Sephora Black Beauty is Beauty CSP

 Blog tasks: Sephora Black Beauty Is Beauty CSP

Work through the following tasks to make sure you're an expert on the Sephora CSP and particularly the wider social and cultural contexts.

Wider reading on Sephora Black Beauty Is Beauty

Read these articles on the Sephora campaign: 

The Drum: Black Beauty is Beauty by RGA
Glossy: Sephora celebrates Black beauty in new digital and TV campaign

Refinery29: Sephora’s ‘Black Beauty Is Beauty’ Short Film Celebrates Black Innovation

Complete the following questions/tasks:

1) What was Sephora trying to achieve with the campaign?

Sephora aimed to highlight the major influence of Black culture on the global beauty industry while addressing the lack of recognition given to Black creators. The campaign also sought to promote inclusivity and long-term support for Black-owned brands, showing that representation should be a permanent commitment rather than a short-term trend.

2) What scenes from the advert are highlighted as particularly significant in the articles?

The articles highlight scenes that directly connect popular beauty trends to their origins in Black culture, such as styling, makeup techniques, and fashion looks that have been widely adopted. These moments are significant because they visually reinforce the message that many mainstream beauty practices were created by Black communities but often go uncredited.

3) As well as YouTube, what TV channels and networks did the advert appear on?

The campaign was not limited to digital platforms like YouTube but was also broadcast across major television networks to reach a wider audience. It appeared on channels such as BET and other mainstream networks, helping to ensure both targeted and mass-market visibility.

4) Why does the Refinery29 article suggest the advert 'doesn't feel performative'? 

The article suggests the advert doesn’t feel performative because it is rooted in genuine storytelling and real cultural history rather than superficial branding. It focuses on giving credit and visibility to Black creators in an authentic way, making the message feel meaningful rather than simply a marketing tactic.

5) What is the 15 per cent pledge and why is it significant?

The 15 Percent Pledge is a commitment for retailers to dedicate 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned businesses, reflecting the proportion of Black people in the population. It is significant because it pushes companies like Sephora to create real, measurable change in representation and economic opportunity, rather than just symbolic gestures.

Media language: textual analysis

Watch the advert again and answer the following questions that focus on technical and verbal codes. Use your notes from the lesson to help you here.  

1) How does the advert use camerawork to communicate key messages about the brand?

The advert uses a range of close-ups and extreme close-ups to emphasise facial features, hairstyles, and makeup, reinforcing pride in Black beauty and identity. These shots create intimacy and position the audience to appreciate detail, while tracking shots and smooth movement suggest continuity and influence, showing how Black culture flows into mainstream beauty.

2) How is mise-en-scene used to create meanings about black beauty and culture?

The mise-en-scène is highly symbolic, using elements such as hairstyles, clothing, and makeup to reflect authentic Black cultural expression. Costumes and styling reference both everyday and high-fashion looks, while lighting enhances skin tones, celebrating diversity and challenging historically narrow beauty standards.

3) How is editing used to create juxtapositions and meanings in the advert?

The advert uses fast-paced montage editing to juxtapose Black-originated beauty styles with their later mainstream adaptations. This creates a clear contrast, reinforcing the idea of cultural appropriation and highlighting how Black creativity has been widely adopted without recognition.

4) How are verbal codes used to create meanings in the advert - the voiceover and text on screen? 

The advert uses a direct, declarative voiceover alongside bold on-screen text to clearly communicate its message about ownership and influence. The repetition of phrases like “Black beauty is beauty” acts as a linguistic reinforcement, ensuring the message is memorable and ideologically powerful.

5) What is the overall message of the advert? 

The overall message is that Black culture is foundational to modern beauty trends and deserves recognition and celebration. The advert positions Sephora as a socially aware brand that supports inclusivity, diversity, and cultural acknowledgment within the beauty industry.

Media factsheet

Finally, go to our Media Factsheet archive on the Media Shared drive and open Factsheet #259: Sephora Online Advert - Black Beauty Is Beauty. Our Media Factsheet archive is on the Media Shared drive: M:\Resources\A Level\Media Factsheets. If you need to access this from home you can find our factsheet archive here (you'll need to use your Greenford login).

1) Look at the exam hint on the first page. How does Sephora as a brand and the CSP specifically reflect contemporary social and cultural contexts? 

They reflect contemporary social and cultural contexts through their focus on diversity, inclusivity, and representation, which are key issues in modern society. The CSP advert responds to current debates around race, identity, and equality by celebrating Black beauty and challenging historically dominant white beauty standards, showing how advertising is socially and culturally dynamic. Additionally, Sephora’s use of digital platforms, UGC and marketing reflects the modern media landscape where audiences engage with brands across multiple online spaces.

2) Media theory: how are Butler, Gauntlett, bell hooks and Gilroy applied to the CSP?

The advert reflects Butler’s theory of gender performativity, as it shows drag queens and diverse individuals "performing” gender through makeup, challenging fixed binary identities. David Gauntlett’s ideas about identity are applied through the wide range of representations, allowing audiences to see identity as fluid and constructed, with multiple versions of self-expression. Bell hooks’ theory of intersectionality is challenged, as Black women are not marginalised but instead centred and celebrated. Finally, Paul Gilroy’s postcolonial theory is addressed by rejecting traditional racial hierarchies and promoting non-Eurocentric standards of beauty, giving visibility to historically underrepresented groups.

3) What aspects of media language are highlighted on page 3 of the factsheet?

It shows several key aspects of media language, including camerawork, editing, and mise-en-scène. It discusses the use of fluid camera movement and close-ups to emphasise beauty tools and cultural practices, as well as split screens and mirror shots to create meaning through comparison and contrast. The editing is particularly important, using juxtaposition to show the origins of beauty trends and their mainstream adaptations, while mise-en-scène (props, lighting, costume) reinforces cultural authenticity and symbolism.

4) How does the factsheet summarise the advert on the final page?

The factsheet concludes that the advert shifts away from traditional product-focused advertising and instead prioritises a message of inclusivity and representation. It positions Sephora as a brand that supports equality and diversity, using progressive ideology as part of its marketing strategy, while encouraging audiences to associate positive social values with the brand.

5) What are the four ideologies in advertising highlighted in task 8 on the final page of the factsheet? In your opinion, do you feel the Sephora CSP advert challenges or reinforces each of these? 

The four ideologies are consumerism, identity, capitalism, and gender fluidity. The advert both reinforces and challenges consumerism, as it promotes products but shifts focus toward cultural meaning rather than pure consumption. It strongly reinforces identity, aligning with Gauntlett’s theory by presenting diverse representations that allow audiences to construct their own sense of self. In terms of capitalism, it ultimately reinforces it, as the campaign still functions to sell products and promote the brand despite its progressive message. However, it clearly challenges traditional gender norms through gender fluidity, supporting Butler’s theory by representing makeup as something not restricted to one gender and promoting inclusivity across identities.