A Feminist Countdown to 2011 ~ Day Twenty-Five

See the full calendar here.

Fling: chocolate for women?

I've got a new post up at The Hathor Legacy about Mars' new chocolate bar, Fling, which is being specifically marketed towards women as a low-calorie, high-indulgence treat, with a sexy twist. Here's a snippet of my post; feel free to check out the rest and join the discussion over at THL:

The new treat, Fling, is being billed as “chocolate for women,” because it’s low-calorie but highly indulgent. Or, in the words of Fling’s tagline: “Naughty…but not that naughty.” How very clever.

In a promotional video detailing their New Zealand launch, Mars reveals its marketing strategy as one which relies heavily on the idea of guilt-free cheating (in both the adultery and the “cheating on one’s diet” sense). While a number of other products have used this sort of marketing (Jello’s “every diet needs some wiggle room” comes to mind), Mars seems to be very focused on drawing parallels between its product and some pointedly non-gastronomical pleasures of the flesh. For example, the now-defunct New Zealand launch site included virtual men with whom you could have “guiltless” virtual affairs...

Also, check out this heinous Schick Quattro "mow the lawn" ad that everyone's been talking about...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I'm stuffed full of food and lolling around on the couch with little energy for writing, so, in lieu of a real post, enjoy the charming Bridget McManus in her Thanksgiving episode of The Jam:



Now, that's my kind of cooking!