Date Time Dealing with bloody taboos in advertising There is no shortage of blood on our TV screens and streaming services. True crime shows analyse blood spatters and gruesome murders without any element of censorship. Medical shows broadcast surgeries and wounds in high definition, but it is rare that we are confronted with period blood in the media. Period product advertising over the past century has done everything in its power to deny that period blood exists. Print advertising in women’s magazines has created a secret language to ensure the readers aren’t confronted with the monthly bloody reality of menstruation.