Pioneering African-American Women in the Advertising Business: Biographies of MAD Black WOMEN / Edition 1

by Judy Davis

Overview

Much has been written about the men and women who shaped the field of advertising, some of whom became legends in the industry. However, the contributions of African-American women to the advertising business have largely been omitted from these accounts. Yet, evidence reveals that some trailblazing African-American women who launched their careers during the 1960s Mad Men era went on to achieve prominent careers. This unique book chronicles the nature and significance of these women’s accomplishments, examines the opportunities and challenges they experienced, and explores how they coped with the extensive inequities common in the advertising profession.

Using a biographical narrative approach, this book examines the careers of these important African-American women who not only achieved managerial positions in major mainstream advertising agencies but also established successful agencies bearing their own names. Based on their words and memories, this study reveals experiences which are intriguing, triumphant, bittersweet, and sometimes tragic. These women’s stories comprise a vital part of the historical narrative on women and African-Americans in advertising and will be instructive not only to scholars of advertising and marketing history but to future generations of advertising professionals.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780815369929
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	10/26/2017
Series:	Routledge Studies in the History of Marketing
Pages:	254
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Judy Foster Davis is a Professor of Marketing at Eastern Michigan University, USA. Her research interests concern integrated marketing communications (IMC) strategies and policies, historical and multicultural marketing topics and online pedagogy. She is a graduate of Howard University and Michigan State University.

Table of Contents

1. Women and African-Americans in the Advertising Profession: An Historical Overview of the Industry and People

2. Barbara Gardner Proctor: Unconventional Advertising Pioneer

3. Caroline Robinson Jones: Tenacious Advertising Trailblazer

4. Joel P. Martin: Transformative Artist

5. Carol H. Williams: Marathon Woman

6. African-American Women and Structural Oppression in the Advertising Industry

Editorial Reviews

"Dr. Judy Davis has crafted a fantastic book that fills a significant gap in the historiography of the advertising industry. The experiences and contributions of African American women to the industry have long been an overlooked aspect of advertising. Yet as Dr. Davis so expertly demonstrates, black women have been some of the most impactful professionals, entrepreneurs, and top creative forces in advertising. As such they have been a force in challenging many of its most demeaning characterizations of African Americans as a group and black women in particular. This book should be required reading for advertising professionals and students of advertising around the country."
Jason P. Chambers, PhD, Associate Professor, University of Illinois

"Dr. Judy Davis has created a powerful book examining the challenges, roles, and contributions of Mad Black Women in the advertising industry, preserving a previously unchartered piece of history. Her comprehensive cultural research and true narrative accounts of shocking racial diversity struggles offers lessons for students, scholars, practitioners, and readers. This ‘behind the scenes’ approach prompts honest discourse and dialogue on issues of race and gender that are still highly relevant. Such compelling stories of how these rare women rose to success, in spite of tremendous obstacles offers hope, yet questions why such diversity issues and barriers still exist today. Together, we will all rise through better understanding such history!"
Sheila Sasser, Dr, Professor of Marketing, Eastern Michigan University, SWOCC Fellow, University of Amsterdam, Adcraft Lifetime Member, AAF, AAA, EAA, Former Advertising Industry Veteran, Senior Vice President, and Managing Director

"Pioneering African-American Women in the Advertising Business offers an important (and corrective) addition to the historiography of advertising. The book provides a detailed account of four admirable success stories. More compellingly, it situates the women’s biographies within the broader historical development of the advertising industry. Despite the efforts of the women in this book, the advertising industry still struggles with issues of diversity and inclusion. This book should be required reading for scholars and practitioners in the field who are concerned with these issues."

Corey D. Fields, Department of Sociology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA

From the Publisher