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So heres the deal , obviously as much as some of us wish that we could all just shut up about race and just consider every one human, there are those who need to keep it alive , for political and financial gain. I am standing in a Verizon wireless store today.......and I notice the various advertisement and promotional posters and pictures around the store, it struck me that in all of these pictures there was a total of 16 people......of those 16 there were only 3 white people, the rest were mostly black,a couple of orientals and the rest some sort of ethnic background, of the three whites, there were definitely no blonds or blue eyes. Why is this? Political Correctness? Have companies had to go overboard to avoid the wrath of Jesse Jackson or is just purely marketing....not very many white people in the market for cell phones?
I notice crap like that because I find it an interesting and complex question. I was sitting at a traffic light the other day and I noticed a window poster in a SupeRx drugstore. A dozen faces and none was a middle-aged white guy. Hey, where am I?, I silently asked myself with a chuckle.
So is the lack of a white guy just a coincidence? Could be. I could drop the puzzle right there and be satisfied with the answer. But the real answer is actually probably deeper. Maybe white folks aren't as racially particular as other racial demographics when it comes to the faces that appear in advertising. Could it be that it has to do with an overall corporate appearance rather than target advertising at one or two stores? Maybe SupeRx wants to be viewed as a corporation that is all-inclusive. An image thing.
So if that's the case, would that be an example of political correctness? Yeah, sort of... I guess.
As a white person I've noticed this in advertising but really don't care. Maybe that's the point. White people don't care and will buy what they want anyway while certain minorities respond to the various racial images in adverts.
(1)So heres the deal , obviously as much as some of us wish that we could all just shut up about race and just consider every one human, there are those who need to keep it alive , for political and financial gain. I am standing in a Verizon wireless store today.......and I notice the various advertisement and promotional posters and pictures around the store, it struck me that in all of these pictures there was a total of 16 people...... (2)of those 16 there were only 3 white people, the rest were mostly black, (3)a couple of orientals and the rest some sort of ethnic background, of the three whites, (4)there were definitely no blonds or blue eyes. Why is this? Political Correctness? (5)Have companies had to go overboard to avoid the wrath of Jesse Jackson or is just purely marketing.... (6)not very many white people in the market for cell phones?
Hmmmm....the OP is trying to start an intelligent discussion about race yet makes a few racially insensitive mistakes in said initial thread starter. Let's point them out....
(1) If the OP wants so desparately for us all to "shut up" about race...why start a topic about race?
(2) If someone wants us all to "shut up" about race and race is so unimportant to the OP why go around noticing something as trivial as how many White people are in a company's marketing materials?
(3) A clear indication of the mindset.....calling Asians "orientals"
(4) Again, focusing on the most coveted of Caucasian physical attributes ...blond hair, blue eyes
(5) Evoking the name of Jesse Jackson to pound home the point
(6) Bemoaning the lack of Caucasians in one ad for a cell phone company ultimately implying that Caucasians should dominate in all company marketing campaigns or else they are in league with the likes of Jesse Jackson
Hmmmm....the OP is trying to start an intelligent discussion about race yet makes a few racially insensitive mistakes in said initial thread starter. Let's point them out....
(1) If the OP wants so desparately for us all to "shut up" about race...why start a topic about race?
(2) If someone wants us all to "shut up" about race and race is so unimportant to the OP why go around noticing something as trivial as how many White people are in a company's marketing materials?
(3) A clear indication of the mindset.....calling Asians "orientals"
(4) Again, focusing on the most coveted of Caucasian physical attributes ...blond hair, blue eyes
(5) Evoking the name of Jesse Jackson to pound home the point
(6) Bemoaning the lack of Caucasians in one ad for a cell phone company ultimately implying that Caucasians should dominate in all company marketing campaigns or else they are in league with the likes of Jesse Jackson
So much for trying to "get over this race thing".
I'm going to take this thread down my own little path...
A few weeks ago Jesse Jackson stated that the Cleveland Cavalier owner, Dan Gilbert, acted as though LeBron James was a "plantation slave" in his, Gilbert's, written statement of outrage. Anyway, Jackson was later asked why he would bring race into it since it very likely was not a factor in Gilbert's tirade. Well, Jackson did not argue but instead said that his own comment was a result of his "cultural perspective", and that a certain latitude ought to be given because of that.
Believe it or not, I understood what Jackson meant by "cultural perspective". I don't think it was advisable for him to use the term "plantation slave", or even use race, but I could see where it would be the direction he would be inclined to go. I don't condemn him for it.
Anyway, when someone talks about Asians being "Orientals", that too is an ill-advised but understandable faux pas. It is a "cultural perspective" thing. As is mentioning "blond hair and blue eyes", which in some circles is thought of as whiteness gone too far, and thus becoming in some way undesirable symbols.
Finally, I often say that I "don't see race", but then I converse on the subject, giving my viewpoints. It almost seems hypocritical. What I mean is that I don't have any overt racial prejudices. But of course I do see race, and the things race can do in American society.
The title of this thread should be a little different (to reflect disparity of ad models versus U.S. population demographics). That being said, I'm right there with you. I've brought this up a few times among my friends and nobody seems to have the same thoughts. It's probably because I'm in marketing myself.
From what I've noticed in my line of work, we never get the "make sure you add a white person" line. It's often just quick "add a hispanic person and some black people" so that we don't have to worry about people focusing on our ad not including someone.
My personal belief is that ads should reflect actual demographics but reality is that companies want EVERYONE's money and the last thing they want to do is alienate minorities so they focus on making sure to include as many minorities as possible. White people will still buy stuff if there are minorities in the ads and no whites (unless it's a traditionally ethnic product).
Here's a good example: Old Spice commercials with the black guy in them. They are very popular now. White people are still going to buy Old Spice and actually find the commercials charming. But would black people have ever considered a product called "Old Spice" before a black man was featured in the ads? My opinion is that very few would have.
When I choose stock photos for the websites I maintain, I just grab whatever matches the description the best. I never specifically think about who is in the picture unless I realize there are too many men or women or white people, then I go out of my way to find one to put up when it's needed.
Well said, I never thought about the old spice ad,why wouldn't black people buy old spice? I appreciate your inside info.....that is what I question, even though whites are the obvious majority what drives companies to go so far the other way in their marketing.
I notice crap like that because I find it an interesting and complex question. I was sitting at a traffic light the other day and I noticed a window poster in a SupeRx drugstore. A dozen faces and none was a middle-aged white guy. Hey, where am I?, I silently asked myself with a chuckle.
So is the lack of a white guy just a coincidence? Could be. I could drop the puzzle right there and be satisfied with the answer. But the real answer is actually probably deeper. Maybe white folks aren't as racially particular as other racial demographics when it comes to the faces that appear in advertising. Could it be that it has to do with an overall corporate appearance rather than target advertising at one or two stores? Maybe SupeRx wants to be viewed as a corporation that is all-inclusive. An image thing.
So if that's the case, would that be an example of political correctness? Yeah, sort of... I guess.
I think you hit on all of them, it is the out of control PC, "diversity", Why does NASCAR actually have a program called "drive for diversity" openly stating their mission is to get more women and people of color involved.
Hmmmm....the OP is trying to start an intelligent discussion about race yet makes a few racially insensitive mistakes in said initial thread starter. Let's point them out....
(1) If the OP wants so desparately for us all to "shut up" about race...why start a topic about race?
(2) If someone wants us all to "shut up" about race and race is so unimportant to the OP why go around noticing something as trivial as how many White people are in a company's marketing materials?
(3) A clear indication of the mindset.....calling Asians "orientals"
(4) Again, focusing on the most coveted of Caucasian physical attributes ...blond hair, blue eyes
(5) Evoking the name of Jesse Jackson to pound home the point
(6) Bemoaning the lack of Caucasians in one ad for a cell phone company ultimately implying that Caucasians should dominate in all company marketing campaigns or else they are in league with the likes of Jesse Jackson
Believe it or not, there is a pretty good chance
that these are they who are either, 1., buying the
product, or, 2., most subject to that form of
advertising.
It could be a test, but believe that entire field
runs on response data and observation. It is
possible they could be either taking the whites for
granted or planning to obsolete the product.
At a certain point, whites tire of the association
and bail...look at MySpace; it's mostly minorities, now.
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...blond hair, blue eyes
