Things Mad Men Gets Right AND Wrong About Working at an Ad Agency

People who worked in the advertising industry in the 1960s didn’t imagine their jobs and lifestyles would be glamorized and portrayed on a hit television show in the 21^st century. But, it happened, and now people who were not a part of that world want to know: how true to life is AMC’s Mad Men?

The show follows Don Draper, an advertising executive, as he navigates life in the advertising world. Viewers are immersed in the lives of creative professionals who live lives consumed by alcohol, sex, and drugs. The show explores complex current events of the 1960s, such as.women’s rights and race discrimination which still exist in society today.

What Mad Men Got Right

Since the show’s premiere on AMC in 2007, people who worked in advertising in the 1960s have shared their experiences. For example, Jane Maas documented her experience in her book Mad Women, a take on what it was like for women to work in advertising agencies during the Mad Men era.

According to Jane Maas, Mad Men portrayed working long hours, partying hard and smoking incessantly. But, it was the 1960s! Can you expect to find this kind of stuff happening in advertising agency offices today?

Well, smoking isn’t allowed in offices anymore, so you can cross that off the list. But, other than that, at advertising agencies in 2017 one can expect to find advertising professionals working hard to impress clients and complete projects by the deadlines, in addition to staying late at the office and traveling often.

Women in the Workplace

Relationships portrayed in the workplace in Mad Men for the 1960s is accurate, since in that time women who worked were somewhat stigmatized. It was largely understood that women who worked would only work until they got married or had babies and only held jobs as secretaries. . In the show, characters like Jane Mass were not only copywriters, but also working mothers.

Sexism in the workplace is not today what it was in the 1960s, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We are still dealing with issues such as equal pay and promotions with women compared to men. A well known statistics is that only 3% of women get to be creative directors, a % creative women in the industry are trying to change.

What Mad Men Got Wrong

Working in advertising is fun… but it’s not fun all the time. People who work in advertising often work late hours to meet deadlines and there are politics that come along with working for clients. For example, an idea might be “sold” to clients only for them to change their mind overnight.

In Mad Men, projects were sometimes worked on for months upon months. But, in real life, some projects must be finished much quicker. The time allotted for projects depends on the size or complexity of the project, but also on keeping up with a fast paced client. Also, we have technology today that allows professionals to complete certain tasks and projects must faster than what was possible 50+ years ago.

Learn More About FIU Global Strategic Communications Creative Track

Visit FIU’s website today to learn more about the Global Strategic Communications Creative Track master’s program. Students in this program take advanced courses at FIU and Miami Ad School. Contact Grizelle De Los Reyes. at gdelosre@fiu.edu, or fill out the contact form for more information.

About GSC-Creative Master’s Degree Program

The Global Strategic Communication Creative Track is a 39-credit hour program leading to a Master of Science in Mass Communication degree. This interdisplinary program combines Florida International University’s Global Strategic Communication graduate curriculum in communication theory, research and strategy, with Miami Ad School’s advanced skills curriculum in Copywriting and Art Direction.