The impact of unethical advertisements

When I first saw the new Novig ad, I was sitting in McGlynn’s with three Johnnies and a Bennie. Within seconds of the ad beginning, we all watched a beautiful women straddle a basketball hoop with nothing but blonde hair covering her chest. We saw footballs pushing up cleavage, and a woman in underwear laying on a pool table. Were the five of us watching porn in McGlynn’s? I felt a bit like throwing up the ham and cheese sandwich I just ate…

If you have not seen the new ad titled “Novig is Just Sports,” the ad was co-produced by female actress Sydney Sweeney. She is nude for almost the entire video except for a few seconds wearing Novig branded underwear. Otherwise, she uses her hair, hands and other sports equipment to cover herself and ends the ad completely naked.

As I sat in McGlynn’s watching, sad thoughts bubbled up. I wondered if my guy friends expected girls in an intimate situation (like making out) to look that way. Would those guys be disappointed if I or other girls weren’t as curved or sexy as the women in the ad? I felt a bit demoralized watching and knowing that I will never look like that. If that is what is attractive to men, I may have missed the mark.

Watching the ad made me think of a conversation I had in high school. In 11th grade, a friend of mine vulnerably shared he was addicted to porn. He said he had been trying to quit for a long time but after each successful week of avoiding porn something small would break him. He said he would fall back into the practice of masturbati ng to photos or videos of women’s bodies even though he felt so guilty doing it. I remember seeing the pain in his eyes and embarrassment in his voice and how badly he wanted to stop but didn’t know how or why he couldn’t. As I sat in McGlynn’s, I thought of him and then about my Johnnie friends. How is it impacting my Johnnie brothers here?

In a different conversation, this summer, a teenage girl shared her struggle with body image. She told me she rarely ever feels pretty. This girl is a beautiful brunette who hates walking by mirrors because she doesn’t like seeing her reflection. For a possible future Bennie who already doubts her own beauty, how does this ad impact her?

One minute is a lot of time to share a message with the world. Novig successfully advertised their name and app, but what was the impact? Was the money Sweeney earned or the increase in app recognition worth the demoralization of women struggling with body image? How about men addicted to pornography?

This ad had an impact on me. How did it impact you?