Does Advertising on Black Entertainment Television Portray More Positive Gender Representations Compared to Broadcast Networks?

Abstract

This article reports on a content analysis of television commercials (n=434) aired during prime-time on US general networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX) and an African American niche station (Black Entertainment Television-BET) in 2002. Targeted group/nontargeted group representations are explored in relation to depictions of domestic/romantic fulfillment and agency. The findings reveal that although the majority of characters on all stations studied were male and White, the niche station did provide a venue for some positive gender representations. Specifically, characters on BET were more likely to be portrayed as respected and as sex-objects. Findings demonstrate that although the niche station BET represents a venue for minority voices, it is also a source of problematic representations of gender.

Co-Constructions of Gender and Ethnicity in New Zealand Television Advertising

“…As Hill Collins (2000) suggests, Whiteness is normalised and privileged through mainstream culture"s dissemination of "controlling images" of non-White femininities and masculinities, reflected in historically prevalent media stereotypes. Further, as Messineo (2008) observes, while significant advances have been made in recent decades, "the media does far more to foster prejudice against women and minorities than to overcome it…. This is especially true of imagery that involves the confluence of gender and race" (p. 753; emphasis added).…”

“…It follows a small body of work published in this journal (Coltrane & Messineo, 2000, US;Messineo, 2008, US) that has examined whether there are significant ethnic differences in the representation of women and men in advertising, by analysing the product categories and occupations with which different ethnic groups of women and men are most frequently associated.…”

“…Advertising constructs and disseminates idealised representations of women and minority ethnic group members that frequently reflect and reproduce troubling gender and racial stereotypes in terms of the kinds of activities and roles that are seen as appropriate for different groups (Messineo, 2008;Gunter, 1995). Kellner suggests that media products "provide materials out of which we forge our very identities; our sense of selfhood; our notion of what it means to be male or female; our sense of class, of ethnicity and race, or nationality, of sexuality; and of "us" and "them"" (Kellner, 1995, p. 9).…”

“…In seeking answers to these questions, this study contributes to a growing body of international scholarship on gender and ethnic co-constructions in advertising, and specifically builds on intersectional analyses of television advertising published in this journal (Coltrane & Messineo, 2000;Messineo, 2008). This study also adds to the very small body of existing research on the depiction of indigenous groups in television advertising (Fleras, 1994, Canada;Fleras & Kunz, 2001, Canada;Higgs & Milner, 2005, Australia;Luke, 1996, Australia).…”

Content Analysis—A Methodological Primer for Gender Research

“…Studies have compared male and female behaviors and attributes for domestic and international content in media ranging from film and television (e.g., Fernandez-Villanueva et al 2009;Smith 1999) to children's books (Anderson and Hamilton 2005), men's magazines (Ricciardelli et al 2010), video games (e.g., Martins et al 2009), radio talk shows (Brinson and Winn 1997), and even postage stamps (Ogletree et al 1994) and birth congratulatory cards (Bridges 1993). Research on gender images in advertising seems to be particularly popular in recent years (An and Kim 2007;Baker 2005;Fullerton and Kendrick 2000;Ibroscheva 2007;Lindner 2004;Messineo 2008;Odekerken-Schroder et al 2002;Uray and Burnaz 2003;Valls-Fernandez and Martinez-Vicente 2007).…”