Great Britain bans retouched Julia Roberts advertisement.
A British parliamentarian claims that L'Oréal's exaggerated imagery could contribute to problems with consumers' self-image.
247 with international agencies – Great Britain has banned advertisements from the Lancôme and Maybelline brands, owned by L'Oreal, featuring photos of actress Julia Roberts and model Christy Turlington. The computer-manipulated images were deemed misleading. The complaint was filed by MP Jo Swinson, of the British Liberal Democrat party. He argued that the advertisements are not representative of the results the products can achieve and could contribute to problems with consumers' self-image.
The British advertising regulator, the Advertising Standards Authority, agreed that the images were exaggerated and violated its code of conduct. According to the BBC, the French company admitted that the image of Christy Turlington, which promoted an anti-aging foundation, was altered to lighten her skin, remove makeup, reduce dark circles around her eyes, smooth her lips, and darken her eyebrows. However, L'Oreal said that it accurately reflected the results the product could have on the skin.
In the Lancôme advertisement, the French group stated that it showed Julia Roberts with naturally healthy and radiant skin. They also said that the advertised product took 10 years to develop. Even so, L'Oreal was forced to withdraw the images from circulation in the country.