YWCA launches YouTube ad campaign against sexualized music videos

YWCA fights sexualized music videos A local group has launched a campaign against music videos by Ariana Grande, Blake Shelton and other major stars.

The Metro Vancouver chapter of the YWCA is calling out some of the most popular music videos on YouTube for misogyny and sexualizing women.

The non-profit launched a new attention-grabbing ad campaign this week that's running before certain songs, tagging them with warning labels including "female objectification," "hypermasculinization," and "sexist content."

"Sexualization contributes to violence against women," the ads read. "Viewer discretion and critical thinking required."

Dozens of major artists, including Ariana Grande and Blake Shelton, have been targeted.

The YWCA said the aim of the campaign is to encourage people to think critically about the kind of media they're consuming, and what impact it has on the culture at large.

"The whole point of a campaign like this is to get people talking about it," said Chantelle Krish, director of advocacy for the group.

According to the YWCA, the sexualization of women and hypermasculinization of men in popular culture normalizes sexist attitudes. Those attitudes then contribute to increased incidents of violence against women.

"The way women are sexualized in media… devalues women by placing their main source of value on their physical attractiveness and desirability," Krish said.

That can also lead to mental health issues and eating disorders for young women and girls, she added. On the flip side, portraying men as hypermasculine can have damaging effects on boys.

"If young boys are told that they're not supposed to cry and they're supposed to be tough, what happens when they are faced with those emotions, which inevitably will happen?" Krish said.

The ads, which are part of the YWCA's Culture Shift project, are set to run until Saturday, when they will overlap with Women's Equality Day in the U.S. The group said the campaign could be extended.

With files from CTV Vancouver's Maria Weisgarber