An ad seen in Glamour Magazine for Condé Nast Traveller has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for featuring a model that looks "unhealthily thin." 

The the advert, featuring a slim female model posing on a beach, came to the ASA’s attention after a Glamour reader issued a formal complaint to the ASA challenging whether "the ad was socially irresponsible."

In the ASA's ruling published today, the regulator found that the ad breached rules regarding responsible advertising and has banned the advert for appearing again “in its current form” and called on the publishers to “ensure that in the future their ads were prepared responsibly.”

In response to the complaint: "Condé Nast Traveller Magazine said that their ‘postcard of the day’ feature (shown above) was a tool used to engage with current readers and newcomers to their website...the image in the ad was a still taken during a fashion shoot for a feature aimed at an older audience of Traveller readers. They said that particular image...was chosen for this ad as it evoked a mood of escapism, with the model shown stretching towards the sun....they acknowledged that the model’s stance accentuated her height and slender legs but said that there were no protruding bones and that the model was naturally slim and in proportion."

In the decision, the ASA: "acknowledged that the ad was for a travel magazine and that its focus was not supposed to be on the model or her clothes; however...considered that the model was the focal point of the image, therefore...concluded that the ad made the model look unhealthily thin and that the ad was irresponsible."

In their assessment, the regulator took particular issue with way in which: "the model’s pose and the particular lighting effect in the ad drew particular focus to the model’s chest, where her rib cage was visible" and "to her legs, where her thighs and knees appeared a similar width, and which looked very thin."  Concluding that "the model appeared unhealthily underweight in the image."

Complaints about ads promoting irresponsible body image tend to focus on the thinness of the model used in the ad, and these complaints are considered in light of the Code rules on social responsibility that require that marketing communications are prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and to society.

In reponse, Glamour Magazine has held that: "internal house advertisements are run in good faith and...they did not believe the shape of the model was very relevant to the ad as a whole." However stating that: "they...would take care when reviewing ad choices in the future."

Marketing and promotion is big business in the fashion realm and brands are coming under increased scrutiny by the ASA for ads that objectify or inappropriately sexualize people including ads which suggest that it’s acceptable for young women to be unhealthily thin.

In 2016, a Gucci ad was banned by the ASA for the use of thin models, though the Italian fashion house argued that perception of thinness was subjective.

In another recent ruling, an ad for Yves Saint Laurent, which featured an image of a model lying on the floor with her hands on her head, was considered socially irresponsible for depicting a model who appeared to be unhealthily thin. This was because the lighting in the ad drew attention to her chest, where her ribcage appeared prominent, and to her legs, where the large platform shoes she was wearing created a contrast with, and accentuated the thinness of her thighs. (Yves Saint Laurent SAS, 15 June 2015).

UK advertising expenditure is around £21.4bn. From a commercial perspective, advertising campaigns are costly - so when depicting a model, it is worth brands thinking about the ad as a whole to avoid the costs of having to pull a campaign.

However, as the ASA notes, it’s important to make clear that:  "whilst the ASA does uphold ads which depict models in a way which makes them appear unhealthily thin, the use of thin models itself is not automatically considered socially irresponsible." In 2014, a complaint about an ad for Yves Saint Laurent was not upheld because, whilst the model in the ad was wearing a short dress which revealed very long and slim legs, her legs appeared to be in proportion with her body and did not appear to be unhealthily thin. (Yves Saint Laurent SAS 07 May 2014)."

The ASA has also recently introduced (earlier this year) a tougher line on ads that feature stereotypical gender roles or characteristics in a report on Gender Stereotyping called “Depictions, Perceptions and Harm”, which provides an evidence-based case for stronger regulation of ads that feature stereotypical gender roles or characteristics that might cause harm which comes as additional thing for brands to think about when marketing, communicating and promoting ads on or off-line.