To be annoyed at McCains advert

[Shouldputcheeseonit]

Not just McCains doing it but theirs is particularly annoying. Companies now are really going for the adverts with mixed race families, L and G families (have any tried BT or Q?), and families with someone with a disability. I am an outspoken ambassador for inclusion and equality (and proud to say my family contains some of these elements) but I feel annoyed at how these companies are using this to advertise and make money. Car adverts, supermarkets, all sorts. It’s only this year they’ve started, it’s like they are using BLM and other areas of heightened awareness for their own gains, and it bothers me.
Rant over. Anyone else noticed?

You’re criticising companies for finally being broadly representative and criticising them for including disabled people, people of colour and same sex relationships?

What, even though your family contain these ‘elements’ (!), you’d rather not see them on tv?

I think it's great to show diversity on ads. My gripe with it is that the mixed race families are always a white dad and black mum (actually usually looks mixed too, but obviously I don't know the details of the actresses ethnicity). It's like that's the only acceptable version of mixed, which should obviously not be the case.

It’s good, the more kids see diversity on TV the more it is normalised the more inclusive society will become 🤞🏾🤞🏾🤞🏾

@Alez

That’s interesting, I’ve not noticed that, maybe because that’s my family, well I’m mixed but much lighter than my husband . Will look out for it

@Alez

Oh it’s too early, that’s not my family, we are the opposite. Oops

It's fine as long as companies are walking the walk, not just talking the talk.

The problem is that some companies will put, say, a black couple or a gay couple in their adverts to tick a diversity box, while their employment demographic, culture and recruitment policies tell a very different story.

I agree OP.

@Shouldputcheeseonit

Not just McCains doing it but theirs is particularly annoying. Companies now are really going for the adverts with mixed race families, L and G families (have any tried BT or Q?), and families with someone with a disability. I am an outspoken ambassador for inclusion and equality (and proud to say my family contains some of these elements) but I feel annoyed at how these companies are using this to advertise and make money. Car adverts, supermarkets, all sorts. It’s only this year they’ve started, it’s like they are using BLM and other areas of heightened awareness for their own gains, and it bothers me. Rant over. Anyone else noticed?

The McCain adverts feature Trans/non binary families too

All the families in the McCain adverts are real life families- not actors. And they're one of the few companies I've seen that do have policies to bring more diversity into their workplaces and boardrooms.

This is such a weird unresearched rant

@AintOverUntilTheCatLadySings

All the families in the McCain adverts are real life families- not actors. And they're one of the few companies I've seen that do have policies to bring more diversity into their workplaces and boardrooms.

This is such a weird unresearched rant

Isn't it. Especially seeing there's a reasonable amount of people on here that seem to think they are all about inclusivity. Evidently, it's all good just as long as things don't start to look like white and straight isn't the norm.

It would be an interesting stat to find out how many adverts do involve 'diversity' and how many show white-straight. I wouldn't be surprised if it's nowhere near a high a percentage so some people might be thinking it is.

Like the whole the belief that a higher percentage of the country is BAME than really is.

As someone else has said, I really like the fact that different types of families are shown. Normalising single parents, step families, foster families, adoption is all good in my mind. Seeing families who represent ours is lovely and I imagine that anyone seeing people who represent them are also pleased about this.

(Every time I see the bit on avengers endgame with all the female characters I start crying - kids and husband think I'm mad but I try to explain to them that as a nearly 50 year old woman, all we've really seen on TV is women being rescued and to see them being strong and together is really powerful. They don't get it)

I have noticed the couple thing on adverts. Its always a white man/black woman like they think by doing that it will appeal to everyone. Even the DFS cartoon advert has this combo

@DifficultPifcultLemonDifficult

Yes I have noticed adverts have become more inclusive lately 🤷‍♀️

I'm glad of it too.

Same here. As someone who brought up a mixed race daughter in the 80s and 90s I appreciate it. I can remember her saying, when she was about 4, that brown people (her words) don't go on TV.

I have found myself becoming irrationally annoyed at Christmas adverts showing large family groups round a table, friends turning up etc - now that is unreal.

What irritates me is that the sheer numbers of these ads are not representative the demographic of the whole country. They might be representative of London, and a couple of other cities, but not the country as a whole

Very London centric. There are huge Asian populations in the North and yet you don't see anywhere near as many Asians on TV as whites and blacks.

On an unrelated note, if they went by demographics, they'd probably have to scale it back. Like that episode of W1A where the Head of Diversity is tasked with matching percentage of BAME in the population with the percentage of BAME presenters at the BBC. And then she realises she's going have to fire a load of people

I’ve noticed it and agree it seems like advertisers are jumping on the bandwagon of the BLM movement. But whatever the reason it’s about time there was more non stereotypical diversity shown so surely it’s a good thing? 🤷🏻‍♀️

What can they do to make you happy op? Genuinely interested in what they should be doing. As all adverts it'll be a mix of trying to sell as well as not looking like dicks. No different to always.

Agree that it's virtue signalling and not "backed up" with real-world inclusivity in their working policies, but can't help think it's lovely for black, mixed raced, disabled people/children to see themselves represented on TV.. so can't get that annoyed about it

Companies now are really going for the adverts with mixed race families, L and G families (have any tried BT or Q?) and families with someone with a disability.

There are quite a lot of trans people in adverts compared to their proportion of the population. I think you are way off about disabled people- they are still very underrepresented, particularly in any meaningful role as opposed to tokenism.

Not sure how you know any of these people aren't bi or how that would be represented (hello, if like me you enjoy sex with both men and women you'll love the new Volvo S80?)

Not sure how you'd represent Q (very obviously straight couple, with blue hair, lecturing a Saudi Lesbian couple who have just escaped stoning about how privileged they are?)

I hadn’t noticed to be honest but i don’t see how you can be annoyed at different types of family being represented. What do you think the solution is then?

I can't believe the grief OP had got on this thread. She is absolutely right. All these media / advertising companies jumping on the bandwagon. But behind it is just hypocrisy. None of them cared a jot before. None of them actually employ such people on their Board of Directors.

How OP is getting such a hard time, for stating the truth, is odd.

@SimonJT

Oh OP, even worse some adverts have men cooking or cleaning rather than the women doing it, how terrible, society itself will never recover from this.

Obviously you must ignore me as I’m brown and gay so nothing more than a mere ‘token’.

Absolutely. We should all ignore you until you promise to give up men and renounce your skin colour.

She was saying that it's difficult to show somebody deaf without a crash zoom in on their hearing aid or similar. And of course, invisible disabilities are quite hard to show 'naturally' in an advert, because you have to draw attention to it

DS's hidden disability of dyspraxia is perfect for a chips advert...

Mum calls from the kitchen "Dinner!"
DS sees the chips, grins and starts tucking in.
Mum reminds him to sit down.
Mum reminds him to use his knife and fork.
Mum reminds him which way round the knife and fork go.
DS compliments the chips and asks for sauce.
Mum goes and gets the kitchen roll to deal with the aftermath of DS and the squeezy sauce bottle and wipes the sauce from his hair, clothes and floor.
"Great chips mum"

I like the Malteaser adverts because the humour (drawing on the product tagline) is naturally the humour that my friends have about their disabilities. Visible disibility is not just plonked in the advert and a box ticked, it is actually utilised in a natural way.