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Original Advertisement:

Upon first glance, there is quite a lot to unpack in regard to this advertisement. First, the placement of the white man at the center with black men surrounding him is incredibly problematic. Despite the advertisement referring to the black men as employees, their placement in this advertisement alludes to slavery. To expand, the white man is the only person in this advertisement to be standing, which places him in a position of power. The black men around him are kneeling at his feet and looking toward the ground, which implies that they are not his equal. The contrast between a content looking white boss and subservient black ‘employees’ is comparable to a depiction of a slave master and his slaves.

Further, the black men are wearing sportswear which plays into the stereotype that black people are innately better at athletic activities. Moreover, the advertisement does not depict black men as anything other than useful for their bodies. A white man is depicted as the head of the operation wearing business casual clothing, perpetuating the stereotype that white people are biologically smarter than black people. Another point to mention is the depiction of black men as part of a processor, or something to be enhanced, contributes to the dehumanization of black bodies. ‘Maximize the power of your employees’ pushes the narrative of employees being objects or tools to be used to enhance power and profit.

The advertisement depicts a particular type of white man and a certain type of black man, despite there being only one white man and multiple black men. One could argue that the lack of diversity among the black men present in this advertisement speaks to the way in which minorities are stereotyped in the media; one representation is seen as the truth of an entire group. Overall, the stereotypical representation of black men in this advertisement is problematic and perpetuates racist ideas.

Jammed Advertisement:

My intent while editing the original advertisement was to call attention racism present. To start, one of the most obvious changes is the size of the white man. The white man is still placed in the center of the advertisement, but he is much larger than the men kneeling at his feet. Just as the original advertisement depicts black men essentially bowing in front of a white man, I wanted to make this more obvious. My solution involved making the white man larger, and I feel that this choice makes the inequality present in the more obvious.

Moving on, I replaced ‘Maximize the power of your employees’ with ‘By exploiting your employees.’ The reason for this change of phrasing was to unearth the meaning behind the original phrase. Although the original phrase sounds innocuous, in this setting, it can mean something else. The black men in this advertisement are not on the same footing as the white man meaning they are not equal. Further, referring to employees as something to be maximized is thinly veiled doublespeak for exploitation.

Lastly, I decided to add the phrases, “Remember to put black people in their place,” and “All black men look, act, and think the same.” My intention by using sensationalized phrasing was to draw attention to the stereotypical representation of black men in this advertisement. The first phrase I added, “Remember to put black people in their place” is to make it obvious that the black men in this advertisement are portrayed as below the white man; this makes the allusion to slavery clearer. Additionally, using the phrase, “All black men look, act, and think the same” highlights the racist depiction of black men. The black men in this advertisement are dressed the same way and are in the same position, furthering the idea that black people possess innate athleticism and are not suited to positions of power. To conclude, my phrasing in the jammed advertisement utilized sarcasm to make the racism and inequalities in this advertisement apparent.