The Original Ad:

In today’s society, women are often oversexualized and objectified in advertisements. The Tom Ford advertisement advertises cologne for men by featuring a bottle of cologne placed between a naked women’s breasts with her mouth open lying down. I was taken aback when I first saw this ad because a woman’s body should have nothing to do with a bottle of cologne; a bottle of mens’ cologne can be advertised without an overtly sexualized woman. Clearly, she is used as an object to attract the male gaze.

The woman appears to be lying down birds eye view in the image with the words “FOR MEN” in large and bolded font. With her mouth opened, she seems shocked and or surprised. With those words and her facial expression, it suggests that women belong to men as merely objects of their sexual desires, whether or not he is invited by the woman. Since this ad is for men, it is seen from the perspective of a man is staring at her from above, which is quite sexually suggestive and demeaning.

This ad also suggests that the main purpose for a man to use the cologne is to gain sexual appeal from women. It assumes that a man is controlled by his impulsive sexual desires and that he will buy into the fantasy of the advertisement. As Tom Ford is an expensive luxury brand, the ad seems to enforce the stereotype that if a man is wealthy, he has the power to use money to buy sexual appeal from women.

This ad is portrays both men and women in a skewed and toxic perspective. Women are oversexualized and wrongly portrayed as being objects that can be owned by men, while men are portrayed as lustful and disregarding of women.

The Jammed Ad:

In the jammed version of the Tom Ford ad, it now advertises with “Eat healthy to feel good.” The reason I chose to this message was because it does not deliver a message with a skewed perspective since everyone can benefit from the message. In addition, the female model in the original Tom Ford ad had healthy looking and glowing skin. Her presence in the picture seemed like a good representation for my message whereas her presence in the Tom Ford ad was unnecessary; she appears as an actor in my ad rather than a prop in the original ad.

Oftentimes, advertisements in the media try to sell you a product that you may want but not necessarily need by appealing to your emotions and assuming your weaknesses. Like the original ad, a man may want to be more sexually desirable by women but his value and success should also be measured by more than just that aspect. Thus, his success does not require him to buy a cologne.

Unlike the original advertisement, the jammed version conveys a valuable message that all humans can benefit from. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, obesity rates in American adults are still on the rise. To name a few, obesity is a major health risk that makes individuals more prone to heart diseases, high blood pressure, cancer, and diabetes. This advertisement has good intentions of decreasing health risks rather than just selling a fantasy lifestyle.

Furthermore, my jammed advertisement features the woman smiling. This detail also reflects the woman being happy from being healthy. Her emotions are a result of her own actions rather than a man’s influence.