Australia’s advertising industry is silencing almost a third of people concerned by potentially sexist content, such as female stereotypes, according to a survey.
Advertising equality movement shEqual in November 2021 surveyed 598 advertising professionals and found almost one in three (30%) reported hesitating to call out gender equality issues in ad content due to fears of negative consequences.
Other reasons for not speaking up included feeling it wasn’t their place (30%*), they weren’t senior enough (29%) and a lack of experience (27%).
The research also showed that depictions of women that were respectful (93%), realistic (88%) and diverse (89%) were extremely, or very important to respondents.
“Our data shows a disconnect between the intentions and actions of the industry in depicting women,” says Dianne Hill, CEO of Women’s Health Victoria, the organisation leading the shEqual movement.
“It’s encouraging that the motivation is there, but the missing piece is an open dialogue on what representation looks like in 2022.”
shEqual has launched a new resource to help creatives, strategists, and brands identify and erase problematic stereotypes.
The guide, Female Stereotypes in Advertising, lays out some common stereotypes currently in use in advertising and the real-world harm these shallow depictions can have.
The purpose for the guide, along with upcoming video and social content created by Icon Agency, is to drive much-needed conversations about the representation of women in creative content.
“The average Australian sees 5,000 adverts a day, so it’s hard to overestimate the power they have to influence peoples’ views,” says Dianne Hill.
“It’s vital for the health and wellbeing of women that ads don’t reinforce harmful expectations and social norms. A good starting point is removing caricatures of women in advertising and replacing them with more realistic and diverse
representations of women.”
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