Sexism in Media

I present to you a series of questions.

Commercials portraying men as whipped by their wife/ girlfriend: sexist or entertaining?

Commercials portraying men and women equally: entertaining or not?

Commercials portraying men as getting what THEY want: sexist or sexist?

It has come to my attention lately that TV, commercials, and media in general has done a 180 in the past 30 or so years. Believe me, I am all for equal rights and equal treatment of ALL human beings, but when it gets to the point where I actually NOTICE the inverted sexism portrayed in the media, I am somewhat disturbed. For example, today I was watching prime time TV. A commercial for Lowes came on. Now, Lowes has always tried to target a middle aged male demographic with their commercials; after all that is their main audience. However, this particular commercial instead portrayed a man doing repairs to his home with the help of Lowes. Every time he finished a job, he would look on proudly and say something along the lines of “Ah, done.” Then he would smilingly look over at his wife/girlfriend and see her, arms folded, looking up at him as if to say, “Well what about this room?” He then looked away and said something to the point of, “Well, maybe one more room.”

This may seem harmless, however, had the situation been inverted, would the perception have been the same? What if the woman was the one doing the work? What if the man wanted her to do another room?

Some may say they don’t care, but I’m sure it would irk a few people. Why? Because the media portrays the man of the relationship as the worker. This formula has worked for years, why change it?

My answer: Because the world has changed. Today, women and men are equal in most aspects and making strides in the places where they are not. The formula has changed in the world, and I think its time it changed in the eyes of the media, whether they like to admit or not.

Just my two cents. Agree, disagree, have something to add? Leave it in the comments.