Tag: TV

Gillette ad controversy: is the media and social media trustworthy?

U.S. razor company, Gillette, caused a furore last month for their viral ad ‘The Best Men Can Be’.

If social and traditional media was anything to go by, this was an outrage. They were attacking boys and men — their primary consumers. This was #MeToo on steroids.

Hashtag #boycottgillette trended on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/socalsnowbrdr/status/1095811379741642752?s=21

 

So you’d assume that the ‘anti masculinity’ campaign would destroy Gillette. Well, no. Apparently, the campaign was actually positive.

Many U.S. consumers applauded the campaign

According to Upworthy, two studies showed that most consumers looked favourably on the campaign.

Data collected by Morning Consult found that more consumers believed that Gillette shared their values than before the campaign (42% before, 71% after). 65%of study respondents said they were more likely to buy Gilette products since the campaign.

Over four fifths (84%) of women and more than three quarters (77%) of men were either in favour or felt neutral towards the campaign. Data from Ace Metrics produced similar results.

Is the media and social media out of touch?

I am always careful when it comes to studies, especially on social issues. Too often, so – called ‘studies’ are conducted purely to confirm one’s own biases.

I don’t know the sample size of the Morning Consult study. I am also not familiar with Ace Metrics.

But, lets assume for a moment that both sets of data are a fair representation of Americans’ overall attitudes toward Gillette.That means traditional and social media did not represent mainstream public opinion. And maybe it’s not the only time.

Traditional media still a major source of news for the public

I’ve heard that U.S cable networks such as CNN and Fox are losing loyalty among the public. Meanwhile, independent news sources, including YouTube channels are rising in popularity.

Australians, too,  seem to also have little faith in the media.

A Roy Morgan study showed that journalists are generally not trusted by the public. Inaccuracies left uncorrected and biases were two major criticisms. Out of radio, TV and print news, most people surveyed, (66% for national news, 56% for world news) gained their news from TV. Print media gained the most negative responses.

Social media also deemed untrustworthy

While traditional media has its critics, social media hasn’t faired well, either. 2018 saw a backlash against social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

According to Reuters Institute, Digital News Report found that social media was facing a worldwide decline in both popularity and trust, with the U.S. leading the charge. News item were also not shared on social media as frequently as it used to

Apps such as WhatsApp and email news services are rising in popularity. However, many reported being annoyed at being bombarded with emails and notifications.

Personally, I’ve gotten increasingly annoyed by the number of statuses and ‘news’ articles that turned out to be hoaxes or just untrue. It’s made me cynical about sharing anything and now I mostly ignore a lot of articles I see posted.

I’ve also found that so much on Facebook is heavily biased, often veering to one extreme on the political/ ideological spectrum. People are often hard Left or hard conservative, with very few willing to look at multiple sides to an issue. Look, people can publish what they want. I’d just advise viewers to be wary of articles that are posted. If you read it, Google it and see if the article is factual. Many times, they aren’t.

 

Social and traditional media have issues with trust. To mainstream journalists, no offence, but pull your head in. Your viewers/ readers/ listeners deserve the truth, not just political propaganda.

What did you think of the Gillette ad and do you have any news outlets you particularly like? Let me know in the comments

 

 

 

Categories
Reality TV

The Bachelor is accused of promoting bullying

 

I haven’t watched The Bachelor much this year. I only watch it if someone else is or when a repeat is shown on a TV in a public place.  So, I can’t tell you much about who’s who, who’s gone so far, who I think should win, etc, etc.

I was outraged after reading this article. An anonymous writer on Mamamia, a self – confessed former school bully, said that The Bachelor Australia, specifically Cat, Romy and Alisha and their treatment of Tenille, reminded her of her bad behaviour in high school.

What the hell is The Bachelor Australia doing promoting bullying? What are the producers and directors thinking?

Media hypocrisy: reporting on and glorifying bullying

It’s no secret what harm bullying can do; to children, teenagers and adults. Recently, there has been a number of cases exposed in the media of young people taking their own lives after being viciously bullied by school bullies and online. And a show that has peaked with an average of 1.25 million viewers nationwide has the nerve to glorify it and use it for ratings?

The girls accused of bullying have proclaimed that they were taken out of context and has blamed editors. All three have also faced a backlash on social media, some of it which has been vile and abusive (which I don’t condone, either).

Whether the cast, producers, directors or editors are to blame, it doesn’t matter. For some reason, The Bachelor Australia has promoted bullying. That’s not OK. It’s not OK to glorify people (of any gender), being cut down, ostracised or be subjected to other bullying behaviour.

Where does the Australian Communication and Media Authority (ACMA) on this? They are the national media body that oversees compliance in the media and telecommunications industries. Not a blip as far as I’m aware.

What does this say about commercial TV as a whole? Due to international competitors such as streaming services Netflix and Stan and cable networks such as Foxtel, the commercial media industry is struggling to maintain decent audience size.. Channel Ten (now part of Win network and recently bought by US’s CBS), faced the reality of going into administration. I can’t believe in glorifying bullying to get viewers and advertisers. Quite frankly, I don’t think it should be allowed.

 

I guess the most effective revenge is for people not to watch The Bachelor Australia and let their ratings crash. It’s still unsettling how the Australian media industry has allowed it to happen in the first place.

UPDATE

The backlash against Alisha, Cat and Romy has continued. According to Perth Now, Alisha was refused a rose and therefore, exited the show. Fifi Box, Byron Cooke and Brendan Fevola from Melbourne’s Fox FM has cancelled a scheduled interview with Cat with very short notice. Box defended the cancellation saying that she ‘couldn’t in good conscience welcome her [Cat] to the show’.

Let’s hope The Bachelor Australia and other reality shows will get the message that bullying doesn’t pay.

If you are struggling, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636. As always, feel free to post contact details of crisis, suicide prevention or other mental health services in your country/ area, feel free to post that 8nformation in the comments.