Have you seen these ads around Ottawa?
There's been a bit of a stir, but not enough in my opinion!
http://leonardpoole.blogspot.com/2009/02/are-these-virgin-radio-ads-sexist.html
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/opinion/letters/Virgin%20Radio%20give%20sla...
http://www.facebook.com/groups.php?ref=sb#/group.php?gid=46457729586
If you can't view the ads, click this link:
Pardon my ignorance but: 1. Who are Gods of Rock?
and 2. What is Virgin Radio and why such a name?
I'm guessing Virgin Radio is a branch of Virgin Records; like Virgin Airlines.
Virgin Records has a huge store on the Champs Elysées in Paris. I went there in 1989 to buy some Raï records (I couldn't find any in Saskatchewan at the time. I probably still couldn't).
I went there again a couple of years ago, and they had nothing but CDs....and I didn't look much farther than the "Jazz" section. I managed to pick up a few things that I couldn't find elsewhere.
Yup, it's the same "Virgin".
The identity of the "Gods of Rock" is left up to the viewer's imagination. But given that every ad in this campaign features a young, white, sad looking pregnant girl/woman .... I'd say the "God's of Rock" are meant to represent the hetero male population exclusively.
The catchphrase is "Lock up your daughters". Since all the models are pregnant and unhappy looking I imagine they got "locked up" after they got pregnant - to prevent them accessing abortions!
Sorry, AA, I had to delete the image because it was messing up the thread. But I think the images show in those links you posted, right?
Anyhow, yeah, those are really obnoxious ads.
Ring-ring!!
Virgin Radio: Hello?
"Hi, it's the 50s, we've come to take back our sexist imagery."
The catchphrase is "Lock up your daughters". Since all the models are pregnant and unhappy looking I imagine they got "locked up" after they got pregnant - to prevent them accessing abortions!
Yeah I'm not quite reading [i]that[/i] much into it. Lock your [i]Virgins[/i] up so that they don't [i]get[/i] pregnant by the irresistible and/or rapacious rock gods. Yeah, pretty f*&%ing ubnockshus.
Speaking of Virgin Airlines, Feministing posted this a few minutes ago:
Virgin: Objectifying women's bodies for 25 years!
http://www.feministing.com/archives/013659.html#_login
holy crap. the video even had uglies from a competing airline!
Yeah... I'm sad that one of my fave 80's tunes has been sullied. Seriously. "Coffee, Tea or Me?" ... how does Virgin Air survive? Oh right, cuz objectifying women is still a-ok in mainstream Western culture.
Grrr.
On a happy note. The facebook group is growing fast. We're putting out a press release, have been asked about interviews and we've got a street theatre photo-op planned for Friday. No matter what happens with the ads (culture jamming anyone?) I think that knowing 'it's ok to be offended' and 'it's ok to say so' is worth it.
80s tune?
Didn't a stewardess in the 1960s write an autobiography called Coffee, Tea or Me?
I haven't read the book, but that's probably the reference.
I have booked a flight to Doha, Qatar, on Qatar Airlines. I was on hold for a while in order to change seat assignment. The recorded commercial message at one point said "you will be served by young, well trained crew members.."
I guess age discrimination is everywhere. It was not mentioned weather the crew is good looking or not.
Not sure where this belongs, but
[url=http://www.leaderpost.com/news/Saskatchewan+government+looking+ways+addr... caught [color=red]red-handed[/color] scalping their own tickets![/url]
Strategic Action:
John Donaldson, the city's program manager of transit,
marketing and customer service was quoted on Saturday
saying, ""We receive complaints about advertising
material of all kinds of different subjects [...] -- if people
are offended, and let us know about it, then there's a
provision in the contract to ...remove it."
Let's make John Donaldson and the
Transit Committee live up to their promise!!
EMAIL: [email protected]
(put "Attn:John Donaldson" in your subject line)
EMAIL: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
(city councillors on the Transit Committee)
Tell them the "Lock up your daughters" ads are offensive and must be removed immediatly!
The Transit Committee meets on Wed. Feb 18th.
Please, get your comments in NOW!
http://virginradioissexist.blogspot.com/2009/02/strategic-action.html
Done. (Sorry I'm late. I was in Habana...)
Response from OC:
Virgin has agreed to pull the offensive advertisements.
Thank you for writing.
Catherine Henry
Assistant to Councillor Clive Doucet | Adjointe au conseiller Clive Doucet
City of Ottawa | Ville d'Ottawa
110 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, K1P 1J1
613.580.2424 x25287
[email protected]
