Advertising gone wrong – sexism exemplified

I was going to post this week about how Dewar’s completely screwed up their latest ad with some appalling sexism. But it seems the larger whiskies community really beat me to the punch, and with far more effect! So, instead, I’ll just touch on the problem and highlight some of the better blog articles posted as well as the results:

Fred Minnick’s post went viral in our small community of whisky geeks on Twitter and Facebook, and was even picked up by some larger media houses while the Whiskylassie also had some very choice words. Quoted from her Facebook page post:

Whiskylassie:
Honestly I am not a feminist, when I saw this today I gasped!
Jumping the grenade, definition (urban dictionary) – to swoop in and remove the fat ugly chick.
Dewar’s latest campaign called Meet the Baron uses “the grenade” in this ad. A large blond is led away and in the end the Swedish bikini models are the reward.
When Dewar’s was questioned by someone on twitter their reply was: the blond is the villain…
THIS IS WRONG on every level.
Please sign, share this petition. The only way this type of horrible sexists advertisement will end is if we say so. Thanks  (link to petition redacted)

Yup, you read that right. The Dewar’s ad spot used the sexist trope of an overweight and homely looking woman to play the role of the undesirable from whom the Baron as wingman saves his drinking pal. For even better explanations and discussions on this I implore you to read Fred’s post above, as well as Media Bistro’s….

Media Bistro even picked up Fred’s post and then Business Insider reported the same…. all of which lent pressure against Dewar’s whom actually responded to Media Bistro and simultaneously pulled the ad spot. While Dewar’s response was quite tepid at best, pulling the ad was absolutely the right thing to do.

I just hope all this kerfuffle sends them back to their drawing boards to re-imagine what a proper and respectful campaign should look like. If they need help remembering, I may just have to point them to the recent Chivas Regal spot that won my heart for doing it right: The measure of a man:
.