This set of bar charts measure the relative importance of sex and age appeals in Shenbao advertisements from 1914 to 1949. Note that these appeals do not exclude each other: children and mothers are often associated on the same picture, as are elegant men and sexy women.

The measurements were made from our usual five samples of the Shenbao (January 7, 1914; January 3, 1924; January 5, 1934; February 1, 1941; January 1, 1949). In each sample, we have recorded the occurrences of each appeal: sexy woman, corresponding to the seducive Modern Girl or independant New Woman (red), the patriotic mother or housewife (green), men (blue) or children (purple).

Unexpectedly, the figures reveal that men were almost as prominent as women in advertising: same number as female occurrences in 1914 (7/6), only 3 in 1924, but 18 in 1934 (24 women), 25 in 1941 (30 female appeals), and finally exceeding women in 1941 (19 men, 13 sexy women and only one mother). Women studies and their focus on either "Modern Girl", "New Woman" or "Perfect Mother/Housewife" in a nationalistic context may have led us to under-estimate the male presence in Shanghai advertising. Women/gender studies may equally have hidden the importance of children and age appeal in advertising, especially in the 1924. Children gradually emerged between 1914 and 1924 in advertising (doubling the number of occurences, from 5 to 12), but entered a phase of stagnation and decline after 1934 (less than 5 occurrences). The progress of the child appeal approximately paralleled that of the "mother" appeal, to whom they were usually associated.

The fifth following charts examine more closely to which products each appeal was specifically applied to. Sexy women were first preferentially associated with appearance culture, tobacco, and entertainement, but finally generalized to every type of product after 1934. The mother appeal  "naturally" applied to medicines, hygiene, electrical appliances (1924) and nutritional products. Before 1934, the child appeal were primarily associated with medicines and food, and then gradually applied to culture/education and appearance (clothing). Men could be associated to any type of product, but  preferentially to health product (medicines, hygiene), alcohol and tobacco, finance, automobile and entertainment, and even food in 1934.