One of the films that struck me the most was Killing Us Softly. “Killing Us Softly”, is a documentary that explains the effects of advertising. As mentioned in the video, on a daily basis we are exposed to nearly 1500 ads a day, and it is evident not all the ads are watched, however they do manage to make it to the back of our heads. So even if we do not pay close attention to what the ad is saying, if the product that was being advertised comes in front of us we still manage to remember that we had seen the product advertisement earlier. The documentary takes a further look at the main reason why ads are made, and the conclusion made is that when products don’t sell, ads are made in the sense, telling their customers they need the product or else they are incomplete. I believe this is a general fact, everyone know that the main needs of any person are, some type of clothes to cover their body, food to eat, water to drink and some sort of shelter. However, when these ads are presented they create an urge in the sense the person believes that have to have the product being advertised. The example given in the documentary was of ageing creams. They are advertised in a way that older aged women feel they have to have the cream or else there is something wrong with them. Another example, is straightening irons, the traditional way of straightening hair is using a hair dryer, or any ordinary straightening iron sold at the store. However, there certain brands advertised in which people believe they are better which is not true. Even though all brands are the same, just because of the ad people believe one is better than the other and that is the only one they want. So when markets say ads sell more than product, concepts, thoughts and values, this is what they refer to. Overall, ads are made in the sense to tell their customers that the product being advertised is a need to them or else they are missing out on something and they are not normal.
Not surprisingly, Jean Kilbourne finds in ad after ad that the basic message hasn't changed: the most important thing for any woman is her appearance. Advertisers still relentlessly intimidate, shame, and even flatter women into spending billions of dollars trying to change the way they look.
Killing Us Softly also shows how much advertising for women has become blatantly sexualized, simultaneous magnifying and trivializing the role of sex in women's lives.. The message of the ''sexual revolution", Kilbourne ironically observes, seems to have been that women have the right to be sex objects. Deliberately shocking ads reveal disturbing trends including the portrayal of children in sexually suggestive situations, the equation of sexuality with violence, and even the suggestions that women secretly want to be battered. Kilbourne acknowledges that men now are also routinely treated as sex objects in advertising but notes that men are unlikely to be judged professionally by their appearance, let alone harassed and beaten.
Frequently humorous, never sanctimonious, Killing Us Softly will convince anyone that the portrayal of gender in the media is serious business. As Jean Kilbourne says: "Ads keep up trapped in rigid roles and crippling definitions. We must change not just ads but the attitudes in our culture, which underlie them. What's at stake is our ability to have authentic, freely chosen lives".
If I relate this video to Socialization I would say that it reminded me to of how mass media is an "important agent of socialization from childhood right through adulthood". But most importantly it reminded me of gender socialization. In this video "Killing Us Softly" Jean Kilbourne's main focus seems to be how the mass media is having an intense influence on our children which they bring with them throughout adulthood.
Here is the picture that represents the ways that boys and girls are socialized:
