In the first half of 2024, the German Advertising Council publicly reprimanded only two companies for sexist and degrading depictions of women.
This continues a trend “that advertising at the expense of others is no longer socially acceptable and companies are acting much more sensitively,” said the chairman of the Advertising Council, Thomas Hinderer, on Monday in Berlin when presenting the half-yearly balance sheet.
Some companies change their advertising after criticism
In total, there were 73 complaints about gender-discriminatory advertising, 22 percent fewer than in the comparable period in 2023 (93). This category has attracted the most criticism for years.
In nine cases, the companies were persuaded to stop advertising or to make significant changes. In 62 other cases, no violation of the code of conduct was identified.
A company from Herlheim near Würzburg was reprimanded for selling lawnmowers and for depicting a female model in a bikini or underwear and the slogan “We always cut sharply” next to the advertised products. The complaint was that “the combination of motif and slogan” reduced women to their sexual attractions and equated them with an object.
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The same reprimand was given to a restaurant in Düsseldorf, which advertised a drink with the words “Sweet Ass, 3.50” on a display. The display showed a scantily clad woman from the side, with the focus on her largely bare bottom.
In the first half of the year, the Advertising Council received 299 complaints relating to a total of 182 cases (first half of 2023: 353 complaints relating to 203 cases). (epd)
