Corporate advertisers are hijacking girl power to sell products — and I'm totally into it

Why not use commercials as agents for positive social change?

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When I was 11, I played in a softball league. We were called the Blimpies, as in the sandwich shop (such unfortunate sponsorship for tween girls, right?). And let me tell you, I was a terrible softball player.

I was terrified of the ball and would avoid hitting it or catching it at all costs. Fortunately, we Blimpies had the league's best pitcher. Her whip-fast throws — which I blissfully didn't have to face — made us one of the most intimidating teams in the league. Even the adults would marvel at how our star pitcher "didn't throw like a girl."

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Lauren Hansen

Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.