The story of Protein World doesn’t start with the fact an advert like that was made, as they helpfully pointed out themselves on Twitter, there are loads of companies who are invested in body shaming and who participate in the culture of criticism. Many beauty, health and fitness and clothing companies are tied up in the way we talk about women and their bodies, it is a discourse that hasn’t ended, even in the aftermath of The Beauty Myth.
So the story with Protein World is actually about how they handled the backlash. As the news broke yesterday that the adverts are to be taken down, due to the contracts running out but also coincidentally ahead of a mass protest at Hyde Park, it’s worth reflecting on the way the company responded to the situation. Negatively to say the least.
Protein World don’t care. To put it bluntly, they couldn’t give a crap if their company is contributing to a landscape of body shaming. This brilliant moment happened on Sky News (subsequently Tweeted by PW) where they completely miss the point of why they are being criticised.
Yes, Richard, 84% of your customer base might be female – and they might even feel empowered and enjoy using your product. But there is a reason that 84% of women feel like they have to. And it is slogans like ‘beach body ready?’ that propagate divisions between people – are you fit or fat? Not to mention the blatant objectification of the woman in the picture, legs apart and stomach toned she might look empowered, but isn’t it a shame it's only due to her body? They’ve put her in a bikini, not gym wear. This isn’t about body sculpting, it isn’t about health – it’s about looking good on the beach. They are two different things, and I’m not a jealous, chubby woman for saying that. Some people (hard to believe) just want to look like they actually look in a bikini. Shock. Horror.
When people (in particular woman) begin to fight back against oppressive, received ideas in society, those who benefit (i.e. make money) out of these ideas become defensive. Anyone who has taken a sneaky peek at Protein World’s Twitter feed will see just how much they have hit back at the people who are trying to point out why people find this advert so offensive. But don't worry, CEO Arjun Seth is alpha as fuck, so it's probably all down to a miscommunication. Aware?
The #GrowUpHarriet hashtag that has emerged from this debate (started in the Tweet that begins this article) is a great example of how powerful people (both men and women, the patriarchy doesn’t discriminate on that one) belittle and undermine those who attempt to stand up to them. This ‘feminist’ debate is already heated, just by coming under that moniker. Suddenly #SJW (social justice warrior) becomes a bad thing, a negative thing. Obviously Harriet is just pissed she looks like a hippo in a bikini. It's not like she's a socially engaged woman with something to say, or anything.
(Sad, only one retweet)
Overall, it’s irresponsible for a company to react the way Protein World have done. Before all this, they had been clogging people’s feeds with celebrity endorsements:
Then they began by replying to negative tweets with adverts, or ‘advice’ on how to shed the pounds:
They have, in fact, acted like children. Or at the very least like they don’t have a competent social media manager. The saddest thing to come out of all this is that debate has been squashed and belittled. Instead of looking deeply at their companies flaws (or at least the ad department) they’ve hit out hard, and not listened to public opinion that doesn’t positively reinforce their brand. Actually, the even sadder thing is that these adverts will be taken down and this will become another Twitter storm in a teacup… but sexist body standards will remain. So it’s worth heading down to Hyde Park this Saturday to make sure debate happens, whatever side you fall on.
In the meantime, here are some of the most creative vandals from the tube ads:
Zuzana Dobrovolna May 5th, 2015, around noon
Great read, thank you!