“Less than three in ten science and engineering jobs are held by women,” says a faceless female voice within the first five seconds of IBM’s “Hack-A-Hairdryer” commercial. This is true. Although women comprise half of the total U.S. workforce, only twenty-four percent of STEM workers are female (Beede et al., 2011, p. 2). Even within the past few years, gender gaps in many engineering fields continue to widen (Accenture & Girls Who Code, 2016). The alarming statistics of women in STEM have pressured big name companies such as Microsoft and Google to implement their own initiatives that expose young girls to technology. In late 2015, IBM began its “Hack-A-Hairdryer” campaign, hoping to inspire females to pursue STEM careers; instead, there was
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If one disregards the idea that a hairdryer is a patronizing symbol of women in tech, the video is actually fairly enjoyable, resembling a cool science fair project or a Rube Goldberg machine. We see a ping pong ball roll down a slope and pop a balloon, followed by women tinkering with hairdryers. Sexist statements such as “Only men wear lab coats” are spelled out in liquid but eradicated by the hairdryers. A hairdryer-powered projectile launcher shoots ping pong balls across the room. There is even a “wind clock,” in which hairdryers float more ping pong balls at various positions in the air in order to tell time. Additional hairdryers melt ice and blow into harmonicas. In the final scene of the commercial, hairdryers are mounted to skateboards and sent down an incline, all the while blasting confetti. The overall construction of the commercial is very entertaining, working to draw young women into a fantastical world based on technology. The commercial is targeted towards females, given by the fact that the first line mentions how few engineering jobs are held by women. Specifically, the cutesy and artsy-craftsy quality suggests that girls in middle school or high school are the intended audience. Moreover, school-aged girls are still exploring possible career paths and have not made any enduring decisions in regards to their careers, so STEM recruitment efforts would have the most
If one disregards the idea that a hairdryer is a patronizing symbol of women in tech, the video is actually fairly enjoyable, resembling a cool science fair project or a Rube Goldberg machine. We see a ping pong ball roll down a slope and pop a balloon, followed by women tinkering with hairdryers. Sexist statements such as “Only men wear lab coats” are spelled out in liquid but eradicated by the hairdryers. A hairdryer-powered projectile launcher shoots ping pong balls across the room. There is even a “wind clock,” in which hairdryers float more ping pong balls at various positions in the air in order to tell time. Additional hairdryers melt ice and blow into harmonicas. In the final scene of the commercial, hairdryers are mounted to skateboards and sent down an incline, all the while blasting confetti. The overall construction of the commercial is very entertaining, working to draw young women into a fantastical world based on technology. The commercial is targeted towards females, given by the fact that the first line mentions how few engineering jobs are held by women. Specifically, the cutesy and artsy-craftsy quality suggests that girls in middle school or high school are the intended audience. Moreover, school-aged girls are still exploring possible career paths and have not made any enduring decisions in regards to their careers, so STEM recruitment efforts would have the most