Frowned upon advertisement for Sanex shower gel in the United Kingdom due to the perpetuation of a racial stereotype
The UK's advertising regulator, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), has banned a British TV ad for Sanex Skin Therapy soap, airing in June, due to its portrayal of black skin as problematic and uncomfortable.
The controversial ad opens with a black woman whose skin is scratched with red paint, followed by a black male body covered in cracked clay-like material. A voiceover suggests that "for those who can scratch all day and night" and "whose skin dries even with water contact" refers to people with black skin.
The ASA found that the ad was structured to present black skin as problematic and uncomfortable, while white skin was portrayed as having been transformed and resolved. The ad contrasts this by showing a white woman washing with Sanex and promoting "24-hour hydration."
The regulator judged that the ad perpetuated a "racial stereotype" suggesting that "black skin is a problem and white skin is superior." The manufacturer of the Sanex product, Colgate-Palmolive Europe Sarl, which owns the Sanex brand, was responsible for the advertisement that the ASA prohibited.
Colgate-Palmolive, the parent company of Sanex, did not respond when contacted by AFP. Sanex, however, explained that using models of different origins and skin colours was part of its commitment to diversity.
In response to the concerns raised among viewers who contacted the UK regulator, the ASA ruled that the video breached the CAP Code and must not be shown again in its current form to avoid causing serious racial offense. Clearcast, the non-governmental body that oversees most British TV ads, argued that the ad does not perpetuate negative racial stereotypes.
The ASA concluded that the ad reinforces the negative and offensive racial stereotype that black skin is a problem and white skin is superior. The ad ends with the statement "Relief can be as simple as a shower." The banned ad for Sanex Skin Therapy soap aired in June, and the ASA banned it on August 20, 2021.
Read also:
- Eight strategies for promoting restful slumber in individuals with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
- Exploring the Strength of Minimally Digestible Diets: A Roadmap to Gastrointestinal Healing
- Secondhand Smoke: Understanding its Nature, Impact on Health, and Additional Facts
- Overseeing and addressing seizure-induced high blood pressure complications in pregnancy, known as eclampsia
