David Hesmondhalgh is a British sociologist. He is currently Professor of Media, Music and Culture at the University of Leeds. His research focusses on the media and cultural industries, critical approaches to media in the digital age, and the sociology of music.

Hesmondhalgh Theory:

Hesmondhalgh argues that major cultural organisations create products for different industries in order to maximise chances of commercial success.

Most products are consumed when used and have to be bought again, but media products are bought once and continually used – they never wear out. So, companies have to make a lot of money out of their products initially, because they don’t often resell the same product repeatedly.

His books include The Cultural Industries, first published in 2002, described by Herbert et al. He is acknowledged as a key figure in developing the “cultural industries” approach to media, which emphasises the complex and contradictory nature of cultural production under capitalism. He is frequently named as one of the leading analysts of cultural labour, partly based on his book Creative Labour, co-written with Sarah Baker

In his book, he also talks about the relationship between media work, media workers and the media industries.

Hesmondhalgh states that going into the cultural/media industry is a risky business.

“All business is risky” “but the cultural industries constitute a particularly risky business”

Production – Distribution – Consumption

• The media industry is reliant on marketing and publicity functions.
• Media businesses are reliant upon changing audience consumption patterns.
• Media products have limited consumption capacity.

The internet is dominated by a relatively small number of suppliers. Hesmondhalgh points to the dominance of search engines and their ability to point users to a small number of sources.

Question: Judith Butler describes gender as “an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts”. In other words, it is something learnt through repeated performance. How useful is this idea in understanding gender is represented in both the Score and Maybelline advertising campaigns?

Judith Butler presents gender with many different ideas, claiming that it is “an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts”.

In this essay I am going to make a few arguments based on Butlers idea of gender by linking to ideas such as gender as performance and waves of feminism. Also, in this essay I am going to be using Score and Maybelline to help defend my argument.

Butler suggests that gender is not fixed and presented through a stylized repetition of acts. “An identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts”. (e.g someone sitting in a certain way to present their gender.) This suggestion can be seen in the 1967 ‘Score’ advert when the male surrounded by woman is sitting in a masculine like position which was very common during these time periods where men would be seen as more dominant and empowering than woman. This links to the idea of the ‘male gaze’ which is the act of depicting women and the world, in the visual arts and in literature, from a masculine, heterosexual perspective that presents and represents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the heterosexual male viewer. As shown in the ‘Score’ advert the male actor is shown to be dominant and above all the woman which gives the idea that men were seen as better and more powerful than woman during the 1960s time period. “Our genders are culturally rather naturally formed.” As stated by Judith Butler she believes peoples genders aren’t confirmed on the date of our birth but are more identified when you find yourself and feel confident with the way you are. This quotation links to the ‘Maybelline’ advert where a male actor is shown promoting ‘female’ products (make-up) which is stereotypically meant for females. This proves how society has changed massively throughout the years about their ideas of gender representation.

In the time period of the ‘Score’ advert the second wave of feminism took place. During this time the feminist movement was focused on issues of equality and discrimination which was a big problem in the 60s and 70s. “Masculine and feminine roles are not biologically fixed but socially constructed.” As Butler stated the roles for woman and men have been constructed through society instead of biologically (e.g a job such as a construction worker which is usually a job for men). Some people may be affected by this idea because they may believe they have to do the role their gender typically does.

In the ‘Score’ advert the male actor is seen to be as more dominant by being above all the woman and having all of them trying to touch him. The idea that is supposed to be given from this advert is that if you use the ‘Score Liquid Hair Gel’ you will attract any woman and live a luxury life. This is shown through the clothing the actors are wearing representing a safari like experience with the fake plants in the background to create an effect on the viewer. Also, the actor seems to be sitting in a typical male posture which links to Butlers idea of gender being an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts.

Similar to the ‘Maybelline’ advert, Harry Styles has recently released his own cosmetic line named ‘Pleasing’. “Starting the brand with beauty felt exciting because creating great products is a unique way to make people feel good.” Shown here is a representation of breaking the social construct of gender and the stereotype that only woman wear makeup. “Bring joyful experiences and products… and dispel the myth of a binary existence.” With Harry releasing his new beauty products it is clear to see that he is trying to break the social construct of gender and the stereotypes of men and woman.

To conclude, the development of feminism has been presented in both CSP 3 and CSP 4, for example in the Score CSP the male seems to be more dominant over the woman. However in Maybelline CSP we can see the development of equality and feminism over the years through the male actor who is comfortable enough to wear makeup which wasn’t a thing in the earlier advertisement days.

• Feminist = a political position
• Female = a matter of biology
• Feminine = a set of culturally defined characteristics

Naomi Wolf:

Naomi Rebekah Wolf is an American feminist author and journalist. Following her first book The Beauty Myth, she became a leading spokeswoman of what has been described as the third wave of the feminist movement. 

First-wave Feminism:

First-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity and thought that occurred during the 19th and early 20th century throughout the Western world. It focused on legal issues, primarily on securing women’s right to vote. The goal of this wave was to open up opportunities for women, with a focus on suffrage.

Second-wave Feminism:

The second wave feminism movement took place in the 1960s and 1970s and focused on issues of equality and discrimination. Starting initially in the United States with American women, the feminist liberation movement soon spread to other Western countries. American feminist writer Betty Friedan helped ignite the second feminist wave with her book “The Feminine Mystique.” Released in 1963, Friedan builds on the foundation of Simone de Beauvoir’s work.

Third-wave Feminism:

The Third Wave of feminism was greatly focused on reproductive rights for women. Feminists advocated for a woman’s right to make her own choices about her body and stated that it was a basic right to have access to birth control and abortion. Influenced by the postmodernist movement in the academy, third-wave feminists sought to question, reclaim, and redefine the ideas, words, and media that have transmitted ideas about womanhood, gender, beauty, sexuality, femininity, and masculinity, among other things.

Fourth-wave Feminism:

Fourth-wave feminism is a feminist movement that began around 2012 and is characterized by a focus on the empowerment of women, the use of internet tools, and intersectionality. The fourth wave seeks greater gender equality by focusing on gendered norms and marginalization of women in society. Its main focus’ was on sexual harassment, body shaming, and rape culture, among other issues. A key component was the use of social media to highlight and address these concerns.

Judith Butler:

“Our bodies or sex do not define our gendered identities” – We do not have to conform to society’s demands of being masculine or feminine.

“Our gender identities are not fixed objects; they are constituted as a result of our behaviors” – Our identity will change depending on the situation we are in eg. a spending time with family and friends compared to a funeral

“Our genders are culturally rather naturally formed” – Society influences and interacts with the audience which changes people’s behavior.

David Gauntlet:

“Gender is socially constructed” – The way that both genders behaviors change is naturally reoccurring.

“Audiences realise they can change their identities” – They can be whoever they choose to be

“30 second glimpses of who we might become”– Suggests our identity could change overtime

• The Leveson Inquiry is/was public inquiry into cultures, practices and ethics of the British press. This inquiry looks into the News international phone hacking scandal for publicity of private and personal information about celebrities and general people.
• One of the main ideas that revealed the disgust the media is involved with Milly Dowlers murder. A young teenager was murdered and the body was supposedly never found, however when writing stories and gathering info the media, with the polices consent, hacked into the young girls phone and texted her parents to give the false idea that she was still alive, they did this to keep the story going and make more sales.
• The Levenson study was created to reveal all of this corruptness and how the media needs to change, this was 10 years ago and the world has hardly changed.

1. Fluidity of identity – having the ability to change how you see yourself, the world, and your actions.
2. Constructed identity – when you have developed a clear and unique view of yourself and your identity.
3. Negotiated identity – when people reach agreements of “who is who” in their relationships.
4. Collective identity – the shared sense of belonging to a group.