Public Outrage Builds Against Retouched Ads

by lisa ~ December 17, 2009

Dec. 17, 2009 - The U.K.’s Advertising Standards Authority has criticized the retouching of a Procter & Gamble ad featuring British model Twiggy. The Guardian claims there were more than 700 complaints against the image - which may have been encouraged by Member of Parliament Jo Swinson who is campaigning against the digital alteration of advertisements aimed at girls.

P&G admitted to “minor retouching around Twiggy’s eyes,” according to AdAge.com. It even said that the work “was inconsistent with its own policies,” and substituted an untouched ad by its agency, Saatchi & Saatchi.

This comes on the heels of sustained outrage against an advertisement by Ralph Lauren that featured an absurdly thin model whose jaw line appeared to be wider than her pelvis. To view this ad and others like it, click here.

Although it acknowledged that it was “responsible for the poor imaging and retouching that resulted in a very distorted image of a woman’s body,” Ralph Lauren went on to send copyright infringement letters to the PhotoshopDisasters blog which had initially commented on the ad. After outrage grew and other sites commented on the grotesque image, the legal team kept busy sending out even more letters.

PhotoshopDisasters’ web host apparently complied with the order to remove the image and any reference to Ralph Lauren but not BoingBoing.net. BoingBoing blogger Xeni Jardin actually mocked the copyright infringement notices and threatened to “offer nourishing soup and sandwiches” to the designer’s models. She later took the battle from the blogosphere to TV when she appeared on Rachel Maddow.

What lessons should PR pros learn from these two incidents?

First, brands should clearly consider their photo retouching policies, especially those that pertain to women’s clothing and beauty products. This is a topic that the public is truly focused on right now. Second, when mistakes happen, marketers should step up and accept the fairly placed blame, as P&G did. Third, when ridiculous changes are made, marketers should not send cease and desist letters to critical bloggers who are regularly invited to appear on national TV shows.

Lisa Tibbitts  is the principal of Tibbitts Creative, a public relations and marketing service that emphasizes corporate communications. She has an extensive background in financial services and an MBA in marketing. Follow her on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FinancialPR.

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