ASA - "Gender stereotypes have the potential to cause harm"

[UnWilly]

There is a BBC news article about Love Island and Firefighters that includes this from the ASA

"Earlier this year, the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) ran a consultation on a proposal that adverts "must not include gender stereotypes that are likely to cause harm, or serious or widespread offence".

An ASA spokeswoman said: "We've published evidence that shows gender stereotypes have the potential to cause harm because they limit how people's potential is considered by themselves and others - with costs to the individual, economy and society.

"We've already been taking action to ban ads which reinforce harmful stereotypes and we'll publish the results of our consultation around new rules for advertisers later this year."

Article here www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45254129

On a quick look so far the ASA research seems quite interesting (although some uses of term gender, sex may be what they actually mean...)

www.asa.org.uk/genderresearch.html

Thanks OP. Will browse the material.
The background section of the summary report makes interesting reading in the context of our current debates:

The project identified six categories of gender stereotypes:
^Roles - Occupations or positions usually associated with

a specific gender^
Characteristics - Attributes or behaviours associated with a specific gender
Mocking people for not conforming to stereotype - Making fun of someone for behaving or looking in a non-stereotypical way
Sexualisation - Portraying individuals in a highly sexualised manner
Objectification -Depicting someone in a way that focuses on their body or body parts
Body image - Depicting an unhealthy body image

(Scratches head) Why does this sound familiar?

Wow has the ASA been taken over by feminists?

I particularly liked the bit about the cumulative effect

"We heard a lot about the cumulative effect of ads that in isolation aren’t necessarily a problem, but build up a strong message over time about how children and adults should look or behave because of their gender."

Articles about this in the media today

www.theguardian.com/media/2018/dec/14/uk-advertising-watchdog-to-crack-down-on-sexist-stereotypers

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-46558944

They'd better have words with Camilla on the apprentice who produced an ad for her nut milk very like the toothpaste ad that caused such a rumpus at freshers week this year. So depressing that young women think that is the way to sell their product.

Just heard someone from ASA on radio.

Apparently we all know the problems with mens mental health and that men need to talk more, so these gender stereotypes are harmful.

So nevermind women who have been pointing it out for years now it affects men...let's do something about it.

"The fireman challenge required the male Love Island participants to strip to their underwear and pretend to save a woman from danger."

WTAF?

I don't watch it, sounds shit though.

Good from ASA.

"Apparently we all know the problems with mens mental health and that men need to talk more, so these gender stereotypes are harmful.

So nevermind women who have been pointing it out for years now it affects men...let's do something about it."

Maybe they have realised this is the only way to sell it so as not to be seen as bitter manhaters who can't take a joke and are PC Gawn Mad and you can't even look at a woman any more...

??

I'm optimistic :D

Scrapper142 I totally agree. There was a woman from the ASA on BBC breakfast too and every example given was about how it affects men and very few about sexism directed towards women.

Yes, men are DEFINITELY the only ones affected by sexism

"every example"

That's a bit off...

I think people find sexism about women and girls very dull and whiny.

Men are much more important and interesting.

FFS

I am still hopeful that it's in order that there arent' loads of phone ins and stuff saying "ASA says sexism against women is bad. Is this because they are feminist bastards who can't take a joke? Call in and tell us"...

Given that most problems are caused by toxic masculinity, maybe they have a point. Maybe male gender stereotypes cause more problems as they often involve imposing male will upon others.

Given that most problems are caused by toxic masculinity, maybe they have a point. Maybe male gender stereotypes cause more problems as they often involve imposing male will upon others.

You have a point there.

Some female gender stereotypes are only harmful in that they reinforce the notion that only women should do/ be certain things.

There's nothing wrong with cooking, cleaning and caring for children. Everyone should do those things.

And even reinforcing stereotypes like "women should wear high heels and makeup" only harm women.

Whereas reinforcing male stereotypes usually harms men a bit and women a lot.

Those are some really good points about male gender stereotypes

Oh I assumed NothingOnTellyAgain was on the money.

Anyone on the ball enough to produce this report will also understand that notice doesn't get taken unless something impacts negatively on men. So they're very deliberately pointing out the impact on men.

Didn't see/hear the BBC broadcasts, but in the Guardian piece, Ella Smillie from the ASA "highlighted the real-world harms that resulted from gender inequality, such as the gender pay gap, low rates of women seeking careers in science and the large number of men struggling with mental health issues."

So a bit of both.

I heard some of this on R4 this morning and what jumped out at me was (excuse my paraphrasing, it was early!) "Presenting something repeatedly which deems it to be only for one gender, or all that a particular gender can aspire to" was something they wanted to stop. So eg always plugging football for boys/cleaning toys for girls. Definitely thought that was an interesting take as its how I've always talked about pink clothing to my girls - I don't mind them choosing it if it's a free choice from many options, but if its the only option because you're a girl, then I get cross.

No ASA hasn’t been taken over by feminists.
UN has partnered with proctor and gamble, along with other corporates, unstereotype alliance to influence advertising standards.
I’m not sure I think it’s a good idea that Corporate interests are able to control what I can watch on the tv and dictate to businesses how they can market their products in a free country .
No doubt they won’t stop at advertising. They hope to make significant changes (social engineering) by 2020.
Unstereotype alliance sounds like something straight out of 1984 to me, but there ya go.

True that things were a lot less sterotyped in 1984, this was my era, it was all primary colours and lego was for everyone etc.

Do you think that asking advertisers not to propagate racist stereotypes, is also Orwellian? Just out of interest.

Do you think there is not some motivation for corporations to be backing this.

Have you considered what other causes they are supporting.

www.pgnewsroom.co.uk/press-release/uk-news-releases/pg-joins-stonewall-launch-trans-equality-initiative

How much control would you like to give to corporations to say what can appear on the tv.

i think the use of 'gender' is ominous, and we'll just have 'mums' with full beards, tampon ads for 'menstruators' and 'bleeders', all references to heterosexual life or standard nuclear families banned.

This is going to be the erasure of women I'll bet. Women have fought for this for years but the ASA didn't give a shit.

I honestly don't buy this. Pun intended.

Stereotypes in the context of fiction are a very different animal to stereotypes in things we are taught in school as authoritative, for example.

Obviously, coming from a teacher in authority for example, certain statements present stereotypes in a very unhelpful context. If a sexist view is presented as the way, then yes, I can see the great potential for harm.

But advertising is stupidly sophisticated now, and has evolved far beyond didactic statements which most people absorb without question. There's a reason the adverts of the forties and fifties really jar with us today.

Advertising is a form of fiction with a very specific persuasive purpose, and you're much more likely to see stereotypes set up and then subverted for a punchline nowadays. That's how a 30 second story will function.

Stereotypes presented as the way reality should be, guiding public policy and law making? Complete shit. Stereotypes as part of creative story telling? Just a building block, and banning them is actually quite a negative step, imo.

this recent ad wasn't very subtle

I also like the one where the man (actor) has invented a hoover and he mansplains to the woman how much easier her life will be with all the clever things he's done

I don't see it as negative at all. I don't want adverts which reinforce unhelpful / offensive stereotypes about any groups of people - old people, people with disabilities, people from Asia, and the list includes women / men.

Not negative at all.

Advertisers on cheaper formats / non TV formats still often use attractive women with not many clothes on as a sales tactic.

The idea that we are past sexualising women for profit is > nope. Sexualision is a thing they have said is not allowed - am v happy:

"Sexualisation
Whilst depicting people in a sexual way is not always offensive or problematic, Sexualisation and gratuitous nudity in ads can often cause serious or widespread harm and offence.

Advertisers should avoid using sexualised imagery if this is irrelevant to the product, as this is likely to be considered offensive. In 2016 the ASA investigated an ad for a fast food company which featured two images of a woman wearing only underwear, a jacket and trainers. One image featured the woman sitting on the edge of the sofa with her cleavage emphasised, her hands between her legs and her mouth open in what appeared to be a sexual pose. As this sexualised image of a woman bore no relevance to the advertised product, the ASA considered that the ad objectified women and was likely to cause serious offence. (Harlequin Fast Food, 12 October 2016)."

Rustlers fucking microwave burgers where the womans clothes all fall off.

Hated that ad.

Just looked it up - 2007! Where does the time go lol

Things are changing > over the years on my commute the number of advs featuring parts of women's bodies / no head, and women in their pants has reduced massively.