"Science: It's a Girl Thing" Says Controversial Ad

[The Wooster]

"Science: It's a Girl Thing" Says Controversial Ad

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An advert designed to get the fairer sex into science has drawn harsh criticism from men and women alike.

The ad to the right, published as part of the EU's Women In Research And Innovation initiative, features a trio of leggy models in short skirts and high heels striking empowering poses while a male scientist (you can tell by the glasses and white coat) gawps at them over the top of his microscope. It then cuts wildly between glamour shots of the models and close up, slow-motion shots of scientific equipment and make up. It finally ends with the tag line "Science: It's A Girl Thing!" Only the I is a tube of lipstick.

Because women really like lipstick, you see.

The video went up yesterday, and rather than inspire women around the world to rise up, cast off the yoke of oppression and dedicate their lives to science, it's inspired dozens to point out that they find the ad insipid and insulting. The original video has since been made private after it received a glut of negative feedback, but a second copy was uploaded by a savvy YouTube user.

Trying to counteract the cultural bias that tends to persuade young women away from the hard sciences is a noble endeavor, but the advertising equivalent of sticking a pair of shoes next to a Bunsen burner and going "See? It's for ladies, too!" doesn't seem to be doing the trick.

Source: YouTube [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g032MPrSjFA]



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[UFriday]

Who in their right mind ever thought this was a good idea?

 

[Mike Kayatta]

So, this may just me, but when I see this ad, I see a team of B-minus marketers trying to make science sexy, not women. Yes, the women enter with what's a "sexy stride," but when the lights come on, we're greeted with three conservatively-dressed women who begin performing experiments, not seduction. We don't see them cheekily butt-bump the guy out of his seat, and we don't see the man react with a "oh ma gosh, that there's women doing science things!" expression. If this video is guilty of anything, it's that sort of cheese-ball 90s marketing where any relevant topic must somehow directly come through in the copy, such as the lipstick as the "I". If this director had made a sports "themed" ad, trust me, that "I" would have been a baseball bat.

 

[Skeleon]

Man, that's dumb.
I thought they were trying to get away from the whole "be super sexy, your body is all that matters, tits and ass" with their campaign. And then they have the girls stride around like models, giggle stupidly or look alluring while drawing on a chalkboard.
The way to go then, this is not.

 

[Dryk]

A lot incredibly smart physics Honours and PhD students I know are women, and they're nothing like that <.<

 

[Eternal_Lament]

As far as ads go it just seems rather confusing. Even as a guy I have trouble seeing how this ad is supposed to inspire people. In some ways it reminds of certain tampon commercials here where the ad is more trying to show the characters having fun with each other with the product only marginally related not even as what causes the happiness, but rather as simply the backdrop as to why they are there (sometimes not even that). Besides the one wearing green I don't think anyone else is actually shown using any scientific apparatus. Certainly an ad that values style over substance.

 

[zidine100]

a man would be vituarly destroyed by now. Come on, what would you think would happen you made a advert saying that science its a mans thing! You'd have death threats.

 

[1337mokro]

Actually. Science has been a girl thing for quite a while.

The average male to female ratio in the past three years of university has never been 50-50. The most equal it ever got was 40-60, for every man currently studying or working in a field of medicine, chemistry, biology or even physics, there are two or more women. The only field of science where I can see a clear male predominance is in mathematics, but even there it's only a slight advantage.

In fact the male female ratio is so disproportionally geared towards females that I am the only male in a group of 12 who are currently doing an internship at a local company. We need a Science it's a guy thing add. With the I being a penis!



Of course I was being sarcastic. There is no point in making adds like these, why? Because if someone wants to study something they will do it, luring them into studying science will do nothing but give you more drop outs.

The scales will balance themselves with equal education and opportunity. You don't need stereotype enforcing adds to help with that.

 

[Piorn]

I know some girls who tried to study computer visualistics at the university because they thought it was "art, with a bit of computer stuff". These are of course rare cases, but this video seems to promote that way of thinking.

 

[BlackStar42]

Actually. Science has been a girl thing for quite a while.

The average male to female ratio in the past three years of university has never been 50-50. The most equal it ever got was 40-60, for every man currently studying or working in a field of medicine, chemistry, biology or even physics, there are two or more women. The only field of science where I can see a clear male predominance is in mathematics, but even there it's only a slight advantage.

Really? I'm studying Chemistry, and there are easily more blokes than girls. I'd say about 80% of the people on the course are male, total sausage-fest.

 

[Sizzle Montyjing]

Oh god... I'm linking this to my female friends, all of which are taking maths and at least 2 sciences each.
Then i'm just going to watch them explode...

This ad is just insulting and the people who made it should be ashamed.

CAPTCHA: 'political party'
Oh god... it's got an agenda now!!

 

[UnderGlass]

So, this may just me, but when I see this ad, I see a team of B-minus marketers trying to make science sexy, not women. Yes, the women enter with what's a "sexy stride," but when the lights come on, we're greeted with three conservatively-dressed women who begin performing experiments, not seduction. We don't see them cheekily butt-bump the guy out of his seat, and we don't see the man react with a "oh ma gosh, that there's women doing science things!" expression. If this video is guilty of anything, it's that sort of cheese-ball 90s marketing where any relevant topic must somehow directly come through in the copy, such as the lipstick as the "I". If this director had made a sports "themed" ad, trust me, that "I" would have been a baseball bat.

I had to laugh hard at this. It's the sort of clueless marketing great for a chuckle. I agree with Mike though. It's less sexist and more a blunderingly crude attempt at cross-marketing the concept of science with femininity or sexyness. They could have shown the sweet and interesting fields where women are establishing a better representation - perceived dominance by men being a big barrier of entry for women - but that would have been too sensible. The resulting juxtaposition is just awkward and confusing.

 

[joshuaayt]

On the plus side, this ad made me slightly more interested in makeup. It's a great advertisement for lipstick and shoes.

I have to wonder who thought this was OK? Like, a team made this ad. It terrifies me that a number of people sat down, read whatever concept information was available, and thought "Yup, this is a good way to go about making science appealing for women. Lipstick and strutting all around!"

Also: Check the comments, there's a pretty hilarious Eugenics argument goin' on.

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

This is horrible. How the hell thought this up...I don't even
It looks like an ad campaign for clothes and makeup.

 

[kitsuta]

If this director had made a sports "themed" ad, trust me, that "I" would have been a baseball bat.

Well, that's kind of the problem. Baseball bats are completely contained within a sport, so you can use one as a synecdoche quite safely. Doing the same for makeup and women has Unfortunate Implications. A better analogy would be if they made a commercial aimed exclusively at men and used a blood-soaked sword (dripping blood too, of course) for the 'i' - because all men clearly enjoy violence and blood and stabby things.

Overall the spot is just plain silly, which didn't surprise me. The only problem with it is the constant (and nearly exclusive) association of science-y stuff to makeup stuff, as if that's the only reason women would ever be interested in science. It's like saying, "Hey ladies! There is science involved in all the things we know you like, such as makeup and stiletto heels and cute boys!"

Speaking of attractive men, the video is severely lacking. We get, what, 5 whole seconds of Horn-rimmed Glasses McLabcoat at the beginning there? That is not nearly enough cute-boy-facetime. I want to work in a field where I'm surrounded by hot male models, dagnabit.