A cosmetic surgery advert featuring blogger That Pommie Girl has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on the grounds that it was irresponsible and likely to cause harm to those under 18.
A cosmetic surgery advert featuring blogger That Pommie Girl has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on the grounds that it was irresponsible and likely to cause harm to those under 18.
Cosmetic surgery company Transform produced a TV advert with fashion blogger Sarah Ashcroft, who goes by her social media alias That Pommie Girl, in April to promote breast enlargement surgery.
Ashcroft is an influential fashion blogger on Instagram and YouTube where she has amassed 546,000 followers and 55,000 subscribers respectively.
In the ads, Ashcroft says "I feel like a new person from having nothing to then looking at yourself with boobs.
"It was the weirdest thing because then everyone was like ‘wow, they look so natural I’m so impressed’. And to come away from it feeling 10 times more confident than you were I think is just an amazing feeling."
But one person complained to the ASA about the advert claiming it exploited the insecurities of young women and implied breast enlargement surgery would make them more confident and popular. The complaint also challenged whether it was irresponsible and harmful for under 18s to view the advert.
The complained was upheld by the Advertising Standard Authority. A representative said: "We were concerned that the focus on the negative perception she [Ashcroft] had of her own body prior to cosmetic surgery might encourage viewers, particularly young women and teenage girls, to think about their own insecurities about their bodies.
"We considered that viewers would nevertheless infer from Ms Ashcroft’s emphasis on her personal transformation and the degree of confidence she said she had gained that her popularity and success as a fashion blogger had been, in part, a result of cosmetic surgery.
"Although Ms Ashcroft’s was a personal story, we considered that the ad suggested more generally that success and popularity would be enhanced by achieving an idealised body image, which could be done by ‘correcting’ any perceived imperfections.
"In light of those factors, we concluded that the ad was irresponsible and likely to cause harm to under 18s."
Transform has accepted the decision and the advert cannot run again in its present form. In a statement, Transform said that Ashcroft was telling her own story in her own words.
"Sarah is typical of many independent, thoughtful and responsible females who chose to have cosmetic surgery. There is no inference in the advert that her popularity is linked to her breast size.
"Rightly or wrongly, cosmetic surgery polarises opinion and we acknowledge there will always be parts of society who will object to it.
"However, Transform strives to ensure a sense of responsibility is maintained at all times and has been leading a sea change in the ethical marketing of the sector."
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