Verizon Markets Palm Pre Plus to Ladies, Fails to Smash Patriarchy
Filed under: Audio/Video , Cell Phones , Web Share Hey! It’s 2010 and we have advanced so rapidly in terms of culture and society that the old gender paradigms seem like a dusty joke. Oh, wait: Verizon has decided to fall back on a history of sexist advertising by separately targeting its cell phones to men and women. After the cryptic, sci-fi-inspired spots for Droid — which clearly lacked any “feminine” softness — Verizon chose to market the Palm Pre Plus to the fairer sex . In both spots, we see put-together ladies from the ’50s and the ’80s, symbolizing those silly old domestic roles. Flash forward to 2010, where the most modern of moms use Facebook on their smartphones. Hooray for progress! The irony of these commercials (after the jump), of course, is that the retro gender-targeted advertising that Verizon lampoons is simply updated in the second half of the commercial. Mom may not look like she’s stepped out of Carole Jackson’s ‘ Color Me Beautiful ‘ book anymore, but her domestic responsibilities and social expectations haven’t changed. She’s still picking up Timmy from baseball practice and sifting through recipes to cook for the family — all while Dad is off playing with his macho Droid and doing whatever dudes do. Way to break down cultural norms, Verizon. You’ve come a long way, baby . [From: Engadget ] Continue reading Verizon Markets Palm Pre Plus to Ladies, Fails to Smash Patriarchy Verizon Markets Palm Pre Plus to Ladies, Fails to Smash Patriarchy originally appeared on Switched on Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read
