This is a photoshop - signed, a graphic artist. (with pics)

Bwahaha! So, let me get this straight.... the trend is to make black women look lighter, but black men look darker? What's up with that?

In case you are serious... here's my guess. The darkened skin vs the brightened lighting (note the light parts are MUCH lighter) makes the muscle definition look more dramatic, due to higher contrast. In real life, fitness people get tanned, oil up, and go under bright lights for the very same reason.

But, on a woman (unless it's a fitness shot) they usually want a smoother look, so they'd lighten up the skin tone to reduce contrast.

In for more Photoshop shenanigans.

No. They do it to black women because they want to continue to send messages to us that the lighter the better. The closer you are to a white person, the more attractive you are. They've done it to almost every famous black woman. It's sickening.

Bwahaha! So, let me get this straight.... the trend is to make black women look lighter, but black men look darker? What's up with that?

In case you are serious... here's my guess. The darkened skin vs the brightened lighting (note the light parts are MUCH lighter) makes the muscle definition look more dramatic, due to higher contrast. In real life, fitness people get tanned, oil up, and go under bright lights for the very same reason.

But, on a woman (unless it's a fitness shot) they usually want a smoother look, so they'd lighten up the skin tone to reduce contrast.

No. They do it to black women because they want to continue to send messages to us that the lighter the better. The closer you are to a white person, the more attractive you are. They've done it to almost every famous black woman. It's sickening.

Yet they never have trouble turning a white woman darker than she could naturally get! LIke having ethnic features is so ugly they have to lighten you up as much possible to down play them. I'm very light skinned, can't tan to save my life, but all my features and body shape reflect my spanish heritage - I'll tell ya it's not hot! No one knows what I am. I'd give anything to be a "normal" skin tone for my ethnicity. And gosh, black women, black skin, the darker it gets, its just beautiful. Haha and as an artist I don't just mean the skin, I mean the actual color standing on its own is just a beautiful color. It's powerful, rich, luxurious color. And with the red undertone it complements almost everything. I don't understand why they do it either except to be racist.

You ever notice advertising in different neighborhoods? You'll notice big business tv commercials, like in Denver, a heavily populated white city - the ads are very multi-cultural, often including one of every race.
In Albuquerque and Phoenix with heavy hispanic populations, you see a lot of mexicans on thier own, or whites on thier own, but you don't see them together as much.
In Memphis where it's heavier black population you'll see the ratio of blacks in commercials aren't proportionate to the population.
They do that because in a white city if they show ethnic people equal with whites, sales for the "next big thing" jump considerably. (sales suggest they want to be ahead, not equal)
In cities with higher minority rates they show more happy white people without minorities around and sales spike amongst minorities. (suggesting deep down minorities want to be "equa" or "as good" as whites)

I know that sounds awful, but, there is racism still and we know this because it drives the market. Just like we are all shocked how extreme the photoshopping is. Bottom line the Dove "real woman" campaign got a lot of attention, but the sales simply didn't improve. There is no evidence women want to see healthy normal women, not according to the sales. And thats what drives the race war in advertising as well.

I wish there was more justice in that, I hate anything that shames people into buying. But that shame, gosh its a powerful emotion and we just eat it out of their hands.