By Iliana Magra, July 18, 2017<\/p>\n
LONDON \u2014 One ad for baby formula<\/a> showed a little girl growing up to be a ballerina and a little boy becoming a mathematician.<\/p>\n Another ad, for a weight-loss drink, asked if viewers were \u201cbeach body ready<\/a>\u201d and showed a bikini-wearing woman whose bronzed image, critics said, promoted an unrealistic standard of beauty.<\/p>\n A third ad<\/a>, for the video game \u201cGame of War,\u201d showed the American actress Kate Upton scantily dressed on a horse, making it seem as though sexual desirability were a prerequisite for leadership.<\/p>\n Britain<\/a>\u2019s advertising regulator, reacting to these ads and similar ones, announced Tuesday that new rules would be developed to ban advertising that promotes gender stereotypes or denigrates people who do not conform to them; sexually objectifies women; or promotes unhealthy body images.<\/p>\n The regulator, the Advertising Standards Authority, released a report<\/a>, titled \u201cDepictions, Perceptions and Harm,\u201d asking whether existing regulations address \u201cthe potential for harm or offense arising from the inclusion of gender stereotypes in ads.\u201d<\/p>\n The answer, the report found, is no. The agency found that stereotypes could \u201crestrict the choices, aspirations and opportunities\u201d of ad viewers, especially girls and teenagers who are figuring out their identities and goals.<\/p>\n \u201cOur review shows that specific forms of gender stereotypes in ads can contribute to harm for adults and children,\u201d said Ella Smillie<\/a>, the lead author of the report. \u201cSuch portrayals can limit how people see themselves, how others see them, and limit the life decisions they take.\u201d<\/p>\n The Committee of Advertising Practice, which sets British advertising standards, in consultation with the industry, will develop new standards, starting later this year. The Advertising Standards Authority, an independent body, will then enforce those rules.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile advertising is only one of the many factors that contribute to unequal gender outcomes, tougher advertising standards can play an important role in tackling inequalities and improving outcomes for individuals, the economy and society as a whole,\u201d said Guy Parker, the chief executive of the Advertising Standards Authority.<\/p>\n The specifics have yet be developed, but the regulator offered some examples.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would be inappropriate and unrealistic to prevent ads from, for instance, depicting a woman cleaning,\u201d the report said. But, it said, \u201can ad which depicts family members creating mess while a woman has sole responsibility for cleaning it up\u201d might be banned under the new guidelines.<\/p>\n That would affect major British retailers like Asda, the supermarket chain<\/a>, which ran a television commercial that shows a mother bearing the bulk of the work \u2014 carrying groceries, cooking and setting up a Christmas tree \u2014 while the father is either passive or absent. The ad ended with the slogan, \u201cBehind every great Christmas, there\u2019s mum.\u201d<\/p>\n According to GfK, a market research firm that gathered survey and other qualitative evidence used in the report, some participants felt the Asda ad \u201cfailed to demonstrate the mother\u2019s value to the family,\u201d although others felt the portrayal was accurate.<\/p>\n Showing a father \u201ctrying and failing to undertake parental or household tasks\u201d could be deemed problematic under the new rules, according to the report.<\/p>\n Sam Smethers, chief executive of the Fawcett Society, a feminist organization, said stereotypes were central to gender inequality \u201cfrom the gender pay gap to violence against women and girls.\u201d She added, \u201cThey are well past their sell-by date and cause significant harm.\u201d<\/p>\n The industry\u2019s project to address stereotypes in ads, which began in April 2016, has not been universally praised. In an article<\/a> in The Times of London, a journalist, Andrew Ellson, called the proposed new standards an assault on freedom of speech.<\/p>\n But Lindsey Clay, chief executive of Thinkbox, a marketing group in Britain, called the report \u201ca wake-up call for the advertising industry.\u201d She said the new standards should not be regarded as a restriction, but as an opportunity for greater creativity.<\/p>\n As an example, Ms. Clay referred to \u201cThis Girl Can,\u201d a 2015 ad<\/a> by Sport England, an organization that promotes physical fitness. It showed a wide variety of women and girls \u2014 of different ages, shapes and sizes \u2014 engaging in fitness activities. Their bodies are far from perfect, and the ad captures the effort and even the frustration of working out.<\/p>\n