What Are They Selling?

Teens today have been victimized by our media. The pure minds of our children have been violated. Something has invaded our culture and is raping our youth of their innocence. We have been bombarded by a media frenzy targeting our youth.

Take for example a popular clothier of our day, Abercrombie & Fitch. Their advertisements are hung on the inside of lockers, plastered on bedroom walls, and posted on teenager's social networking sites. They are sensual, seductive, and detestable. It is suppose to be advertising clothing, but one would be hard-pressed to even find a miniscule amount of clothing in most of their advertisements. One such example of this ridiculous smut is seen on their web site. Young men and women barely clad. In one particular scene there is an image of a young man sitting up with a young lady lying beside him, and his hand is firmly planted on the back side of her lap (www.abercrombie.com).

In their 2003 Quarterly magazine they revealed several sexually - explicit scenes including same-sex relations World Net Daily had this to report about the publication:

Forty-five specific portrayals of sexual imagery in the first 120 pages, advice to the readers ... this is how the new Abercrombie & Fitch Quarterly titled "The Christmas Field Guide" begins its new quarterly magazine that is targeted to your 10- to 13-year-olds. The 45 images include overt portrayals of group sex, lots of teen and young adult nudity, men kissing, and teens /young adults frolicking in a river engaging in sexual activity in multiple group settings ("Abercombie and Fitch to Your Kids").

What are these types of ads really promoting? I say they encourage sexual promiscuity, espouse a false sense of reality concerning the "norm" in human physique, and degrade the foreordained plan for humankind sexual relations. Perhaps one of their own said it best when he said; ""We don't just sell clothes, we promote a lifestyle" (qtd. in"Abercombie and Fitch to Your Kids").

The most horrifying thing about these types of advertisements is that they are aimed primarily toward our young. The forenamed clothing company is well noted for being a youth culture clothier. It is seemingly a status symbol to wear the A & F logo. Children beg their parents for the latest styles from this apparel company.

There is plenty of evidence that the marketing gurus have their sites set on this younger culture. Consider yet another illustration as reported by USA Today:

As the battle heats up for young men's grooming dollars, Axe is rolling out new marketing that hits even harder on its sex-appeal message. Pitching sex appeal has made Axe a major force in young men's body sprays, deodorants and soaps. U.S. sales were $186 million (excluding Wal-Mart Stores) for the year ended March 25, up 14% from a year ago, says tracker Information Resources. At $85 million in the period, body sprays are Axe's best sellers, but sales grew just 2%. Axe's other products grew faster -- liquid soaps, for example, grew 36% to $44 million ("Axe Ads Turn Up the Promise").

The company's target market, by their own admission, is 15 to 29 years old.

Emily Cozart reports about another scenario dealing with a magazine for teenage girls:

A majority of the ads deal with beauty and fashion. In fact, out of all the ads in Seventeen, only 14 did not advertise for beauty and fashion products. Even in those ads that did not promote beauty and fashion products, there were still images of acceptable body types, acceptable clothes and acceptable behavior (The Socialization Effects").

Although these are just a few examples, they seem to represent the standard for advertisements. Consider what Cozart goes on to include in her report:

To really promote a product, a few ads include a muscular, athletic male in the picture. This further reinforces the belief that if the young women buy the brand, then they will be cool. Therefore, attractive men will desire them. For example, a department store ad shows five attractive members of a homecoming court. The ad not only shows attractive teenage girls in the store's clothes, but it also shows the excitement of five male football players. Are the football players excited because of the game or because there are five beautiful women in front of them? If a teenage reader understands the players to be excited because the women are attractive, then she can assume that when she wears those clothes she can get the attention of men, too. Furthermore all the young women in the ad are thin. By showing thin women in particular clothes being pursued by men, the ad is telling readers the social importance of being skinny. In other words, if a female is thin, she is more likely to attract men ("The Socialization Effects").

Certainly these images are intended to manipulate the minds of those who are at a most influential age. Will we set idle and allow this medium of evil to desecrate our young?

These innocent victims are being defiled and something needs