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The year is 1952, and Volkswagen have produced a radio ad where women brawl over shoes whilst men sit by and watch, wishing they were test driving a big vehicle instead.

Oh, sorry, it’s 2019, and what the hell were they thinking?

There are bigger things in the world to worry about – like climate change, for example – but that doesn’t mean terrible radio ads should be given a pass.

Professor Susan Goldstein from the School of Public Health at Wits agrees, and she lodged a complaint with the Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB), who ruled that the ad should be withdrawn from the airwaves.

Via Business Insider SA, here’s a description of the advert:

The ad depicts a man in a mall who is accompanying his shoe-shopping female partner. The voiceover reports from the scene:

“It’s dusk and you’re in unfamiliar territory, surrounded by predators hunting for fresh prey. And they found it. 50% off all shoes.

They attack, lunging mercilessly. As you guard the 12 shopping bags, seated on a bench alongside the other men, you watch the feeding frenzy take place. This is Shoe Sale Country and you don’t belong here, man. This is not your habitat, so go where you belong in the V6 Amarok… Visit your Volkswagen dealership for great Amarok V6 offers today, man.

Just running through the agency responsible for that advert and their thought patterns here…

Women – shoes. Men – big cars.

Nailed it – get the actors in the booth and hit record.

Clearly, this was a fail, with Goldstein’s complaint saying the ad was “gender stereotyping” and was harmful in a country where gender-based violence is such a problem:

For its part, Volkswagen said the ad was intended as a parody, which does not promote or depict any violence against one gender. Volkswagen said it’s a “harmless exaggeration of a real-life scenario intended to amuse listeners”.

They submitted that the reference to “Shoe Sale Country” makes it clear that this is a fictional world and no reasonable person would assume that Volkswagen’s use of the paradoxical scenario is intended to create a negative gender stereotype. The ad also does not promote or depict any violence against one gender. Also – only one person complained.

One complaint was all it took, and whilst the ARB accepted that the ad was a hyperbolic parody, they ruled that “the use of gender stereotypes in advertising contributes to gender inequality in South African society”.

In addition, the use of the word ‘man’ with regards to the test drive was problematic:

The overall take out is that there are certain environments in which either men or women are more comfortable and where they naturally belong – women are comfortable shopping for shoes, and men are comfortable driving high-end bakkies.”

The ARB added that the advert portrays women as frivolous, instinct-driven and irrational shoppers.

Again, there are bigger problems in the world, but brands really should do better with their adverts.

While we’re here, I would like to lay an informal complaint. Well, it’s more of a moan actually, but whilst watching the Mzansi Super League (cricket) on SABC 3, I have been subjected to this advert below repetitively.

This is also not acceptable, if only for the fact that it is an attack on the auditory senses:

I never thought I would hate an advert more than that Hyundai / Bob Marley/ Maroon 5 abomination aired during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, but here we are.

[source:businsider]