Hegemony in Media

Today, media seems to be one of the primary resources people use to get informed of the latest news, products, and ideas that are constantly taking place and affecting our society.   However, much of the media, such as advertising, applies the concept of hegemony to reinforce the idea about gender roles and other societal issues.  In a way, it helps us understand how men and women are portrayed in this world.

I personally think that when hegemony is applied to the world of advertising and media it is used in a way to subconsciously manipulate the audience perspectives on certain issues within our society.   It tends to focus much on the ideas, principles, and beliefs of the dominant class.  Much of the reason why I believe that we accept the ideology of the dominant class is because, for a along time we have lived through and somehow accepted the stereotypes.  Therefore, when it comes to the images depicted in advertising and media, we see it as natural.

One great example of the concept of hegemony in media advertising is the Snickers commercial featuring Mr. T, which was launched in 2008.  This commercial starts off with a white man speed walking with a feminine movement.  Storming out of a house in a truck, Mr. T began shooting with a machine gun at the man with Snickers candy bars and states, “you are a disgrace to the man race, is time to run like a real man.”  At that moment the man begins to run faster.  The Snicker advertisement illustrates how men should act tough and be more physical, otherwise it is consider to be unmanly.  Like in the movie documentary “Tough Guise” Jackson Katz talks about how men are portrayed as being “sissy” or “fags” if they don’t act like a “real man.”  In this commercial Mr. T demonstrates how the dominant culture doesn’t appreciate men who don’t put up with that “macho act” like he does. In other words, the ideology of the dominant culture believes that a man should be strong, in control, and athletic to be accepted by society.  Therefore, advertising media like Snickers, use the concept of hegemony to reinforce the dominant culture ideas about a men’s image in a subconscious manner that men consent to and learn to accept.