Sexist Ad Lands EB Games Australia In Trouble

[Sparrow]

Anyway. Yeah, really not seeing the issue here. If it was the other way around, with a woman buying the game and the bloke moaning, would anyone care? Seems like whining for the sake of whining to me.

Of course it wouldn't because it wouldn't play to established stereotypes. This does, it is sexist, demeaning to women (all he had to do was buy her dinner and she was a domestic housewife waiting on him) and male gamers (layabout with no job).

The fact that you can't see this is disturbing. It's obvious.

It's not sexist. It's a joke. It's clearly poking fun at 50's style commercials which feature exactly the same set-ups. The fact that you can't see this is disturbing. It's obvious.

But they didn't make fun of it did they? They just played it completely straight. There was no punchline to the "joke" you think was there.
In what way were they mocking those old commercials? They weren't, they just copied them as you said so how is this some sort of tongue in cheek jab if there's no jab. I'm not saying this is the worst thing in the world but it perpetuates stereotypes for no reason.

It doesn't need a punchline when the whole commercial is the punchline. Seems like an odd way to judge if it's a joke or not. Stand up comedy must really irritate you.

"HE SAID A JOKE, BUT AFTER THE JOKE HE KEPT ON SAYING MORE JOKES! WHEN DOES IT END?!"

 

[Deathninja19]

The fact that people complain about this guarantees that no one will ever take them seriously. People need to lighten up: if you don't want to be offended by something, just don't let it offend you. Is it sexist? Maybe, but it's also harmless. Anyway, it doesn't really matter if something is sexist or racist or whatever as long as it's funny, and that's where this one falls short.

While it's obviously no where near the same level would the civil rights movement happened if people didn't complain about institutionalised racism or would women have gotten the right to vote if the Sufferagetes complained about sexism.

Even if this is an inconsequential thing people should have the right to complain about it because at the end of the day if people are offended by something there is a problem and it needs to be adressed.

 

[kenu12345]

Anybody remember that fallout 3 vault tec commercial nobody said that was sexist

 

[Dfskelleton]

"The single worst part of the ad was at the end when the guy is playing games and his wife is dusting around him like some sort of terrible advertisement from the 50s," she told the Illawarra Mercury [http://www.illawarramercury.com.au/news/local/news/general/video-game-ad-offensive-to-female-gamers/2353988.aspx]. 47 percent of Australian gamers are female, she said, yet the perception that core games are for men while women are only interested in casual games persists.

I have to disagree there.
The animation has to be the single worst part of the ad. I'm serious;
OT: How is this sexist again? I've seen much more sexist ads, and nobody cares about them.

 

[Leon's Hell]

If they think this is bad, they should have a look at this GameStop "Sharpen the mind, shape the body" training video.
Try watching the whole thing without asking yourself if it's real or not.

 

[NightHawk21]

My opinion. This is in no way sexist. I just plays of common stereotypes but it does so in a light-hearted manner, and while I don't like Gamestop, I will say that the ad is pretty funny (as far as ads go). Also I think Rebecca needs to get her head out of her twat and see that not everything people do is specifically to offend her.

 

[Cecilthedarkknight_234]

I loled now I feel bad for doing so....

 

[SidingWithTheEnemy]

Sexist Ad Lands EB Games Australia In Trouble
[...]

Sorry, but I feel the title is wrong here. It's rather debatable that the ad is sexist.
I was expecting some half-naked, Cat-Women like bimbo making somekind of sexy statement how MW3 or COD Players have superior manliness or something but I got seriously disappointed by this misleading thread title and the obnoxiously boring youtube clip.
Your article was nice though. I liked the almost unbiased approach you took, but the title you chose kinda undermined it.

Honestly I'm really in the mood of shouting some chauvinistic comments towards Rebecca Fernandez but that would be countereffective and would give those "man-eating monsters matriachs" even more ammunition.

 

[AugustFall]

Anyway. Yeah, really not seeing the issue here. If it was the other way around, with a woman buying the game and the bloke moaning, would anyone care? Seems like whining for the sake of whining to me.

Of course it wouldn't because it wouldn't play to established stereotypes. This does, it is sexist, demeaning to women (all he had to do was buy her dinner and she was a domestic housewife waiting on him) and male gamers (layabout with no job).

The fact that you can't see this is disturbing. It's obvious.

It's not sexist. It's a joke. It's clearly poking fun at 50's style commercials which feature exactly the same set-ups. The fact that you can't see this is disturbing. It's obvious.

But they didn't make fun of it did they? They just played it completely straight. There was no punchline to the "joke" you think was there.
In what way were they mocking those old commercials? They weren't, they just copied them as you said so how is this some sort of tongue in cheek jab if there's no jab. I'm not saying this is the worst thing in the world but it perpetuates stereotypes for no reason.

It doesn't need a punchline when the whole commercial is the punchline. Seems like an odd way to judge if it's a joke or not. Stand up comedy must really irritate you.

"HE SAID A JOKE, BUT AFTER THE JOKE HE KEPT ON SAYING MORE JOKES! WHEN DOES IT END?!"

So if I made a commercial that was exactly the same as a commercial that would have been found in the 50s with a sexist undertone I am just joking? It's inherently a joke because it's happening today? Even with no attempt made to make the set up of the commercial seem ridiculous? Really?

Also that is a poor example. I would be irritated if someone came on stage and said,

"You know how when your wife doesn't bring you the newspaper and you forget the "rule of thumb" and beat her with a piece of firewood? All I do is remember to hit my thumb as well so it swells up."

Notice how this lacks any moniker to establish it as a witty jab at comedians of old? It's just a disgusting joke. That's all that commercial is.

 

[Thyunda]

I'm not really all up in arms about it, but Jesus Christ, how could anyone possibly think this was in any aspect of the ad whatsoever a good idea? And more to the point, when you have bad parodies like this, then we have to deal with the morons who manage to not see the parody in this and start getting all vocal about their terribly sexist gender role ideas (Women shouldn't game, guys can't play Nintendo games, etc) and this bland and unfunny ad is absolutely not worth encouraging them.

Then how is it offensive? If it's sexist to both sexes, then it is not sexist at all. It's like a TV show featuring a stereotypical representative of each country. It's not racist. If the American or the Englishman among them was the only 'normal' one, then it could be perceived as superiority.

Point is - the advert is not that bad. It's not a terrible and sexist montage of insults like everybody seems to be making out. Since the dawn of freakin' time, adverts aimed at men have been about avoiding the eagle-eyes of their female partners, spotting everything they do wrong. Incognito browsing for Google Chrome? Marketed towards men. Is it sexist? Not at all. It's almost traditional. A light-hearted jab at the culture of female dominance in the average household. Of course there are exceptions, I shouldn't have to repeat this after everything I say, but otherwise people avoid my arguments just to point out there are exceptions.

In the average happy home, the female is in charge. The man might be the figurehead, but the woman calls the shots. Obviously this doesn't apply to same-sex parents, but then neither does the advert. So that one is irrelevant.

So. Yeah. There is actually nothing wrong with the advert. Other than this bizarre "OMG THE GIRL DOESN'T PLAY GAMES! HOW INACCURATE!"
I'm sorry. Yes, many, many girls regularly play games. However. It is not the norm. Not yet. It will be a surprise for years when a guy asks his partner "What do you want to do?", and she reply 'Call of Duty'. It still doesn't happen regularly.

So I don't see the problem.

 

[hotacidbath]

Never mind offensive, which it was. It's just plain awful. Not funny and would not make me want to buy my games there.

Seriously. I'm more offended by the shitty animation and awful voice acting than the dumb premise.

 

[Chemical Alia]

That commercial was pretty retarded. I don't think jokes based on gender stereotypes are amusing in the first place, and it just seems in bad taste while trying to have a cute/ironic appeal. The animation quality was terrible, too. Maybe if they had pulled off an appropriate 60's art style it would have been more successful, but it's just a crap commercial not worth defending. Not particularly offensive, more like a tasteless joke that leads to an awkward silence in the room.

 

[Sparrow]

Anyway. Yeah, really not seeing the issue here. If it was the other way around, with a woman buying the game and the bloke moaning, would anyone care? Seems like whining for the sake of whining to me.

Of course it wouldn't because it wouldn't play to established stereotypes. This does, it is sexist, demeaning to women (all he had to do was buy her dinner and she was a domestic housewife waiting on him) and male gamers (layabout with no job).

The fact that you can't see this is disturbing. It's obvious.

It's not sexist. It's a joke. It's clearly poking fun at 50's style commercials which feature exactly the same set-ups. The fact that you can't see this is disturbing. It's obvious.

But they didn't make fun of it did they? They just played it completely straight. There was no punchline to the "joke" you think was there.
In what way were they mocking those old commercials? They weren't, they just copied them as you said so how is this some sort of tongue in cheek jab if there's no jab. I'm not saying this is the worst thing in the world but it perpetuates stereotypes for no reason.

It doesn't need a punchline when the whole commercial is the punchline. Seems like an odd way to judge if it's a joke or not. Stand up comedy must really irritate you.

"HE SAID A JOKE, BUT AFTER THE JOKE HE KEPT ON SAYING MORE JOKES! WHEN DOES IT END?!"

So if I made a commercial that was exactly the same as a commercial that would have been found in the 50s with a sexist undertone I am just joking? It's inherently a joke because it's happening today? Even with no attempt made to make the set up of the commercial seem ridiculous? Really?

Also that is a poor example. I would be irritated if someone came on stage and said,

"You know how when your wife doesn't bring you the newspaper and you forget the "rule of thumb" and beat her with a piece of firewood? All I do is remember to hit my thumb as well so it swells up."

Notice how this lacks any moniker to establish it as a witty jab at comedians of old? It's just a disgusting joke. That's all that commercial is.

Honestly, the need for people to label things as sexist nowadays angers the hell out of me. If the advert straight up came out and said "Oh man, women are such game haters. They should stay in the kitchen! Haw haw." then I'd totally get your point. But... they didn't. Everything from the music to the forced explanation from the guy behind the counter makes this a spoof of 50's advertising to me. I fail to see it in any other light.

 

[THEoriginalBRIEN]

sexist? it's practically a documentary!

 

[Wiiiiiiilliam]

I thought it was funny. I understand why some people would get offended by it.

 

[WhiteTigerShiro]

How can a dinner at McDonald's smooth things over?

Remind me to never eat at your McDonald's. While we're at it, you should probably find a different one to eat at. Little hint: They shouldn't be charging you $50 per meal. Even in Australia.

 

[Rushin]

Id worry that the girl would see this and get mad but she cant see the vid from the kitchen. BOOSH!

 

[Koroviev]

Never mind offensive, which it was. It's just plain awful. Not funny and would not make me want to buy my games there.

Yeah, I was more distracted by how poorly made the whole thing is.

 

[Lady Larunai]

And yet no one gets pissy about the toilet cleaning ad's on at the moment with men apologising yet still expecting the female to clean to toilet, nor do males go nuts about all the cherry ripe adverts saying women can outsmart men for chocolate... or washing detergent ad's??

this is a little stupid, if you looked for sexism or stereotypes in ANY advert you will find it.. why target one ad that was terribly done, based on an old 50's commercial's?