Gender-Neutral Easy-Bake Oven Announced By Hasbro Following 13-Year-Old's Petition

[Claire Diviner]

Here's a bit of some light-hearted news to balance out some of the recent bad news:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/2012/12/17/gender-neutral-easy-bake-oven_n_2318521.html

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Hasbro says it will soon reveal a gender-neutral Easy-Bake Oven after meeting with a New Jersey girl who started a campaign calling on the toy maker to make one that appeals to all kids.

McKenna Pope, 13, of Garfield, N.J., got more than 40,000 signatures on her online petition at Change.org and the support of celebrity chefs including Bobby Flay, who backed her call for Hasbro to make a gender-neutral oven and to include boys in the ads.

She was prompted to start the petition after shopping for an Easy-Bake as a Christmas present for her 4-year-old brother, Gavyn Boscio, and finding them only in purple and pink.

Hasbro invited McKenna and her family to its Pawtucket, R.I., headquarters to meet with its Easy-Bake team, and on Monday, they drove to Rhode Island from New Jersey. During the meeting, Hasbro executives showed off a prototype of their newest Easy-Bake: one that's black, silver and blue.

Hasbro has been working on the new color scheme and design for about 18 months, and decided to invite McKenna to see it and offer her thoughts, said John Frascotti, Hasbro's chief marketing officer.

McKenna said the company is doing everything she asked, including putting boys in the ads.

"I think that they really met most or even all of what I wanted them to do, and they really amazed me," she said, adding that Gavyn thought the new design was "awesome."

Frascotti pointed out that the classic toy has had about a dozen different color schemes, from yellow to green to teal to silver, since first being introduced in 1963. The most recent iteration, introduced in 2011, is mostly purple with pink accents.

He said it's sold well since then, and that prompted the company to look for a way to update it and to broaden the consumer base by doing it in different colors.

"It's actually a product that's played with by both boys and girls," he said. "We will continue to offer the existing product too because it's so popular."

Hasbro plans to introduce the new color scheme at the industry's Toy Fair in New York in February. Frascotti said people are likely to see it on store shelves next summer.

As for McKenna's Christmas present for her brother, she said the TV show "Inside Edition" gave the family an Easy-Bake Oven after learning of her campaign. For Christmas, she said, she'll probably buy him some mixes to bake in it.

 

[Falconv1.0]

I hope this fails miserably.

I'm still allowed to say things like that without being called a sexist pig, right?

 

[Holder of the Heel]

^ Sexist pig.

 

[Jon Farron]

Huh, why didn't they have this when I was little? D:

I used to use my sisters all the time because she never used it... those cakes were good ._.

 

[Yodery]

Stoners everywhere just **** their pants.

 

[Froggy]

Wow, people actually standing up for the rights for males. I'm impressed.

 

[Claire Diviner]

Wow, people actually standing up for the rights for males. I'm impressed.

I think the most impressive thing about this report was how it was a 13-year-old girl who petitioned for this.

 

[deepseadiva]

This should have happened decades ago dammit.

 

[Falconv1.0]

Wow, people actually standing up for the rights for males. I'm impressed.

Having the easy bake oven marketed towards boys is standing up for the rights of males?

Oh yeah sure we'll give up all our other personal freedoms but WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO HAVE GENDER LINES BLURRED DAMMIT.

 

[Froggy]

I think the most impressive thing about this report was how it was a 13-year-old girl who petitioned for this.

It's actually less impressive. The cynic in me kinda just wants to credit to a childish sense of justice that seems to disappear in adults. I'm happy that they got Hasbro to do something about it though.

Having the easy bake oven marketed towards boys is standing up for the rights of males?

Oh yeah sure we'll give up all our other personal freedoms but WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO HAVE GENDER LINES BLURRED DAMMIT.

It's not much but gotta start somewhere right?

A is Giving up certain freedoms in place of security and B is gender equality. One has little to do with the other.

 

[Teran]

Can these oven bake cats and small children?

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

It bakes with the heat from a light bulb.

I've never really seen a cat baked laying next to a lamp

 

[Falconv1.0]

Blurring gender lines does not mean equality. Allowing women to play football with men for example does not make them equal physically, and it's not like they were seen as lesser beings for not being able to do so.

Also, it's not just "not much", iiiiiiiiiit's ****ing noooothiiiiiiiiing. This is a win for a few boys who will still be teased anyway and will in no way lead a better life for it.

The amount of delusional bull**** being spouted here is so hilarious that it makes me smash my head into car windows.

 

[Froggy]

Blurring gender lines does not mean equality. Allowing women to play football with men for example does not make them equal physically, and it's not like they were seen as lesser beings for not being able to do so.

Also, it's not just "not much", iiiiiiiiiit's ****ing noooothiiiiiiiiing. This is a win for a few boys who will still be teased anyway and will in no way lead a better life for it.

The amount of delusional bull**** being spouted here is so hilarious that it makes me smash my head into car windows.

You're being so overly literal that it appears as if you lack common sense. It's gender equality in the sense that a product is made for both males and females instead of solely for females.

I think this is somewhat significant because it's the first time in forever I can remember their being a public backlash for something that impeded the rights of heterosexual males. It sets a precedent.

For whatever reason you just like to complain.

 

[Falconv1.0]

Once again, you keep using the word "rights" which is what bothers me. They're making a recolored version of an existing product and marketing it to boys now. That has literally nothing to do with rights.

 

[Teran]

It bakes with the heat from a light bulb.

I've never really seen a cat baked laying next to a lamp

Well maybe this needs to be tested then doesn't it?

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

What stopped males from getting it before?

The color?

This is a marketing issue, not an issue that has to do with male and female rights.

Besides, one of my favorite colors is purple; it's the color of gods and kings

 

[Falconv1.0]

Come on Psycho, obviously they were keeping us straight males down by not giving us other colors. Sure, homosexuals still can't marry but I DESERVE A GREEN EASY BAKE.

RIGHTS.

OBAMA.

 

[Froggy]

Once again, you keep using the word "rights" which is what bothers me. They're making a recolored version of an existing product and marketing it to boys now. That has literally nothing to do with rights.

I can understand the notion that rights is too strong of a word, but I'd argue that any case of sexism is a rights issue.

Regardless it doesn't under-mind the precedent set here for gender equality. Again though you seem to just want to complain so I'll probably just drop this.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

TBH, it would have been more of a gender equality issue if males weren't allowed to buy it before. The only thing stopping them from getting it is societal ideals on associations with colors having to do with genders.

It also isn't solving gender equality, but ignoring the issue and trying to find a way around it.

TBH, it actually helps to separate men and woman by having colors associated with them and giving into that societal view on genders

 

[Falconv1.0]

I can understand the notion that rights is too strong of a word, but I'd argue that any case of sexism is a rights issue.

Regardless it doesn't under-mind the precedent set here for gender equality. Again though you seem to just want to complain so I'll probably just drop this.

Marketing towards a specific group is sexism?

wat

 

[Froggy]

TBH, it would have been more of a gender equality issue if males weren't allowed to buy it before. The only thing stopping them from getting it is societal ideals on associations with colors having to do with genders.

It also isn't solving gender equality, but ignoring the issue and trying to find a way around it.

TBH, it actually helps to separate men and woman by having colors associated with them and giving into that societal view on genders

It's a sexism issue, it's not really relevant that it could have been worst.

Surely you must see there is something wrong with your logic if you believe they are ignoring gender equality.. A product was previously only marketed to females and now it's being marketed to both groups. To ignore it would have been to keep everything as it were.

I agree it would better to separate men and women by colors(I'd prefer having one pink, and the other blue), but just the same it's better to have a gender neutral product that one only targeted at females.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

What it's doing is taking one category that separates men and woman and instead using a different category to separate them.

Besides, what about marketing toward a gender is sexist anyway?

They are in no way preventing the other gender from buying the product. Never had.

 

[Falconv1.0]

Oh no, they market dresses and skirts to women! I'm so offended!

;~;

 

[Froggy]

What it's doing is taking one category that separates men and woman and instead using a different category to separate them.

Besides, what about marketing toward a gender is sexist anyway?

They are in no way preventing the other gender from buying the product. Never had.

Unless I am missing something what it's doing is not separating men and women at all. Hence the term "Gender Neutral"

YYMV but when something had previously been marketed towards both sexes and then marketed only towards females it feels sexist to me. If tomorrow all the legal brothels with female prostitutes were closed and only the brothels with male prostitutes were open then I'd be outraged. It's not right.

Edit: In case you didn't get it, based on your logic, guys wouldn't be denied anything because they can still go to these male prostitutes despite the fact they don't appeal and are not meant to appeal to them.

 

[Falconv1.0]

Actually Froggy, you're incorrect, because in our example, you know, the reality of it, the product was always there just not marketed towards boys. In your example, the product that was actually selling well for men is completely gone.

Also lol what the **** is wrong with you.

 

[Froggy]

Actually Froggy, you're incorrect, because in our example, you know, the reality of it, the product was always there just not marketed towards boys. In your example, the product that was actually selling well for men is completely gone.

Also lol what the **** is wrong with you.

The product is prostitute. It came in two types and it was now reduce to one. It's the same problem. If your point was that the oven was never targeted towards boys then you're wrong, read the article.

you dummy

 

[Falconv1.0]

They're giving it new colors. You think that's the same as changing a person's genitals?

Ok.

Edit-Also, seriously good job being the guy to bring up prostitution. Seriously wat.

 

[Froggy]

They're giving it new colors. You think that's the same as changing a person's genitals?

Ok.

What?

No one's genitals are being changed. A type of genitals are simply being taken off the market. In case you still don't get it, we are substituting genitals for colors in this scenario.

 

[Teran]

There's also something known as not being a ***got and buying something with a certain functionality you need because its aesthetics are irrelevant.

But pink is gay!

Ironically baby boys were actually dressed in pink and baby girls in blue until about the 50s or something.

 

[Jon Farron]

Falcon, do you ever have anything positive to say?

 

[Falconv1.0]

Is this really the thread you would expect me to have something good to say?

 

[Froggy]

Falcon, do you ever have anything positive to say?

I imagine it's an online character he enjoys playing. An insensitive jerk who complains a lot. It not an uncommon practice.

 

[Teran]

It's funny because considering how many people irl are complete ****in ***holes (about 120%), I don't see why everyone calls it "a character" when someone is a total douche online.

 

[Falconv1.0]

Nah Teran, they're right, irl I'm a really soft spoken southern gentleman who enjoys long walks on the beach and romantic dinners.

 

[Jon Farron]

I sense heavy sarcasm.

Back on topic, has there been any previews of what it's gonna look like yet? o:

 

[Ussi]

Man i wanted to bake cakes when i was a kid :[

Also teaching boys to be self sufficent with cooking is a good idea.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

I love to cook (Though I suck at baking)

Anything on the stove I can make fine. Have a recipe that requires baking, and I mess it up without question

 

[Teran]

Man i wanted to bake cakes when i was a kid :[

Also teaching boys to be self sufficent with cooking is a good idea.

They already are if they have to be.

Ingredients + cooking appliance = food.

Cooking is the easiest thing in the world, it just takes patience, which is why most people can't actually do it right.

 

[prisonchild]

What?

No one's genitals are being changed. A type of genitals are simply being taken off the market. In case you still don't get it, we are substituting genitals for colors in this scenario.

this is a very bad example.

like, horrible.


in your scenario their genitals would be part of the 'product'. the easy bake oven as a product won't change. the colour change would be equivalent to a wardrobe change for prostitutes.