Assessment

David Gauntlett has argued against the idea that masculinity is 'in crisis’. To what extent do you believe masculinity is 'in crisis'?

In your response you should refer to your Advertising and Marketing Close Study Products: the Score hair cream advert (1967) and the Maybelline ‘That Boss Life’ YouTube advert (2017).

[20 marks]


On one hand, the idea of masculinity in crisis could hold some weight in relation to the changing views of British society. 

The score advert, a relic of it's time, uses anchorage text to stroke the viewer's manliness. At the time it was printed, the UK was going through huge social and political change thanks to the decriminalization of homosexuality, threatening traditional masculinity as it was known. This meant advertising had to stroke the fragile egos of men in order to maintain the status quo. The tag line "get what you've always wanted" implies men want sexy women in a general, sweeping statement addressed to all men. In the 60s, there was a solid definition of what a man should be, protected by adverts such as Score Cream. The introduction to new liberal ideologies threatened their masculinity, perhaps suggesting a crisis. 

However, it can be argued, according to Gauntlett, that masculinity has simply evolved as a concept. This is exemplified in the Maybelline 'That Boss Life' advert. The lead actor to the advert is in sharp contrast to the traditional man presented in the Score Cream advert. The use of Manny Gutierrez shows how fluid the idea of masculinity has become in the modern age, going so far as to encouraging men to play with makeup and embrace their sexuality in mainstream media. This shift in ideology could be seen as a very good thing. Men are no longer forced into moulds and characters they must play. Butler discussed this concept in her book "Gender Trouble", describing gender as performance. This could further suggest the more advanced we become, the more evolved our view of gender becomes, the less we feel the need to create labels for ourselves. This goes against the idea that masculinity is in crisis as we are simply becoming more accepting of people not like ourselves. 

Therefore, masculinity was perhaps in crisis at one point in time, but not any more.

Men's Health - Audience blog tasks

Read the Men's Health Media Pack in full to get a good idea of the demographics and psychographics for the Men's Health target audience then answer the following questions:

1) How does the magazine introduce itself?
"Men’s Health is the biggest-selling men’s lifestyle
magazine, both in the UK and worldwide.

It’s success is built on a winning editorial formula which
combines visually-engaging health, wellbeing and
nutrition features with premium content covering
fashion, grooming, watches, tech and travel."

2) What does the introduction suggest about the representation of masculinity in Men's Health's?

They provide traditionally masculine topics for the everyday gentleman.  

3) How do the print statistics for Men's Health compare to GQ and Esquire?

It has a higher Circulation and the readership is higher class.

4) What is the difference between circulation and readership?

Circulation- How many copies are being sold
readership- who reads the magazine 

5) What was the circulation of Men's Health in thousands at the time this Media Pack was published? What about the readership for ABC1 men? AB men? [Note: this Media Pack was published in 2016 and some of the figures have fallen since then. Up to date circulation figures can be found at the top of this blog post].

"Men’s Health (UK edition) has a circulation of around 120,000 (down 16% year-on-year and including 40k free copies) and a readership of closer to 1 million."


6) How do readers generally interact with the digital version of the magazine?

562,000 monthly users (comscore)
1,200,000 monthly users (GA)
1,924,000 monthly page views


7) How many people do Men's Health reach across social media platforms?

FACEBOOK
944K

TWITTER
285K

INSTAGRAM

66K

8) What is the audience profile for Men's Health readers? 

 905K ARE ABC1, AGED 25-44
 700K HAVE A DEGREE


 200K EARN OVER £50K

9) What is the Men's Health fashion philosophy? How much do Men's Health readers collectively spend on fashion?

Men’s Health readers spend £1.1bn on

fashion a year (more than 3 times that of GQ)*

OUR FASHION PHILOSOPHY
STYLISH
INDIVIDUAL
CONTEMPORARY

WEARABLE

10) What is the average watch collection value for the Men's Health audience? What do the statistics about watches suggest about the Men's Health audience demographics and psychographics?  

Suggests they're aspirers in the ABC1 bracket. 

£4,123 

11) What percentage of Men's Health readers use moisturiser daily? What does this suggest about Men's Health readers' view of masculinity?

73% 

Readers are not toxic in their masculinity. 

12) What does the media pack suggest regarding the Men's Health audience for fitness and technology?

Men’s Health readers are fitness evangelists and

early adopters of tech.

13) Men's Health luxe is a series of magazines distributed with Men's Health targeting a specific aspect of the Men's Health audience. What are these three brand extension magazines called and what do they cover?

URBAN ACTIVE
Sports-luxe fashion magazine produced in
partnership with Harrods showcasing the
continuing trend for high-end performance
fashion apparel

SYNCHRONISED
Now in it’s 8th year, our annual watch special
is produced with the industries leading
horologists and is a must have buyers-guide
for amateurs and aficionados

EPICURE
Showcasing the best in food, drink,
restaurants and kitchen skills for the man
interested in cooking from scratch,
provenance and fine dining



14) What do the Men's Health luxe magazines suggest about the demographics and psychographics of the Men's Health audience?

They enjoy all the finer things in life, meaning they're achievers and succeeders.

15) What additional brand extensions do Men's Health offer?

They have a fitness and health product range. 

16) What are the global statistics for Men's Health?

Global Statistics:
International Editions 37
Countries Published 60
Global Circulation 4.5M
Global Readership 26.7M
Websites 25
Uniques 23.7M

Social Media Footprint 19.3M

17) What does the 2017 calendar editorial specials suggest about the Men's Health audience?

They care about their appearance more than a traditional man would.

March Feb 32pp bound in Guide to Style               August Jul Adventure Special
April Mar 32pp bound in Urban Active                   Sept Aug 32pp bound in Guide to Style
May Apr Tech Special                                           Oct Sep + Urban Active Mag
June May + Gym-free Transformation Guide          Nov Oct + Epicure Mag
July Jun 30-Day Beach Ready Countdown              Dec Nov + Synchronised Mag


18) What audience pleasures are offered by the magazine?

information/ surveillance about health 
distraction
personal identity with the lifestyle on show
personal relationship with the mag itself 

19) What lifestyle and job would you expect the average Men's Health reader to have?

high paying job, perhaps a bachelor with disposable income.  

20) Why do you think Men's Health has managed to (just) remain profitable when many other magazines have struggled due to the rise of digital media?

Because they diversified into digital media instead of remaining just print. 

Advertising Index

1) Advertising: Introduction - narrative in advertising
2) Advertising: persuasive techniques
3) Advertising: the representation of women in advertising
4) Advertising: Gauntlett - Media, Gender and Identity reading and questions
5) Advertising: Score case study and wider reading
6) Advertising: Maybelline case study and wider reading
7) Advertising: Assessment

Blog task: Maybelline 'That Boss Life' case study and wider reading

Work through the following tasks to make sure you're an expert on the Maybelline CSP and particularly the wider social and cultural context.

'That Boss Life' close textual analysis

Use your notes from watching the video to write about the connotations and representations created by the following technical and audio codes. Write at least a paragraph on each:

1) Narrative & genre: narrative theory and sub-genre

They're on a trip to New York and the room is EVERYYYTHHHEEEEEEENNNNNNNGGGGGGG, so they get bossed up. Then they go out and come back to someone who's broken into their room. They strike poses for the camera. 

The heroes are Manny and the woman, who can pose so fiercely thanks to the helper (mascara). The villian is the guy trying to steal the bossing up equipment at the end. 
 
2) Cinematography: camera shots and movement

There's a lot of slow motion shots while the camera is moving, possibly relating to action movies and music videos, to give it an urban kick, transporting it into coolville. 

3) Mise-en-scene: costume & props


similar to music videos, the mascara takes the conventional place of money.
They all look basic before the mascara, then they look EXTRA TODAAY after it.
Everything takes on the colour grading of the tube and the costumes chance to a similar gold.

4) Mise-en-scene: actors, setting, lighting and colour

actors: they got well known people to star in the advert to suggest product endorsement from the influencers
setting: despite it being very empty at first, it's a New York hotel room. This suggests high status.
lighting: high-key lighting to begin with, before going dark and classy.
colour: White to gold, getting EXTRA TODAAY

5) Editing: pace, transitions and visual effects

The editing is very slow paced with only 15 cuts. The emphasis is really more on the post production slow motion to fast motion. The camera moves a lot, making the small space seem busier and giving the overall product more movement to catch the eye. 

6) Graphics: text/graphics on screen

There is the logo of Maybelline and the campaign logo straight away on screen. This clarifies the advert's intentions right off the bat and makes the wacky style make sense. The Maybelline logo is constantly on screen so viewers know to associate this garbage with the company.

7) Sound: dialogue, music and sound effects

The sound design is very poor, so you can barely understand what Manny is saying for all of it. They were really going for a music video vibe with the bass dropping. There are clinking sound effects throughout, relating to gold and metal, trying to make the cheap tubes appear better than they are. 

Maybelline 'That Boss Life': wider reading

Read the following articles on this campaign:

Glamour: Manny Gutierrez Is the First Man to Star in a Maybelline Campaign, and It’s a Huge Deal
Your Story: Cosmetics giant breaks gender stereotypes by choosing male model as a face of the brand

Complete the following questions/tasks:

1) Why was this campaign such a landmark for beauty product advertising?

It featured a man doing a traditionally female endeavour without ridicule.

2) What do the articles suggest regarding the changing representation of sexuality and masculinity?

It's evolving with the changing times as Gauntlett suggested. 

3) Read this WWD article: Maybelline Taps Digital Makeup Influencers for New Mascara Campaign. Why might 'digital influencers' be so attractive to companies?

They have a more human reputation, meaning they're more likely to be relatable to fans in an enticing way.

4) Why do you think Maybelline chose to use MannyMUA and MakeUpShayla in particular?

One is a gay man and the other is a woman of colour, which shows their campaign is for everyone and not just pretty white women.

5) What does the WWD article suggest is the crucial factor for brands regardless of whether they use influencers or more traditional celebrities?


Media Magazine: The Changing Face of Masculinity

Now go to our Media Magazine archive and read the feature 'The Changing Face of Masculinity' in MM63 (page 15). This will allow us to compare our two advertising CSPs - the Score hair cream advert and the Maybelline digital campaign. Answer the following questions:

1) What message does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert is trying to communicate to the 1967 audience?

"The advert is using female sexuality to show men they can have power: you can conquer, you will be desired."

2) How does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert uses narrative to sell the product?

"The narrative is clear: the consumer can have everything they want in the world if they buy the hair product."

3) What 1967 stereotypes does the article suggest the Score hair cream advert reinforces?

"The brand’s personality and voice is all about masculine supremacy and self-belief, and is heavily reinforcing stereotypes of a patriarchal society."

4) Applying Stuart Hall's reception theory, what does the article suggest the preferred and oppositional readings could be for the Score hair cream advert?

"A dominant reading of the ‘Score’ text would be that as a heterosexual male, one can achieve everything presented before them in the picture: power, control and sex appeal, with better hair. An oppositional reading or a critical interpretation would be that the macho-laden ideas presented in this image are damaging to male self-esteem and present women as passive and merely decorative (although they’re good for carrying your ammo)."

5) Moving on to the Maybelline advert, why is the background of Manny Gutierrez and Shayla Mitchell significant?

"sensation. The video ad touches on issues of gender representation, ethnicity and lifestyle."

6) What is the narrative of the Maybelline advert?

"The advertisement tells the story of two YouTubers, Manny Gutierrez and Shayla Mitchell checking into a New York hotel room with stunning views of the city. They open up a gold, glittery suitcase and out tumbles the
product that everyone wants, the ‘Big Shot’ mascara. By simply applying the mascara, the wearer – female or male – is instantly transported to a more sophisticated cosmopolitan life surrounded by the finer things: a Manhattan hotel room, glamorous clothes and the promise of admission to the hottest clubs in the world’s greatest city."

7) What does the article suggest the Maybelline advert's message is?

"The ad, like its 1960s counterpart, uses an aspirational image showing two friends who do not conform to masculine and feminine ideals but are nonetheless powerful: happy in their own skin, confident

in their bodies and their sexuality."

8) The final section of the article focuses on masculinity. What do the Score advert and the Maybelline advert suggest regarding the changes in society and media between 1967 and 2017?

The striking difference between the two advertisements is that ‘Score’ is celebrating everything believed to be great about a patriarchal society, while Maybelline is applauding the breakdown of hyper-masculine culture.

Gender, identity and advertising: blog task

Read this extract from Media, Gender and Identity by David Gauntlett. This is another university-level piece of academic writing so it will be challenging - but there are some fascinating ideas here regarding the changing representation of men and women in the media.

1) What examples does Gauntlett provide of the "decline of tradition"?

"The traditional view of a woman as a housewife or low-status worker has been kick-boxed out of the picture by the feisty, successful 'girl power' icons. Meanwhile the masculine ideals of absolute toughness, stubborn self-reliance and emotional silence have been shaken by a new emphasis on men's emotions, need for advice, and the problems of masculinity."

He states gender categories have not been shattered, these alternative ideas and images have at least created space for a greater diversity of identities.

2) How does Gauntlett suggest the media influences the way we construct our own identities?


"Although gender categories have not been shattered, these alternative ideas and images have at least created space for a greater diversity of identities."

3) What does Gauntlett suggest regarding generational differences? Is it a good thing that the media seems to promote modern liberal values?

"Modern media has little time or respect for tradition. The whole idea of traditions comes to seem
quite strange. Why would we want to do the same as previous generations? What's so great about
the past? Popular media fosters the desire to create new modes of life - within the context of

capitalism."

4) Why does Gauntlett suggest that masculinity is NOT in crisis?

Masculinity is simply evolving.

5) Does advertising still reinforce the "conventionally rugged, super-independent, extra-strong macho man" that Gauntlett discusses? Offer examples for both sides of the argument from the wider advertising industry.

On one hand, men are permitted to have more feminine attributes (much like Eddie Redmayne's gentle public persona), however, it is still met with large scale ridicule and adversity if men are not presented as masculine. For instance, Newt Scamander of Fantastic Beasts offers a caring, smart take on a traditional hero. Because he subverts what audiences are used to in a negative way, they are going to change the main character for someone more conventional in future films. The same can be said for Pirates of the Caribbean as Jack Sparrow must play alongside a traditionally masculine hero in order to be accepted by audiences. 

6) Gauntlett discusses the idea of 'girl power' and offers examples from music and film. Does advertising provide evidence to support the idea of 'girl power' or is the industry still reinforcing traditional representations of men and women?

"Magazines for young women are emphatic in their determination that women must do their own thing, be themselves, and/or be asoutrageously sassy and sexy as possible (see chapter nine)."

"women can be extremely tough and independent whilst also maintaining perfect make-up
and wearing impossible shoes"

7) Do you agree with Gauntlett's argument under 'Popular feminism, women and men' where he suggests that younger generations are not threatened by traditional gender roles and are comfortable with social changes? Does advertising provide examples either reinforcing or challenging this idea that younger generations are more comfortable with changing gender roles? 

I agree very much with this as adverts aimed towards younger people tend to be more diverse with gender, sexuality and race.

8) What examples from advertising does Gauntlett provide for the changing nature of gender in society (from the section on Judith Butler's Gender trouble)?

CK One fragrance 'for a man or a woman' - it wouldn't matter which of the attractive male or female models you chose to desire.

for Impulse deoderant and Kronenbourg lager - playfully teased heterosexual desires
only to reveal that the lust object was more interested in their own sex

9) Why is advertising such a good example of the 'contradictory elements' that Gauntlett discusses with regards to the mass media? In other words, how does advertising continue to both reinforce and challenge gender stereotypes?

Advertising is a reflection of our current values. Whilst values change, certain companies will comply with contemporary values while others remain with the more accepted ideologies. 

10) Finally, Gauntlett makes a clear case that things change and modern identities are increasingly fluid. What is your opinion on this debate - do you agree that the media reinforces the changing attitudes towards gender and sexuality in society?

I agree as the media aims to pander to audiences, therefore they must stay relevant and reflect the changes in thinking.

Blog task: Score advert and wider reading

Complete the following tasks and wider reading on the Score hair cream advert and masculinity in advertising.

Media Factsheet - Score hair cream

Go to our Media Factsheet archive on the Media Shared drive and open Factsheet #188: Close Study Product - Advertising - Score. Our Media Factsheet archive is on the Media Shared drive: M:\Resources\A Level\Media Factsheets - you'll need to save the factsheet to USB or email it to yourself in order to complete this at home. Read the factsheet and answer the following questions:

1) How did advertising techniques change in the 1960s and how does the Score advert reflect this change?

"ads attempted to win over consumers with humour, candour and, above all, irony."

"Print ads took on a realistic look, relying more on photography than illustration"

2) What representations of women were found in post-war British advertising campaigns?

In the UK, advertising in the post-war period was characterised by campaigns that very effectively reinforced that idea that a woman’s place was in the home.

Through advertising, women were encouraged to return to domestic life and resume their subservience to men.

3) Conduct your own semiotic analysis of the Score hair cream advert: What are the connotations of the mise-en-scene in the image?

-The jungle dressing of the set as well as the white explorer man suggests Britain's colonial past 
-The scantily clad women give sex appeal to the advert and boldly suggest users of the product will also have sexy women holding them
-The women are physically below the man as a metaphor for their place in society 

4) What does the factsheet suggest in terms of a narrative analysis of the Score hair cream advert?

"identifies the man as Propp’s ‘hero’"

Meaning they suggest you can also be the hero through buying the product.

5) How might an audience have responded to the advert in 1967? What about in 2019?

The gender representation in this advert would have been hegemonic in society during 1967, therefore having little negative backlash would have been expected.

However, in 2019, gender representation has widely changed since the 60s. The reception of this ad would be increasingly negative for holding traditional views over masculinity.

6) How does the Score hair cream advert use persuasive techniques (e.g. anchorage text, slogan, product information) to sell the product to an audience?

It uses advert conventions such as slogans and anchorage text to promise the audience a better life through purchase of the product.

7) How might you apply feminist theory to the Score hair cream advert - such as van Zoonen, bell hooks or Judith Butler?

Using Judith Butler's 'Gender as performance', it can be analysed that the women are all traditionally feminine and attractive, showing skin for the male viewers. Their gender representation has been constructed to perform what most men viewing the advert would want most: enamored woman slaves. 
8) How could Stuart Hall's theory of representation and David Gauntlett's theory regarding gender identity be applied to the Score hair cream advert?

The media constructed a hypermasculine representation of men as the legalization of homosexuality shook hetero-normative values. This evolved the idea of masculinity a great bit.

9) What representation of sexuality can be found in the advert and why might this link to the 1967 decriminalisation of homosexuality (historical and cultural context)?

The media constructed a hypermasculine representation of men as the legalization of homosexuality shook hetero-normative values. It's very heteronormative.

10) How does the advert reflect Britain's colonial past - another important historical and cultural context?

It's a nod to Britain's true power! The advert is clearly trying to force a power dynamic into play, where the white British male is on top by using the product, much like in the good old days of the empire. 


Wider reading

The Drum: This Boy Can article

Read this article from The Drum magazine on gender and the new masculinity. If the Drum website is blocked, you can find the text of the article here. Think about how the issues raised in this article link to our Score hair cream advert CSP and then answer the following questions:

1) Why does the writer suggest that we may face a "growing 'boy crisis'"?

As we focus on empowering women, men are falling behind and their representation has not been as viciously updated over the years. 

2) How has the Axe/Lynx brand changed its marketing to present a different representation of masculinity?

As Lynx/Axe found when it undertook a large-scale research project into modern male identity, men are craving a more diverse definition of what it means to be a ‘successful’ man in 2016, and to relieve the unrelenting pressure on them to conform to suffocating, old paradigms. This insight led to the step-change ‘Find Your Magic’ campaign from the former bad-boy brand.

3) How does campaigner David Brockway, quoted in the article, suggest advertisers "totally reinvent gender constructs"?

Campaigner David Brockway, who manages the Great Initiative’s Great Men project, urges the industry to be “more revolutionary”, particularly when it comes to male body image, which he says is at risk of following the negative path trodden by its female counterpart.

4) How have changes in family and society altered how brands are targeting their products?

As Miller says, the definition of “family” in places like Britain is profoundly changing – but advertising is not helping to normalise different scenarios by largely failing to portray this new normal.

5) Why does Fernando Desouches, Axe/Lynx global brand development director, say you've got to "set the platform" before you explode the myth of masculinity?

This is just the beginning. The slap in the face to say ‘this is masculinity’. All these guys [in the ad] are attractive. Now we have our platform and our point of view, we can break the man-bullshit and show it doesn’t matter who you want to be, just express yourself and we will support that.