In a 2015 Carl's Jr released a Super Bowl advertisement that follows a woman through a Flee Market. Throughout the ad there were sexual innuendo's, forms of objectification of women, and pushing of the female "ideal image". What was supposed to be an advertisement for a burger turned down a much darker road.
(Figure 1) Carl's Jr Ad
Intro starts with a thin blonde white woman walking through a flee market. As she walks through a man is using a water hose to rinse of some food which is conveniently covering up the woman's naked body (Figure 1). During this scene the woman talks about how she enjoys going all natural. This sets up the ad for "The All Natural Burger". The ad is using the woman to sexualize "The All Natural Burger". In Kilbourne's article she states “Sex in advertising is pornagraphic, because...it fetishizes products, imbues them with an erotic charge..." Carl's Jr is using this woman to probably try and make a connection between the pornographic thoughts that a person may have to "The All Natural Burger" in an attempt to increase sales.
During this portion of the video you see men staring at the woman as she walks through the flee market. In the ad you see the woman's bottom being compared to a tomato(Figure 2). This is an example of objectification because it is turning her bottom into a tomato. Which the man in the video the proceeds to grab, further implying the idea that her body is an object. It is being normalized by the way she is looking back, making it seem as if its okay to do this in real life.
(Figure 2) Carl's Jr Ad
(Figure 3) Carl's Jr Ad
Here we see the woman exiting the flee market with "The All Natural Burger" in hand(Figure 3). With this upfront view of the woman you can see she is very thin. Pop Culture pushes this image of thinness through advertisements. They try to normalize it and make it the ideal image for a woman. There are multiple men staring at this woman in awe pushing the idea she is "hot" and influencing woman who see this ad that this is what men want, that this is what is "sexy".
Carl's Jr is pushing the Pop Culture image of a women in this advertisement through the use of sexual innuendo's, objectification, and thinness. If this keeps going on women will continue to be sexualized, objectified, and judged and men will continue to feel that it is normal to use women for there personal desires. Something needs to be done to stop this way of advertising.
Kilbourne, Jean. "Three Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt." Rereading America. Eds. Colombo, Cullen, Lisle. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's P. 2013..
Charlotte McKinney - Carls Jr Ad Commercial - Super Bowl XLIX 2015 - The All Natural Burger Jan 23, 2015