This paper examines how 1970s feminist demands around social reproduction are revisited in the contemporary promotional mediascape. It uses the brand ‘Fairplay’ as a case study; Fairplay is a book, podcast, website, social media presence, documentary, deck of cards, facilitator training – owned by the microcelebrity Eve Rodsky. I contextualise this with the resurgence of contemporary media addressing the gendered division of labour in the home, such as books like Equal Partners by Kate Mangino.
This paper looks at these mediated debates alongside household task apps, in particular the software applications Tody and Done. I argue that these digital products and branded materials are driven by ‘technosolutionism’ (Morozov) where ’Silicon Valley sets time’ (Wajcman 2018). They offer the solution to the circulating social anxieties around burnout, life hacks and achieving work-life balance – all of which are classed, gendered and racialised.
Methodologically I approach these materials in two ways. One is through the lens of branding, asking how questions of social reproduction are marketed. I also use ‘the walk-through method’ (Light et al 2018), which involves exploring the apps’ vision, operating model, Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy, systems around data collection and/or subscription.
This paper investigates what gendered, classed and racialised imaginings of the household are baked into their design. And to what extent are these reproducing traditional hierarchies of the home? How are second wave campaigns around social reproduction revisited, reimagined and branded?