Breasty Barbie deemed too racy

By AdNews | 17 November 2006

CANBERRA: Fonterra has landed in hot water with the Advertising Standards Board after putting an ad to air depicting a highly sexualised Barbie Doll pouring water over its breasts.

The ad, promoting a flavoured milk range for the dairy giant called Chill and Supershake, showed the children’s doll in a series of animated sexual poses while washing a car. The ASB ruled that the doll had been highly sexualised in the ad, which was modelled on a Dukes of Hazzard music video starring US singer and celebrity Jessica Simpson.

The ASB found that the ad breached section 2.3 of the Advertiser Code of Ethics, which states, “advertisements shall treat sex, sexuality and nudity with sensitivity to the relevant audience”.

ASB chief executive officer Mark Jeanes said the board thought the ad, created by Perth-based agency Marketforce, was over the top.

“Having regard for the notion of a toy replacing a real woman, the board felt the depiction of highly sexual dancing and gyrating by a child’s doll was unacceptable in the light of prevailing community standards,” Jeanes said.

Fonterra told the ASB that it didn’t feel the ad was inappropriate and that at no time when producing the ad did the marketing team or advertising agency feel there would be a problem once it hit the market.

“We used the doll to replace an actual female and parodied one of the most popular video clips of the last 12 months that played on mainstream TV across Australia,” the advertiser told the ASB.

Nevertheless, complaints from the public labelled the ad sexist, derogatory, disturbing and offensive.

Fonterra has removed the ad from air in response to the ASB's determination.

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