Featuring Disabilities in Advertisements

Images of women portrayed in advertisements are continually causing controversies in the industry.  We frequently see images of beautiful women all of whom where a size zero and are near perfection. As viewers we are rarely exposed to image of the “average” woman in advertisements. Recently, however, advertisers have been making great changes in order to depict a more realistic female portrayal in order to form a better relationship with consumers. By establishing a positive relationship, advertisers will be able to increase consumers recall of these specific brands from memory. However, although there has been a great effort by advertisers to depict both men and women of different sizes, ages, ethnicity, etc., very rarely do we see advertisements featuring people with disabilities.

In an article published in AdWeek, titled “Freak Week: Women’s Studies,” author Tim Nudd emphasizes the stir that arose from an advertisement in Belgium which featured graphic designer, Tanja Kiewitz who is missing the lower half of her left arm. Kiewitz quickly became extremely popular after appearing in a disability-awareness advertisement for Cap 48 which is a play off of a previous Wonderbra poster. The previous advertisement featured a photo of model Eva Herzigova with  the headline reading “Look me in the eyes…I said in the eyes”. The same headline was shown in the PSA advertisement made with Tanja Kiewitz. This ad, however, was not made with the intention to sell lingerie but rather to emphasize the idea that people with disabilities can be sexy, attractive, and normal human beings.

Despite the fact that Kiewitz has a disability, she is still portrayed in a very sensual manner in the advertisement which demonstrates that people with disabilities can be sexy too. Kiewitz stated to the GlobalPost that people often believe that handicapped people “don’t have a personality, that they are strange people”. Through her portrayal in the Cap 48 advertisement, Kiewitz made an effort to display that she is a beautiful, sexy, woman, and that her handicap is secondary. In her interview she also mentioned a need for more advertisements to portray people with disabilities. She makes a point to question why the advertising industry does not have more people in wheelchairs speaking on TV, or anyone with a handicap for that matter.

This advertisement brings up some interesting points regarding the portrayal of people in advertisements and leads to many implications for advertisers. The industry today has a focus on upholding responsible standards, yet there are no advertisements featuring people with disabilities. The Tanja Kiewitz advertisement has gained a vast amount of attention simply because something like this ad has never been done before. In an effort to promote more responsible advertising, the industry should create more advertisements similar to this one. In doing so, companies will receive positive attention from the public and will be able to increase the recall of their brands.

I believe that  the use of advertisements similar to this one will be extremely influential in the advertising industry and will be viewed positively by the public. This gives advertisers the opportunity to reach out to more people and provides a way for them to gain consumer attention. The CAP 48 PSA advertisement quickly became a symbol of encouragment and inspiration for all. Despite Kiewitz’s handicap, she is portrayed as a powerful women who is making a statement about the need for change in the advertising industry. 

We have seen a recent trend in advertising leaning away from the stereotypical size zero woman as typically portrayed in ads. Advertisers are now incorporating women of different sizes, ages, and race. The next step for the industry may be to include portrayals of people with disabilities similar to the Cap 48 advertisement. Based on the popularity of the Cap 48 ad, similar advertisements may encourage consumers to become more engaged in products and brands. Through the introduction of these advertisements, the industry will promote more socially responsibly advertising and in the end gain positive recognition by the public.

References:

Nudd, Tim (2010). “Freak Week: Women’s Studies.” AdWeek

http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/agency/e3ilc1499752deb3a603a094ab292fc2286