Rogers (2008), "Meat and the Crisis of Masculinity in Contemporary Television Advertisements"

Rogers (2008) study examines the "crisis of masculinity" in terms of three similar food advertisements. In these commercials, masculinity is understood as opposite feminized food choices and the environment.

1. The crisis in masculinity involves pitting masculinity against femininity, physical strength against intellectual development, sexual virility against restraint, and working class versus white collar jobs.

Rogers (2008) argues that these commercial represent men reclaiming the masculine element of each of these dichotomies through their food choices. Though the commercials do not explicitly address a threat to masculinity, they signal this threat by overemphasizing the importance of masculinity in areas like food, vehicles, and environments.

2. These commercials signal women as the cause of the crisis of masculinity.

In his analysis, Rogers (2008) argues that women are often positioned as the cause of men's loss of masculinity. Women in the ads try to influence their partners to eat "chick food," drive minivans, and assemble fancy furniture.

3. These commercials indicate that reclamation of masculinity can only happen through disregard to the environment and animals.

Rogers (2008) argues that the absent referent in these commercials is the process of obtaining red meat: suffering, exploitation, and the slaughter of animals, as well as the degradation of the environment.