Dove for cover

When I was in the UK last February, they had this Dove ads everywhere, featuring models not n*sync with the media's stereotypical skinny, white, young and... um, unfreckled female. The ad presents you with say, a freckled woman (ZOMG the horror!), and asks you, ballot style, if she is 'freckled' or 'flawless'.

Man, biggest backfire ever. Every single Dove ad within reaching distance had been ticked in the negative option. Imagine how the models felt everytime they caught the London underground... the lengthy elevators to the tube stations were lined with about 30 of these ads in a row, each one proclaiming the model as 'fat', 'wrinkled' or, damn, 'freckled'.

But they didn't learn. Now, a year later, they are starting to appear in Sydney. Observe:

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Joined.

Seriously, if you want to fight stereotypes in the media, just include them in your ads without making such a big, exceptional deal out of it. Furthermore, the 'campaign' makes it look like being 'wrinkled' and 'wonderful' are mutually exclusive... Dove are just feeding the stereotype. Fools!