A Cross-National Comparison of the Use of Sex in Chinese and British Television Advertising

The use of words and images which explicitly or implicitly convey sexual meanings in selling messages has been commonplace in the recent history of the advertising industry. Many brands, such as Calvin Klein, Guess, and Victoria’s Secret, have set a high bar for provocative nudity and sexual fire (Reichert, 2003). The manner in which sex appeals are presented in television advertising has received some attention (Downs & Harrison, 1985; Lovdal, 1989; Lin, 1998). This thesis will investigate the use of sexual themes in television advertising in Britain and China. Sexual themes have featured as an important aspect of advertising since the earliest days of media advertising in the 19th century (Reichert, 2003).These themes have continued to be used and their use in advertising has expanded and diversified. Whilst sexual themes in television advertising have been studied in Britain previously, there is little research of this kind in China. The use of sexual themes in Chinese advertising has risen along with economic growth; however, no systematic research has yet been carried out into the ways these themes are deployed in advertising in China. This thesis attempts to gain a comprehensive understanding of what ‘sex’ in advertising is, how it is represented in Chinese advertising, and how it works to affect audiences or even the whole Chinese society. This thesis also contributes to an understanding of the differences and similarities in how sex appeals are presented in China and Britain. [Taken from the Introduction]