Tampon-makers can't mention the V-word. Period.

[TalkingDog]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/richard-adams-blog/2010/mar/16/tampon-vagina-kotex-advertising

A brief blog on American Television's squeamishness about "girly parts" and a funny ad that you will never see on American TV.

Worth reading for the comment section alone.

[Mari333]

1. welcome to the USA! where no one has genitals.

[cali]

2. well, in ads anyway.

[Mari333]

9. hahahaha.yes. or in my art class

I have watched people in one of the Life Drawing art classes I had, with a live model...

they would sketch the entire model and leave a blank spot where the genitals were supposed to be.

I always find that amusing.

[cali]

11. whoa. where the heck do you live? Oklahoma?

[Mari333]

15. michigan. same thing in some areas..hahahaha

[TalkingDog]

19. I stood next to a young woman at her first year of college

in a figure drawing class. She was obviously a very shy and modest person.
She drew well, but as with your experience, she drew from the top of his head to his waist and then skipped the middle third.

When I started teaching, I only had one student who was uncomfortable with the model. It was a middle aged woman who had never seen anyone naked except her husband.

We worked it out, but I was ......non-plussed to say the least.

[Whisp]

123. omg lol that's funny.

busting up here.

[TalkingDog]

14. Or on dolls or Superheros

Seriously, with all that lycra and spandex, you really should see a lot more detail...from both sexes.

[Mari333]

17. barbie has no vagina, nor does GI Joe have a penis!

THINK ABOUT THE CHILDREN

:P

[hobbit709]

3. Except when they want to legislate what you do with them.

[Captain Hilts]

5. But lots and LOTS of breasts in cling wrap. Everywhere. nt

[unblock]

74. except in america's funniest home videos

guys are always getting hit down there and hurtling over in agony.

[WillyT]

108. I Believe I've Found The Culprits...

:evilgrin:

:hi:

[Bettie]

117. My kids got in trouble at school for saying penis.

The school prefers that they not refer to them at all, but if they do, they are to use the word weiner or "thing".

No one is to say vagina, but va-jay-jay is OK.

Geez.

[Confusious]

122. What about hoo-ha?

haha :)

[RainDog]

4. VAGINA, VAGINA, VAGINA, VAGINA

See? No demons of the underworld were summoned.

[Cassandra]

8. Are you sure?

I'm here. :evilgrin:

[RainDog]

20. I'll sell my soul to you for a mere million

and I've got a lot of soul. lol

[leftofcool]

34. LMAO!

[peekaloo]

21. But I can hear their laughter from down there in the nether regions.

}(

[Hekate]

78. You said "nether regions"

:wow:

[peekaloo]

113. and "down there"

a two-fer

[Dr. Strange]

104. Once again, I find a post about "VAGINA"...

and once again, I find RainDog is involved. :o

[RainDog]

107. lol. what can I say? guys can love their sex machines...

and mine has been very good to me so of course it's VAGINA, VAGINA, VAGINA!

tho, unlike guys, I've never given my vagina a pet name...tho maybe those lucky enough to know her have. I never asked. I just accepted their genuflection with my usual calm demeanor.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Dr. Strange]

109. If you need a pet name for it...

I suggest "Chuggo." Don't tell Tommy_Carcetti, though.

[RainDog]

112. um, no. my vagina is not a chuggo.

maybe Tommy's is, but... no. just no.

it doesn't rap, either.

[PVnRT]

6. Vajayjay?

[blueamy66]

40. I really don't like that word.

Don't know why.

And I really don't like it when a man uses it.

?

[Lorien]

73. It reminds me too much of a good friend's name: Vijaya

which is incredibly common in India.

[apocalypsehow]

90. Meh. Part of growing up is learning that the world is not all about what you like or dislike. n/t.

[jmowreader]

97. Only if you get it vagazzled

If you want to trip out, go to the site http://www.mooncup.co.uk where you will learn all about the Mooncup--a medical-grade silicone cup you insert in your vagina to catch your menstrual flow.

[rcrush]

105. Wha?

Whoa

[whistler162]

7. Yup because I want to hear a graphic description of

what a Tampon will do OR a graphic description of what Viagra will do!

GEEEEZZZZZ..... it ain't squeamishness to have a modicum of good sense!

I am also guessing that woman do know what Tampons are for!

[Mari333]

12. well AFTER menopause, you can use them for THIS!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjEV5si59W0

[leftofcool]

35. After I hit the meno, I burned my last tampon as a votif candle

poured out some wine on the Earth and sang praises to every Goddess's name I could remember.

[Mari333]

37. woot!!!

I remember the first time I tried to use one at age 13. I could not figure it out, I felt like I was walking around with a fuse about to be lit.

man, so glad thats all over with. woohooooo

[leftofcool]

38. OMG! Me too!

[ensho]

53. kick

nt

[Captain Hilts]

13. I don't want to hear about pontoons while eating in front of the TV. The ads about boy parts

are all over sports broadcasting and I don't want to see those either.

[Mari333]

16. I would rather hear about vaginas and tampons whilst perusing the tube

then watch little boogers dying from a dose of Mucinex, or little fungus creatures living under my toenails

[Captain Hilts]

22. I think the toe fungus monsters are cute!

[peekaloo]

32. The nurses at the local clinic have Digger toys on their desks.

Pharma reps use them as a "thank you".

[SoCalDem]

82. and famous too.. one became sec of state

[Captain Hilts]

85. Okay, I laughed. nt

[PCIntern]

124. FUNNY! DUzy! n/t

[TalkingDog]

28. +1 I just about gag every time a Mucinex commercial comes on.

How can they think that's going to make me WANT their product?

[pipi_k]

45. I'm still traumatized

from finding out my snot is partying inside my head. At least it explains the tiny pizza boxes and paper cups that come out when I blow my nose.

[TalkingDog]

50. Ha...That's pretty much how I feel about it....n/t

[Captain Hilts]

86. Okay, I don't see a lot of TV, so I don't know what that is....but just the name...

makes me go 'eeeuuuwwww'.

When I occasionally watch programming that is aimed towards women, I'm horrified by the number of 'beauty' and 'health' products. And how many I don't know what they're for. Like the birth control hula hoop ad. What's with that? Or the competing products to give you just a couple big periods a year that list completely different sets of side effects even though their products do the same thing.

It's all too much and too icky.

[TalkingDog]

23. Sadly, you would be shocked at what men and women don't know about their bodies.

Since you are obviously a modest person, I won't go into detail, but having taught teens and adults most of my life, I will tell you the ignorance is abysmal.

[customerserviceguy]

10. That was funny

but I've never heard a stiffy pill ad use the p-word, either.

[Fumesucker]

18. Well, there's the C-word and the T-word and of course the P-word..

Variety, the spice of life, innit?

[dipsydoodle]

25. You forgot the S word

for postage stamp licker.

[GodlessBiker]

24. But you can say "erection" as much as you want, particularly four hour erections.

[dipsydoodle]

26. That's a bit stiff

:rofl:

[RainDog]

29. aren't you being hard on the advertisers?

or is that their clientele?

[shotten99]

27. What a bunch of pussies....

[Supersedeas]

91. Exactly

[salguine]

30. .

[dipsydoodle]

31. And presumably

uptight and out of sight is totally out of the question.

[rurallib]

33. The Mooncup product mentioned there was quite interesting.

Think I will pass it on to my daughters and see if they are interested

[leftofcool]

36. I have one of those.....sort of

Shaped like a vagina cup with a hole in it. Use it for backwoods hiking so I can stand up and pee.

[rurallib]

39. I have seen those on the internet also.

The mooncup seems like a great idea, but American women have been so brainwashed to believe that tampons or pads are the only choice. No doubt that is due to the advertising done by the tampon and pad companies, which are HUGE conglomerates (P&G and Kimberly Clark)

[Berry Cool]

42. I have actually seen women in discussion forums express revulsion at the idea of using a cup

because they are afraid they will get their hands messy from using it, and they don't want to have to cope with all that "disease" and "bacteria." They honestly think that their menstrual flow is dirty and diseased. They don't believe it when told it is not; that obviously, one wants to wash it off one's hands if it gets on them, but it's not going to make you sick. And if it were, it wouldn't exactly be the ideal medium for fetal development, but that's exactly what it is.

[emmadoggy]

102. Crazy, isn't it?

My cup has been a godsend for me, but both of my sisters are completely disgusted at the thought of it.

[KittyWampus]

46. I posted a thread in GD about Mooncups here on DU. It was promptly shuttled to the Health Forum.

So even those on the liberal Left are squeamish.

I am going on 50 and had never heard of a Mooncup and thought it was a good item. There are probably other women who haven't, too.

[Lorien]

72. There are similar products here in the US. They work quite well, are economical

and are safer than tampons for the reasons mentioned on the Mooncup site. So far I've only seen them sold at Drugstore.com though.

[emmadoggy]

101. I got mine from Drugstore.com, but there are actually getting to be a lot

of places to get them. A lot of vitamin/drugstore/health websites & stores carry them. I've even seen them on eBay.

I LOVE my cup!

[emmadoggy]

100. I have a Diva Cup

which is basically the same thing. As far as I'm concerned, menstrual cups are the greatest things since silverware. Ironically, I learned about menstrual cups for the first time right here on DU. After getting one, I was pissed that I hadn't learned about them years earlier. Would have saved me a TON of money and hassle. I wish they would do a much bigger marketing push on them. They are ENORMOUSLY better for the environment, in addition to the other benefits.

Sadly, some women get all icked out by the thought of them, even though they are no ickier than any other menstrual product (in many ways, less). When the time comes for my daughter, she will be getting a cup for sure. I don't want her to have to go through all the misery that I endured.

Definitely, pass the info on to your daughters. Some of the various brands are: Diva Cup, Mooncup, Keeper, Keeper Moon cup, Lunette, Lady Cup. I highly recommend them.

[Berry Cool]

41. I like that ad. It makes fun of all the other ads, with women dancing around

and wearing white and acting like they are utterly thrilled to have their period.

I am also amused by the "related information" appearing at the bottom of the Web page on which this article appears. I have a feeling it was auto-generated by one of the commenters' use of the term "vajayjay."

What is it? A story about Oprah Winfrey, and a story about Jay Leno. Tee hee.

[guitar man]

43. It's not so hard

It's not so hard to get comfortable with those words, if Peggy can do it, anybody can :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CLE-gPIW6w

[Mari333]

44. well, lets just thank the goddess that no one douches with Lysol anymore

[KittyWampus]

47. Jeez, everything someone posts that ad, I understand why guys cradle their crotch

when someone mentions kick to the groin or some such.

OUCHIES!

[Nye Bevan]

76. Ah, the fifties.

Stronger unions = good.

Cheaper houses = good.

Women spraying Lysol in their vaginas = not good.

[Arkansas Granny]

48. Isn't it strange that advertisers cannot name the body parts, but sitcoms can?

I guess it's OK if you're going to laugh about them.

[DainBramaged]

49. What a great commercial...

Say, I have oligarchical dysfunctionality, can I see some commercials that specifically discuss that, including my possible trip to the hospital for a broken whoopdidoo?


Fucking American TeeVee, priceless.

[Mopar151]

79. No fucking on American TeeVee

Pretty f'n lame, when you think about it. Torture, murder, criminal insanity, Paris Hilton - not a problem. Tell a dick joke - big problem!

[marshall]

51. Likewise they don't mention the P word in all those erectile disfuction ads

I do like the retro series of ads with the guy who is taking the product and has a very satisfied wife. It's full of inuendo like his "bulging pride" that gets around the de facto censors.

[mstinamotorcity]

52. Whenever I see those ridiculous

commercials about tampons and sanitary napkins,I wonder who are these women who go around dancing and hiking and wearing white.Then I remember these women are actresses.And they never in my opinion get the point across. If we stop making everything about sex then maybe we can understand anatomy and biology.Penis is natural for a man except if he has E.D. And vagina is natural for a woman unless you have a period.who would have thought.:crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

[pipi_k]

54. No kidding!!! What real world woman in her right mind

would even consider wearing white during her period?

I don't care if you're wearing ten tampons and three super absorbency napkins all at the same time...


move the wrong way and there's gonna be a leak someplace. Especially if one laughs in the face of the Period Goddess by wearing white.



PS...actually I have the same problem with white shirts. Food is attracted to white on me like rare earth magnets tossed into a scrapyard are attracted to the steel. Food hunts me down when I'm wearing white. :cry:

[Matariki]

55. That was great!

thanks for posting that ;-)

[cascadiance]

56. Perhaps they'll do ads like this...

These tampons helps V feel very nice inside for me!

[Texasgal]

57. *sigh* Again...Women

get thrown under the bus. They can talk about "erections" all day long but mention a MEDICAL term like VAGINA and people freak out.

Women, we still have a looong way to go obviously.

[southpaw]

58. Really?

I guess being a man I'm not as sensitive to sexist discrimination, but this seems more an issue of prudery across the board.

I hear advertisers reference periods, yeast infections, menstrual cycles... even 'bleeding' in reference to periods. Just not the word 'vagina' or any of its variants.

How is that different from referring to 'erections' but not saying penis?

[dustbunnie]

59. Vagina is not a medical term. Neither is the word eye or breast.

Erections may be mentioned, but you'll never hear the word penis. People don't like erectile dysfunction ads, but there are plenty of period and birth control commercials to entertain us as well. And then again, while we may not hear the word vajayjay, PSAs constantly remind us to check our breasts. I don't see how women are being thrown under the bus at all.

[Texasgal]

60. Well let's see..

we are talking about a tampon that goes into the VAGINA...right?

What is so offensive about the word VAGINA?

Yes, we Women do get thrown under the bus... when we can't say VAGINA on tveee something is fucking wrong with that especially when the product used is MADE to use in that area of our bodies!!!

[dustbunnie]

63. We don't use the word penis either.

People are offended by the mention of peoples' nether regions in general. Ever read any of the responses on this board to male erectile dysfunction ads? They're virulent and angry half the time. It disgusts people that anything to do with male privates is mentioned, especially since children watch television too. So no, I'm still going to disagree with you. I don't see any difference in the way the sexes are treated, or the way people react either.

[Texasgal]

64. Your choice.

I find it sexist, just my little opinion. :shrug:

[TalkingDog]

103. And there is some of the abysmal ignorance I was just discussing upthread

Where ever did you get the ideas that vagina in not a medical term?

Vaginal Cancer?
Vaginal Discharge?

Medical Definition of Birth canal

1. Cavity of the uterus and vagina through which the foetus passes. Synonym: parturient canal. (05 Mar 2000)
http://www.lexic.us/definition-of/birth_canal

And a host of medical articles in which medical professionals use the term:
http://vsearch.nlm.nih.gov/vivisimo/cgi-bin/query-meta?v:project=medlineplus&query=vagina&x=64&y=7

Mammary Glands instead of Breast I will grant.

[dustbunnie]

120. Vaginal cancer is a medical condition. The vagina is a part of the anatomy.

That's how most people see it. But regardless, since teevee ads don't mention other "medical terms" like penis and anus, why does the vagina need special deference? Is it somehow empowering to insecure women to hear the word vagina spoken aloud on television? Personally, I'm enamored of the "medical term" uterus and would like tampon ads to shout the word out at least five times per segment to stroke my feminist sensibilities. And as per this new ad, the blue liquid pisses me off too. I want them to use real blood. I'd like adult diaper ads to use real urine (that's medical speak for pee) so I can truly feel what the incontinent elderly experience. Of course, we also need ads showing people taking massive dumps so we can properly assess the quality of toilet paper they're hocking.

[Nye Bevan]

75. This is not a sexist policy,

As some of the comments point out, if Viagra ads were allowed to say "this makes your penis hard" and toilet paper ads could say "great for wiping feces off your anus" then you would have a point. Mentioning "erections" is analogous to mentioning "periods", which tampon ads are allowed to do.

[Maru Kitteh]

61. I'm guessing Viagra can't mention the P word either. What word does Vagisil use?

Lady business?

[Echo In Light]

62. Astonishingly dumb. 21st century & still can't say VAGINA. No wonder this country sucks like it does

[Bluebear]

65. Viagra good. Vagina bad.

USA! USA!

[tridim]

66. Maude Lebowski: The word itself makes some men uncomfortable. Vagina.

The Dude: Oh yeah?

[Contrary1]

67. I like this one:

[dustbunnie]

69. That's funny. On the other hand my best male friend admitted that he used to masturbate --

to the instructional drawing inside his sister's tampoon box when he was fourteen.

[Arkana]

68. You mean...BAJINGO?

[Lorien]

70. Lol! Great ad!

[progressoid]

71. Nor do we hear the words penis or anus on the TV...

:shrug:

[Bluebear]

77. 'Even when the company substituted "down there" for vagina, 2 of the networks still wouldn't run ad"

:shrug:

[dustbunnie]

89. When was the last time a TV ad replaced testicles and penis with "down there"?

Wouldn't fly with the mainstream crowd either, especially those with children who are even MORE obsessed with any mention of male genitalia.

[Bluebear]

93. Well, they sure say "ERECTION" over and over on the air

[dustbunnie]

96. Heh, heh, yes they do. But that's always during the dreaded side effects portion of the ad.

The actual ad is usually some cryptic metaphors using water hoses and bathtubs overflowing as the nod nod wink wink, or the one I never understood where the dude forgets his keys and everything else. But the women's birth control ads also get much more descriptive during their side effects portions as well.

Personally as a woman, I don't see how a commercial spouting the word vagina is going to make me feel so empowered that I'll buy one tampoon brand over another. The vagina really has nothing to do with my period. My uterus does. I know how my body works and quite frankly, I'd much prefer the humorous Mother Nature Gift ads over some dull, serious ad showing me blood on a tampax (thanks, I see it every month and flush it down the toilet fast as I can) while instructing me about my vagina which again, has absolutely not one franking thing to do with my period.

[pipi_k]

119. I don't know about anyone else, but I hear it all the time

on "The Doctors".

Different topics every day. They use words like "penis", "vagina", "breasts", "clitoris", "snot", "uterus", etc.

They take topics that are embarrassing for a lot of people and make them sort of lighthearted and fun and easier to talk about.

[Liberal_in_LA]

80. But we can see commercials about bears and toilet paper, how the softness doesn't hurt their asses.

[pipi_k]

95. And now the secret is out...

Bears do shit in the woods.

And they're so civilized they use toilet paper afterwards.


Who knew?

[jmowreader]

125. A bear and a rabbit were shitting in the woods

After they were done, the bear asked the rabbit if shit sticks to his fur.

"No, Mr. Bear, shit does not stick to my fur."

So the bear reached for the rabbit...

[Touchdown]

81. Vanity?

:shrug:

[Hannah Bell]

83. this is like 1 millionth on my list of pressing issues.

[Odin2005]

84. And yet the boner pill adds can talking about 4hr hard-ons all they want

Which is not something I want to hear on TV.

[Captain Hilts]

87. Agree. I don't want to hear about that. nt

[upi402]

88. But Viagra, Extens, Trojan

and a congressman named Boner, Presidents named Bush, and a former veep we all know as a Dick - all no problem. Adults need to use baby words in the land of the free.

[shockra]

92. Yes, we have no vaginas

We have no vaginas today!

[BlueIris]

94. Use of the word vagina causes ad revenues to drop.

Thanks, misogyny!

[nickinSTL]

98. look at the number of recommendations on each comment

the one with the most, by far, is the following:

Why are they being so prudish, they had no problem with having a twat for President for 8 years...

:spray:

:rofl:

[anigbrowl]

99. I think they need to do another ad...

The advertising bit can be the same old euphemisms - 'it's the perfect product for your unspeakable feminine sanitary requirements' - but every shot should include a randomly placed cat looking happy about...something.

alternatively, muffins. Bonus points if you can show someone eating one.

[rcrush]

106. I think I learned more than I wanted to learn in this thread.

[TalkingDog]

118. If you are a guy you can never know to much about women's bodies

Trust me. Women are impressed and appreciative when a guy actually doesn't get that - OMG are you freakin' kiddin' me!? - look on his face when a woman talks about something that's just a part of life for her.

We have put up with feeling like mutant freaks for most of our lives, based in part, on ads like the one mocked in the video.

There is a graffito you run across occasionally in the men's bathroom (don't get me started on potty parity) that reads:

"I don't trust anything that can bleed for a week and still not die."


While I get deflecting your anxieties with humor, it does wear on ones psyche after a while.


But your subject line still made me laugh.

[Jkid]

110. Puritanism

For years, advertising for tampons and "sanitary products" have been shrouded in nebulous euphemism. So what happens when a US tampon-maker drops the coy messaging and goes straight for the jugular (so to speak)? Its ad gets banned by the major US television networks for mentioning the word vagina.

Problem is that US Broadcasters have their own self-regulation guidelines known as Standards and Practices. Problem is that those guidelines are never shown to the public, at all. That's why they can get away with this.

[TalkingDog]

116. Aqua Teen Hunger Force did an episode with "FU"s

to Standards and Practices.

The part where they blow the nun's head off with a close range shotgun blast and a rainbow sounded by a holy choir comes out the hole, always cracks my (formerly) Catholic husband up.

[Taverner]

111. Tampay-yay your Vajay-jay!

Seriously, why don't they hire me to write ads...

[Sabriel]

114. I was hoping that the Google ad at the end would be for tampons

Sadly, no.

Where's their sense of timing?

[MindPilot]

115. My license plate is 3-VAG-8 something something...

It's what the DMV gave me....

[ThatsMyBarack]

121. Lots of cable FAKEality shows....

Use the V and P words all the time.

The shows don't get ratings if they aren't filled with sleaze, loose morals, and SEX.