TV ads pissing me off...

same problem here.
tv / movies / music videos are soft core porn... porn substitutes.

 

I really hate sexualization on the media. Even children shows that seemingly fine really have inappropriate scenes in it. The society we live in is programmed to accept porn and sexy things as norm

Spoiler: the truth of media (trigger warning)

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It's not just you buddy, I notice it all the time but maybe for different reasons than most porn viewing males. I've mentioned on here before about a billboard ad i saw at a train station once for a clothes company,

Spoiler: Trigger Warning

it was a woman sitting with her legs open, ice cream in her mouth (suggestively) and a hand bag between her legs

. Now thats subliminal messaging and conveys all sorts of messages about females. It was displayed in full view so children could view it as well. The sexualisation of children in meda and society is also becomming a big problem and i think what is happening is an erosion of the notion that children are off limits to adult sexuality or lustful attention. It's in fashion, TV and themes adopted by teen magazines and brands etc which chip away at peoples perceptions, people rightly condemn the prolification of illegal material of minors on the internet but at the same time we see other things cross polinating into the sphere of childhood which stem from having a much more sexualised media and acceptability of porn use in general. One such example is an old 90's advert for Calvin Klein which featured a 15 year old model which had the slogan

Spoiler: Trigger Warning

'want to know what comes between me and my jeans'

the ad was quickly taken down but the point is to the advertisers and people involved in its conception, that was somehow a 'good idea' Sex has been used to sell everything for a long time, it's a golden marketing strategy for some products but it also has an effect of normalising the objectification of both women and men. we are moving further away from the 'glamour' aspect of sexually charged advertising to a more perverted one where the undertones are very subtle but obvious to those who are viewing porn.

 

@thorswrath32 I think you have hit the nail on the head. There is a LOT of literature out there - from academic studies to journalistic investigations - that reinforce the idea that the mentality of the general public is moulded by what they are exposed to in a situation that is seen as acceptable [billboards, TV commercials]. The fact that it is out in public and with nobody causing a fuss lends it a veneer of legitimacy. The problem is that then the social taboos designed to protect people begin to erode.
The creative industries do tend to push this. Having heard the horror stories coming out of Hollywood about the attitudes of the movers and shakers in such circles towards transgressive behavior [sexual aggressiveness, sexualizing minors] it is hardly surprising that the advertising industry is of a similar mind. The movie 'An Open Secret' [free to view on Vimeo and Youtube at the distributor's request for the next while] discusses just how ingraned unwholesome attitudes to minors in the film/advertisement industry really is.
Happily people can and do stand up to this kind of thing. The Condé Nast Teen magazine recently folded after a boycott in response to articles promoting sexual activity to underage readers. You see: things don't have to be this way, and things can change if we decide to stop the madness.

 

I've been hitting the mute button when the ads come on for years. And I try to avoid looking at them too.

 

The key word is "association".
I think we all know about how the brain works, about the nerve paths, and the stronger a habit is, the "deeper" these paths are. This works with good and destructive things. The brain is just doing what he is created for: processing the whole thing in a human life, processing the input and creating some output

Of course, there are thousands of associations in every commercial, linking to hundred of objects, thoughts, feelings and experiences. Because of porn reaches us in the kernel of our being, almost everything we see, has an association with something that leaded you in the past to more pornographic stuff.

Commercials just have one goal. Only one: to manipulate you.

So years ago I thought it was time to say goodbye to my television.
That was a very good decision

Whenever I accidentally see or hear a commercial, I decide if I want to let that crap in or not.
Indeed, I put off the volume or put off the video at all.

I just don't let me manipulate any longer!

 

Turn off the TV and read some good books....

 

I have a TV in my living room and every now and then i wipe the dust off it when i have guests round but other than that i watch everything online through i-players, amazon, netflix. that way i don't see very many ads and i can also watch what i want when i want. I agree anything with David Attenborough in is always worth watching. I have a thirst for knowledge, history, nature, science antything that I can learn from. Scheduled day time TV is generally very poor trash these days and don't get me started on soap operas!