this 'manmercial' below.

Women get bored easily...apparently

Oh Lynx thank you. I'm conscious I seem to have posted an awful lot of important and serious posts recently and it's time for a lighter (but I would suggest equally important) story. Lynx deodorant (better known as Axe to some readers) has a new advert for 'Lynx twist' which is supposed to be an evolving fragrance. What's particularly interesting about this ad is it's like a throwback to a forgotten age. All men are heterosexual seeking to attract women. Women are these feminine creatures that do so get easily bored so if you keep changing how you smell she will stay interested. Of course, it's progress of sorts that it is the man seeking to persuade the demanding women of his charms. Lynx has always traded as the ultra-masculine fragrance and you could say it hasn't done them any harm. It would just be nice if once in a while they recognised that maybe it's not just straight men who buy it (although I'm not one of them. lol). Watch the advert bellow and tell me what you think by clicking comments.