What we can learn from Newspaper

I chose the newspaper from my hometown, Decorah Iowa. The header of the paper still looks similar today. This issue is from November 24th, 1915, the day before my paternal grandfather was born. The issue is 12 pages long and is roughly 25% advertising.

I found this ad interesting. Keeping in mind that this is before women could vote, it talks about the skirt being an approved style. The company that made the skirts is Korrect. I was surprised to see it talked about sizing for larger women. These must have been the best around. Comparing prices (capitalism!) this skirt was significantly more than admission to the theatre to see a motion picture.

The first article on the first page was about a series of sermons being given on what businessmen of Decorah think of the church. Back then the church had significantly more role in day to day life than it does now. The article talks about the church being an educator of youth to decrease delinquincy, as well as maintain health, prevent, and heal disease.

There was a political article stating a large number of Germans (roughly 50% of the population of the town then and now) were going to change from the Democratic party to the Republican party due to the handling of foreign affairs.

Part of a page was dedicated to the theatre and pictures that were coming. One that caught my attention ties back to the cowboy unit. "Tile Exposition's First Romance"  was billed as a "Western with a lot of action...with a love story thrown in" It was also called a comedy. For 1915 this was quite a mix of genres in a single picture.

There were several pages dedicated to the townships and what everyone was doing, where they traveled, and who they had dinner with. I noticed there were few instances of news of single women, and married couples were referenced by the husband's name. Our unit on gender and sex ties well into this. In this time there were very deeply ingrained roles and societal expectations of men and women. Their sex was their gender and everything was heteronormative.





I did find it interesting that the newspaper was not totally written to and for men. There were grocery, clothing, and shoe ads; as well as the goings-on (Gossip!) that were geared toward women. Though this does paint a picture of a "woman's place" in 1915, she was completely removed from politics and business.

Module 14 Example: Single-Waste Coffee

PROMPT
Explore a mass-produced product that has been created nearly entirely for simple consumption.  Examine one or more advertisements/commercials for this product and explore how the company presents it as a convenience, an essential to daily life, or something you just have to acquire. 

If you need help with some examples, you might find them here:

• 25 Wasteful Things You Can Live Without
• 10 Things That are Super Convenient but Also SUPER Wasteful
• 13 Products That Are Unnecessary and Wasteful

In your blog post, explain the following:

• What is the mass-produced item?  Explain what it is and how it is wasteful.
• Link to or embed at least two examples of this product being sold. 
• Explain the ways in which the product appeal to audiences.
• Identify problems with the production and selling of the good according to the material from this week.
  

Relevant Labels/Tags:  consumerism, mass production, waste, [product you are discussion],

EXAMPLE

The rise of Keurig cups and machines in the last decade has been a disappointing surprise.  I was fascinated by the proliferation of coffee shops (namely, Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks) since the 1980s, but while they don't seem to be stopping any time soon, we also see a growing abundance of Keurig machines.  For those who aren't familiar, there are small cups filled with concentrated coffee and coffee grinds that are popped into a machine that will generate a cup of coffee.  Basically, each small plastic cup generates one cup of coffee.  If you are like me and drink way more coffee than you should (some days, I may hit 6-8 cups), that would mean 6-8 plastic cups that are off to the garbage dump (note:  I don't use Keurig cups, I cold-brew my coffee in 1-gallon batches with minimal environmental impact).  Thus, the waste factor for Keurigs is pretty significant.  Never mind that these packets come in packaging when sold in stores, they are single use-products that can easily accumulate double digit waste per person with a day or two. 

What's interesting about the Keurig is that it pulls in people on two fronts.  The first is the Keurig machine, which is a machine, like most modern machines, cheap and susceptible to breaking down (and therefore needing a new one).  There's also the Keurig cups themselves that one needs to regularly purchase.  Thus, the user is not just buying a singular machine, but ultimately subscribing to their wasteful product. 

In terms of their advertising, I submit the following images and conversations. 

Source

This particular ad not only encourages users to feel negative sentiment but seems to promise that they will save time by having a Keurig.  They will still have to wait in line to buy the cups every so often, which is something the ad seems to ignore.  More importantly though, it encourages the viewer to feel like 60 seconds is the only amount of time they need in order to acquire their coffee--but that's just the amount of time needed for the Keurig to make the coffee.  It doesn't take into account the buying of Keurig, the transporting and storing of the Keurig cup.  Nor does it consider the time in which you must retrieve each Keurig cup each day as well as get a coffee mug and eventually throw out the Keurig cup and wash the cup.  It's hinting at simplicity when in fact, it isn't. 

Source.

Why is coffee courage?  What is courageous about coffee?  As a stimulant, it certainly doesn't give you courage but somehow, writing it in a manner that makes one think of coffee and somehow implying that Keurig is the coffee cup of courage makes sense for this full-page ad.  If Keurig coffee is "courage", then what does it say that it is single-use and quickly disposable?

Feminist Frequency:Toy Ads and Learning Gender

In the video Toy Ads and Learning Gender by Youtuber Feminist Frequency an important distinction is pointed out between the advertisements of toys marketed towards boys and those towards girls. Boys toys were often sold with action and adventure, while girls toys were full of domestic work and child rearing. While boys were being challenged, getting dirty and getting into adventures girls were left cooking, shopping and looking after the children. Even similar toys were marketed differently depending on whether they were for a boy or girl. For example two different sets of Moon Sand were advertised, one set for a boy and another for a girl, the only difference between the two commercials was that while the boy's set was more focused on building while the girl's set was all about decorating. Even the plastic toy jeeps were different for boys and girls, with the girls jeep being endorsed by barbie and the boys being tough and ready to kick up some dirt. Clearly advertisers have two different expectations for boys and girls and what they would like to play with. Even computer games and electronics had divisions, boys could become pirates and go have adventures upon the high seas, while girls could become fashion models and do their hair.
These divisions in toys marketed towards boys and girls are harmful and limiting. Boys are encouraged to build, explore and challenge themselves, while girls are left behind to care for the children, cook supper and look pretty. Girl toys are limited and hindering, they may be pink but they lack creativity and imagination.

A few countries, such a Sweden and Quebec, have taken legal measures to ban advertising aimed at younger children due to the influences that they can instill. Maybe we should look into making some legislation to protect our innocent children from the gender stereotyping of our advertisements. This video was really an eye opener to me about the real distinctions between toys meant for boys and those meant for girls. I remember being bothered by this issue as a child and the impact it had on me and my perception of gender. We should really monitor the advertisements that can have an effect upon the young and influential minds of our children.