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The social media movement born of Alan Jones' sexist comments had huge early success, but its clicktivists' wings have since been clipped. It was around the year of my birth that Philip Morris began a campaign to seduce its female smokers. In an era largely untroubled by my pregnant mother's cigarettes, the Virginia Slims campaign was, in itself, unsurprising.
What was surprising was the company's use of a ''women's libber'' to promote its product. This was the first time feminism sold anything to anyone; apart from its core principles, I suppose. Since then, the idea of an emerging social freedom has been used many times to sell women face cream and alcohol. The ''you go girl'' message has been successfully co-opted to bring my gender high heels and financial services and small cars. Because you're worth it.
These days, women are still buying back their own dissent from advertisers. But things are different now. In an age of social networking, where so many of us feel we are in ''control'' of our media, the way to a lady's wallet is a more difficult business....
