To find the new Alexa ad sexist and disturbing

[Sugarleaf]

The premise seems to be: men can’t help their aggression and swearing, but they have to try to rein it in for the sake of the women and children, so Alexa steps in to help.
I googled the man in question and apparently he’s well known, but I had no idea who he was. What I see is a man being aggressive, AI playing music so ‘the cops aren’t called,’ leaving his sister and the children outside while he tries to get his aggression out of his system.

And I really don’t like the way this portrays women as genteel, non-swearing creatures who need protecting from men’s behaviour. Women swear. We don’t need to be cast as the delicate audience for men trying to manage their own behaviour.

Alexa being a female and coaching this poor aggressive man just adds to the weirdness
The whole premise feels pretty patronising

AIBU?

(ps the original post was withdrawn due to a problem with the link!)

He's an actor, well known for swearing on Ted Lasso. He doesn't leave his family outside, they arrive as he finishes. And there's another version featuring Nikki Glaser, who's also well known for her swearing on stage, so it's not Amazon being sexist, there's equal opportunities bad language users.

The idea of a female AI suggesting playing music so the neighbours don’t ’call the cops’ on a man aggressively swearing is just…fine?

I did. I said I googled and found out he’s a well known actor. But I’ve never heard of him. I’ve never seen Ted Lasso. And he’s not playing his character in Ted Lasso he’s playing himself.

Jeez.

Just give it up

Sorry what’s this? The Alexa that plays music? Is it a show it’s doing?

No, it’s a tv ad.

Here is the ad for anyone who’s not seen it

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-3g4PrC6G7U&ra=m

Yeh, that advert doesn't make any sense if you don't know Ted Lasso.
It calls him Brett (actors name) but the whole scenario is from Ted Lasso (sister, niece, swearing). If you watch Ted Lasso you'll know his character swears a LOT and his niece picks it up which gets her and him in trouble at school, but he's not aggressive at all, he's very very sweet and loves his niece and is very good with her, going to all the parents evenings and things, he's just a habitual swearer.

I just watched it, hadn’t seen it before. It’s nothing to do with a man needing to get his aggression out and calm down before seeing women and children though so a little irrelevant

its very clearly the children he’s not to swear in front of, not a poor, defenceless woman.

this really is a reach and a half.

That makes more sense. But only 900,000 people in the UK have an Apple sub so could ever have seen Ted Lasso. Assuming a very very generous half of subscribers have seen it, that makes 450,000 out of 65m population. So 0.7% of the population will know the context. For the rest, it’s an aggressive man being calmed by a woman before he sees his family. Not a good message.

plus I hate the implication he’s calling Alexa a cheeky ‘cunt’ at the end.

I’ve actually just rewatched it….which part do you find him agressive in? Because even the part where he’s pacing up and down swearing, it just looks like he’s reciting swearwords.

As people have said he is a sweary character in a t v show, he is probably a bit sweary in real life his stand up is sweary, he doesn't seem a particularly aggressive man, the clip you are probably referring to is when he asked to be the Character he was writing for, i mean you are entitled to be offended but I don't really see the offence.

Brett Goldstein has said that being on Sesame street was the best day of his fucking life 😂 so I really can't see him being too aggressive, some people just swear as part of their vocabulary.

I’m not offended. I swear a lot a lot. I’m more concerned with the idea of a female (AI) placating an angry man, needing to play loud music so ‘the neighbours don’t call the cops.’ Considering people don’t tend to call the police unless they’re very concerned, that suggests a huge level of aggression from him. Plus it’s suggested he calls Alexa either a cheeky ‘bitch’ or ‘cunt’ at the end which is horrible gendered swearing.

The whole thing just feels off for daytime tv where it’s on super high repeat and kids are watching. They certainly won’t have seen Ted Lasso and understand the context. They just see an angry sweary man being placated.

Considering how many women on here deal with angry sweary men in their lives it doesn’t seem sensible to normalise it.

I wonder if it would come across better if his Speaker was a man ? I can see what you are saying@Sugarleaf i just don't agree i don't think he sounded angry when he was talking to it.

I get where you're coming from, but its more that his character on Ted Lasso loves to swear 😄

Edit, Roy Kent, the character, is beloved and kind. He's also grumpy and sweary but you grow to love him

Maybe he was going to call her a cheeky bastard? Would that have been ok?

I mean, I haven't got an Alexa at all because I'm perfectly capable of ordering my own take outs and turning my lights on an off.

But ..... I think you're probably way overthinking this 😊

I don't mind the swearing but the idea of Alexa being anyone's "mate" gives me the heebie-jeebies.

They have a similar one running for a woman with road rage so I think yabu .

I find it quite funny.

And why does it have to be MEN can’t help their aggression and swearing, rather than this one man minding his swearing in front of his nieces and nephews, which their mother had quite clearly asked him to do?

It's not anywhere near as deep as you've twisted it.