just jaime

In 2004, Dove began their “Real Beauty Campaign” as a response to their 2003 global research study which found that “less than 2% of women feel beautiful.” [1] The Campaign for Real Beauty (CFRB) has been written about extensively so instead, I’ll be taking a look at a new campaign, “The Girl Collective,” however it is important to address the history of their body-positive campaigns to show their evolution. In brief, the CFRB advertisements were used “as a means of branding the corporation as a feminist advocate for women (although this strategy oppresses women) as well as a process of self-branding women and girls as empowered “real beauties,”” wrote Dara Persis Murray in her analysis of Dove. By positioning themselves as body positive, Dove attempts to brand themselves as feminists. Note: Dove has since made this advertisement private. Instead, enjoy a veeeeery old CFRB ad! The “Girl Collective” works in a similar way. It is meant to be a “sisterhood that builds confidence an...

Okay, it’s #RealDadMoments time. A lot of scholarly works I came across when writing this paper in 2019 focused on women and commodity feminism. But what about men? Dove has a special product line for men, Dove Men+Care (which, if you think about it, are really the same products but designed in a “manly-man” way). One of their advertisements has amassed 13.6 million views, is not just for men, but for dads. Although Dove targets a lot of their products toward women, they spread their wings in 2014 and started addressing commercials towards men.                                             This ad’s goal is to show men being loving fathers who are there for their children because Dove believes “it’s time to acknowledge the caring moments of fatherhood that often go overlooked.” [1] And Dove has a point. A lot of ads featuring dads show them as people “who incompetently diaper...

In an era where companies are latching onto political and social movements, it’s important to look at their involvement with a critical eye. This is part one of an abridged version of a paper I wrote about Dove and their supposed commitment to feminism. As society evolves, brands must follow suit and adapt in order to remain relevant. Dove is one of many companies that has embarked on a journey to evolve their brand name through what they present and suggest in their advertisements. How have they done this? Through their use of branded activism which leads into ideals of feminism, authenticity, and the body in consumer culture being challenged and presented through their advertisements. A Brief History of Dove in an Evolving Society Dove, owned by its parent company Unilever, began in 1957 in the United States with its “revolutionary new beauty cleansing Bar.” [1] Since then, Dove has been increasing its product line, creating specific lines for women, men, and infants. In 2005,...

This May, Asians across the globe will be celebrating Asian Heritage Month, more commonly known in the USA as AAPI heritage month.   This felt like the right time to rehash one of my favourite essays that I had the opportunity to write while in university about the misrepresentation of Asian Americans (and Asians in Western societies) in media.

Every day feels like the day before. And this is something being universally felt around the globe as countries enact shelter-in-place rules. The basic rules are as follows: 1) Don't leave your house. 2) If you must leave your house, lest it be only for essential trips      a) Essential trips include: getting your socially distant (6ft/2m) daily breath of fresh air and picking up the items intended to keep you alive. 3) If you are a non-essential worker: stay home. 4) If you are an essential worker: thank you from the deepest depths of our hearts (and I'm sorry for how tough it has been). 5) Keep breathing. Keep breathing. Keep breathing. When this quarantine began, I was in the midst of a new job -- a three-month-part-time contract that was about to be extended and eventually, or rather the hope was, full-time. Now, due to lay-offs and concerns about how long this will go (and we all know it'll go for much longer), I'm about to be unemployed once a...

Hello! Long time, no see! I sort of forgot to keep posting about my time on exchange... that's my bad, y'all. Things got so hectic! Clearly, I survived my time abroad -- or else I wouldn't be here posting -- and it was a very rewarding experience where I learned a lot about myself. I will forever thank my lucky stars for the experience, even with all the ups and downs of being away from home. I definitely came back with more confidence and a renewed sense of purpose. Sorta. Anyways. Fast forward to 2019! And what a year it was. I went out for coffee with one of my close friends in early 2020 and when I joked about all the difficulties of 2019, she looked me in the eyes and said, very genuinely, "It really was rough, huh." And I guess it was. I tend to brush these things off with jokes, but I'm working to really work through the pain and issues that arise instead of pushing them down. I got my heart broken (a couple of times) but I also was filled with ...

Well, it's officially been a month since I've been on my own! While the distance has gotten easier, there are still days when my heart aches for home. Today is one of those days. But, I won't let the sadness get in the way of me enjoying my time here! Probably!! Since I've been here, my parents and I have skyped at least once a week (sometimes twice, sometimes thrice!) for an hour or so. I have seen glimpses of my brother, nothing of my sister (missing dat face), and of course, I force my parents to pick up Chewie (our dog) so I can see him. It always feels nice at the time to see them but once they're gone, my heart is a lil sad. There are only so many hours of the day I can talk to them and to my friends and I think that's what makes this especially hard. When I wake up, they're going to bed and when they wake up, it's evening already for me. But we're making it work! And I have some friends whose sleep schedule is whack (you know who you are ...