ASA Adjudication on H & M Hennes Ltd

Ad

A TV ad, for clothes designed by Madonna, showed a young woman being led up to Madonna, who was sitting at the head of a conference table, surrounded by fashionably dressed women. Madonna said "How can I help you?". One of the young woman's socks rolled down her leg and she pushed the other one down to match. Madonna said "I like it." The shot cut to her striking a whiteboard, which had the word FASHION projected on it, with a riding crop saying "IT, IT, IT, IT, IT". She then slammed the crop onto the table and asked "What is it?". The young woman hesitated and said, "Well I think it ..." Madonna replied, "Don't think it, you need to know it." The young woman was escorted into a dressing room by two men, who undressed and redressed her in more fashionable clothes while Madonna repeated "Doesn't have it. Doesn't have it. Doesn't have it." The young woman then returned to the boardroom wearing the same outfit as Madonna, who said "You made it". A designer rushed over and threw himself at Madonna's feet and cried "No, no, no, no, no, you made it." Madonna and the young woman then strode away together and Madonna said "And I love it".

The ad was given an ex-kids restriction by the Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre (BACC).

Issue

1. 18 viewers complained that the ad was offensive, because they believed it depicted a young girl being stripped by force by two men and under threat of physical punishment.

2. Seven viewers challenged whether the ad was harmful, because they believed the depiction of the young girl would appeal to, and encourage, paedophiles.

BCAP TV Code

Response

H&M explained that they were disappointed that their ad had been perceived negatively and said the interpretation of the ad was in the eye of the beholder. They said the purpose of the ad was to target all women interested in fashion, not only teenagers, and make them aware of the new "M by Madonna" collection. They said they had cast a 24 year old woman in the role of the interviewee and Madonna, the interviewer, as the demanding head of a fashion company. They explained that the woman was quickly changed into clothes from the "M by Madonna" collection, because that was the office uniform, and that the riding crop prop was used as a recognisable Madonna symbol.

The BACC said the ad was considered by them as a rough cut and in its final form and, although they were aware that the use of the riding crop on objects in the home and clothes being pulled off might potentially be copied by young children, they believed the ex-kids restriction was suitable. They explained that they had considered the ad again after receiving notification of the complaints, and they were confident that the ad was not intended to have a sexual or violent overtone or context. They believed the small number of complaints received for the campaign made clear that most viewers had not shared the complainants concerns. They also believed the complaints were from viewers who had become overly sensitive to the issue of age and sexuality in ads and had looked for an interpretation which was not present in the ad.

The BACC pointed out that no characters were hit or harmed in the ad and that the riding crop, used to emphasise Madonnas bossy character, only ever struck the table and screen. The BACC also said the woman was undressed and dressed quickly in the "M by Madonna" clothes, by other actors, as a reference to the quick costume changes required by models in a catwalk fashion show. They believed there was no suggestion of assault. They explained that they were very surprised by the complaints referencing concern about paedophilia. The BACC reiterated H&Ms response and pointed out that the woman depicted was a job applicant and therefore was unlikely to be a school girl; she wore fashion common to many young women and wore larger underwear than traditional feminine underwear, which could have been interpreted as more provocative.

Assessment

1. Not upheld

Although the ASA acknowledged that some people had found the ad disturbing, we considered that the quick change of clothes undergone by the interviewee was likely to be seen as a reference to catwalk fashion and the riding crop as a symbol of Madonnas perceived artistic style, not a threat of physical punishment. Because of that, we considered that the ex-kids restriction for the ad was sufficient to avoid frightening young children and concluded that the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence, or be seen to encourage or condone violence or cruelty.

2. Not upheld

We noted the actress who portrayed the role of the interviewee was 24 years old and considered that most viewers would not infer from her style of clothing that she was a school girl. We also considered that it was clear, from the ad, that she was applying for a job within Madonnas fashion company and therefore likely to be past school age. We further considered that the quick change of clothes was likely to be seen to contain a sense of urgency, rather than being sexually suggestive or titillating. Because of that, we concluded the ad did not portray a child in a sexually provocative manner or contain material that could harm children by encouraging paedophiles.

We investigated the TV ad under CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code rules 6.1 (Offence), 6.2 (Violence and cruelty) 7.3.2 (Children - Physical harm) and 7.3.5 (Children - Sexuality), but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action necessary.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)