Gender Stereotypes in Television Advertising During Super Bowl XLVIII and the Sochi Winter Olympics

This study analyzed the presence of gender role stereotyping in advertising broadcast during Super Bowl XLVIII and the Sochi Winter Olympics. These specific events hold interest because the ratio of male versus female viewers was nearly opposite between the two events (Nielsen Company, 2010). They also aired within a month of each other. The study’s design primarily followed Knoll, Eisend, and Steinhagen (2011). Gender stereotyping was assessed based on five categories: age, credibility, location, product type, and relational role. Descriptive results showed some apparent stereotyping differences between the two events, but did not show consistently greater gender stereotyping at one event or in any one category analyzed. However, findings offer insight about the prevalence of gender stereotyping in broadcast advertising targeted to sports audiences