ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) ruled that Twiggy’s advertising campaign for an Olay eye cream was “misleading” because the wrinkles around her eyes had been airbrushed out.
Procter and Gamble, the company behind Olay, withdrew the advert as the row developed over the summer. The promotional campaign claimed that the £24.99 cream: “Reduces the look of wrinkles and dark circles for brighter, younger-looking eyes. More than 700 people complained that the advert had been digitally retouched, but gave the false impression that the Olay “Definity Eye Illuminator” alone was responsible for keeping the former supermodel, 60, virtually line free.
Accusations that it was misleading were upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). An ASA spokesman said: “We considered that the post-production retouching of this ad, specifically in the eye area, could give consumers a misleading impression of the effect the product could achieve. “We considered that the combination of references to ‘younger-looking eyes’, including the claim: ‘Reduces the look of wrinkles and dark circles for brighter, young-looking eyes’, and post-production retouching of Twiggy’s image around the eye area was likely to mislead.”
But the ASA said the public expected some glamour in images advertising beauty products and would expect Twiggy to be professionally styled and made up. It added that the image was aimed at mature women who would realise Twiggy’s look could not have been achieved just by using the product. It added: “The image was unlikely to have a negative impact on perceptions of body image among the target audience and was not socially irresponsible.”
A spokesman for Procter and Gamble said the firm had realised after a short time that the retouched photograph had been “inconsistent” with the company’s policies.