# I saw an ad today.Was it wrong, on so many levels, as I suspect, or am I jst old? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 18, 2004, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825 "2004-09-18T08:39:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/21 "2004-09-18T19:47:44Z")
[Is this the ad](http://www.motherhood.com/home.asp?Media=Motherhood)? ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/22 "2004-09-18T20:24:06Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > [Is this the ad](http://www.motherhood.com/home.asp?Media=Motherhood)? She looks about 23. ---
**Author:** ![PussyCow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/22d042/32.png) [@PussyCow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PussyCow)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/23 "2004-09-18T20:33:38Z")
Yes, I have to admit that after seeing the advertisement myself I do not find it that offensive. She doesn’t look like a teenager to me, either. It is goofy, though. Pregnant women may be very beautiful and even sexually appealing. But commercializing it in this way is just silly. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/24 "2004-09-18T20:35:46Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > She looks about 23. . . . and not pregnant. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/25 "2004-09-18T20:49:44Z")
> [@5 time champ](#): > > . . . and not pregnant. No, she is pregnant. You can tell by how her belly curves. She’s just not that far along is all. In fact when I was 9 months pregnant I didn’t look much bigger than that. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/26 "2004-09-18T20:51:46Z")
Or, looking again, it’s just how she’s standing. She could be somewhere around 4-5 months. It really depends on the size of the woman and how many babies are in there on how pregnant she looks. ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/27 "2004-09-18T20:53:45Z")
> [@Weird](#): > > Besides, you know she puts out. 😃 :p:D:p ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/28 "2004-09-18T21:36:40Z")
> [@5 time champ](#): > > . . . and not pregnant. Yeah, she looks like a fat slob who doesn’t know to cover up a beer belly. I’d say that’s about 40% of the female population lately. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/29 "2004-09-18T22:54:11Z")
She looks about 30 to me. ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/30 "2004-09-18T23:08:15Z")
I don’t think the ad is that bad. It’s a maternity store catering to _already pregnant_ women. Why not send the message that it’s possible to still be sexy while you’re pregnant? Pregnant women _are_ sexy. It’s certainly a lot better message than “yes, you do look like a cow – we’ll help you cover your big fat self up. Try a mumu.” I don’t see how this ad is going to encourage teens to go out and get pregnant. Now, if the Gap was running this ad, that’d be a different story… ---
**Author:** ![look\_ninjas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@look\_ninjas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_ninjas)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/31 "2004-09-19T01:53:27Z")
I think they were just trying to point out that being pregnant is no reason to cover yourself in a shapeless floral sack. A lot of pregnant women are out looking for cute maternity clothing, and they were trying to put themselves out there as a source for those sorts of things. That said, the ad as described doesn’t quite seem to be saying what they wanted it to say, but I don’t think the intent was to get teenagers to be pregnant as a trend thing. So, another vote for “Maybe unfortunate, probably not skanky.” ---
**Author:** ![FaerieBeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e95f7d/32.png) [@FaerieBeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FaerieBeth)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/32 "2004-09-19T03:27:46Z")
> [@Lillith Fair](#): > > There is one picture of a girl going to a dance and she is pregnant. The dress has an opening and her belly is sticking out. [http://www.uglydress.com/pregpromdres.html](http://www.uglydress.com/pregpromdres.html) > You must see it. Okay. Upon viewing this picture, one thing sprang to mind, and it was the theme music from Flash Gordon. I don’t know why. FB ---
**Author:** ![Lynne\_kilii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lynne\_kilii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynne_kilii)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/33 "2004-09-19T04:20:35Z")
I think she looks really cute, but the second she moved, it’d all ride up, and that would not be cute. And she’d look just as cute if her tank top and shirt were long enough. Also, she doesn’t look like a teenager to me. I’m 19. And fat. There’s a difference between pregnant and fat and flabby. One can be quite cute. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/34 "2004-09-19T04:31:38Z")
> [@FaerieBeth](#): > > Okay. Upon viewing this picture, one thing sprang to mind, and it was the theme music from Flash Gordon. I don’t know why. > FB I’m hearing [The Teddy Bears’ Picnic](http://mywebpages.comcast.net/cpeek001/tbp.mp3) … but that’s just me. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/35 "2004-09-19T05:12:39Z")
This chick is _so_ not a teenager. Jeez, I clicked on the ad link expecting someone like Hillary Duff, and instead I see, like, Hilary Swank! So don’t worry, **picunurse** ; it’s just a mildly pregnant chick in a fugly outfit that looks like something in Denise Huxtable’s closet. Preggos can be tacky too! ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/36 "2004-09-19T05:16:31Z")
I would have a different interpretation of the intent behind the ad. In the first place, I expect most models to be very young (16-24ish) so rather than portraying the target audience, I would assume that she is just a pretty clothes horse who happened to be pregnant at the right time. The idea that they were specifically advertising to teens wouldn’t occur to me unless the girl looked 13ish. Trying to think of an example where the youngest of the age group are used to promote something is tricky and the best I can come up with right now is the television show “The OC”, where the actors playing the “parents” (mostly the mothers) in real life were mostly in their early teens when the actors playing their children were born. It’s not about realism, it’s all about the look of things. In the world of advertising and television, youth is the most desireable characteristic and youth sells. I also don’t think the slogan was intended to “promote” pregnancy so much as appeal to pregnant women who feel unattractive or overlooked by the fashion world. Many expectant mothers complain that they can’t find nice maternity clothes and end up wearing stuff that makes them feel frumpy and ugly, so to see an ad slogan promising that “Pregnancy can be HOT!” would catch their attention and make them reach for their wallets. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/37 "2004-09-19T06:11:50Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > [Is this the ad](http://www.motherhood.com/home.asp?Media=Motherhood)? Yes, and no. Same store, different girl, in slightly different clothes. Since I had to go back to the same mall today, I checked again. The girl (woman) on the poster does look like a teen, but maybe not 14 or 15. However, she really doesn’t look pregnant. She looks like her jeans are too tight, and her tummy is squished out of them. I have to apologize. I mis-quoted the text. It did say “_Motherhood_ is Hot” not, Pregnant is hot. I truly thought I’d quoted correctly :smack: Could the beatings be postponed, though? I just don’t feel up to it today. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/38 "2004-09-19T07:18:00Z")
Hmm…now I’m wondering “which mall”? According to a few news articles, it’s part of a campaign that features a number of different pregnant women looking “hot.” But that’s the only ad picture that I could find (which is why I wondered if that was the poster). ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/39 "2004-09-19T16:48:24Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > I know that when I was pregnant, I didn’t feel attractive - I felt like a beached whale, and the maternity clothes I was able to find only made things worse. Doreen, let me assure you, women who are pregnant look **wonderful**. They _glow_. Let me ask you, when you were obviously pregnant, how often did men leap to their feet to help or offer to help, or ask if you needed help? ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825/40 "2004-09-19T17:51:24Z")
> [@qts](#): > > Doreen, let me assure you, women who are pregnant look **wonderful**. Just to clarify, lest people get the wrong impression :D, I mean in a non-sexual way. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-an-ad-today-was-it-wrong-on-so-many-levels-as-i-suspect-or-am-i-jst-old/264825.md?page=3)