Clothing brand advert banned for objectifying Katie Price after complaints made

Yahoo

10-06-2025

A clothing brand advert featuring model Katie Price has been banned after a watchdog ruled it 'objectified and sexualised women'.
The ad for clothing brand Diesel appeared on the Guardian news website on March 26, showing an image of Price wearing a bikini and holding a handbag in front of her chest.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received 13 complaints that it objectified and sexualised women and featured a model who appeared to be unhealthily thin.
It was ruled that the advert was irresponsible and likely to cause serious offence by objectifying and sexualising women.
Diesel said the advert was part of a brand campaign called 'The Houseguests', designed to challenge stereotypes and support diversity and inclusion in the fashion industry by reflecting a wide range of body types.
It believed the advert was compliant with advertising rules, but did remove it from the Guardian website.
The Guardian said it received a complaint directly about the advert on April 4 and blocked it from appearing again as it did not comply with their policies.
Diesel argued that Price was 46 years old and had a body type that was not usually included in high-fashion campaigns, explaining that the average age for editorial models was between 16 and 23.
It also believed the image was a 'celebration of Ms Price's sexuality and empowerment and was not objectifying, degrading or sexualising', and 'showed Ms Price clearly in control in an active and dynamic pose where she proudly showed off her body and the handbag'.
Diesel also said that although Price was slender, she had excellent muscle tone and was not unhealthily underweight.
Partly upholding the complaints, the ASA said the bikini only partially covered Price's breasts, and it considered the positioning of the handbag, in front of her stomach with the handle framing her chest, drew viewers' attention to, and emphasised, that part of her body.
The ASA said: 'While we acknowledged that Ms Price was shown in a confident and self-assured pose and in control, we considered that because of the positioning of the handbag, which had the effect of emphasising and drawing attention to her breasts, the ad sexualised her in a way that objectified her.
'We therefore considered the ad was likely to cause serious offence, was irresponsible and breached the Code.'
The ASA did not uphold complaints about Price appearing to be unhealthily thin and concluded that the ad was not irresponsible on that basis.
It added: 'We told Diesel to ensure their future ads were socially responsible and did not cause serious or widespread offence.'
Diesel said: 'Diesel's latest Houseguests campaign continues its tradition of challenging norms and embracing individuality.
"A key image features model Katie Price, 46, showcasing a body type rarely seen in high fashion, proving that women of all shapes and ages deserve representation. The photo celebrates confidence and empowerment without objectification.
'Shared in over 100 countries, it has not received any regulatory complaints, highlighting Diesel's commitment to respectful, inclusive storytelling.'
Katie Price was born in Sussex and has long been a part of the British entertainment industry, beginning her career as a Page 3 girl for The Sun at 18.
Under the name Jordan, she quickly gained fame as a glamour model appearing in the likes of the Daily Star, Esquire and Vogue.
Price's popularity in the paper gained her TV work, appearing in the third series of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2004, where she met her future husband, Peter Andre.
They went on to star in their own reality TV show, Katie & Peter, which ended in 2009 when the pair divorced.
She has since appeared on Celebrity Big Brother and Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, as well as having other shows of her own, including Katie Price's Mucky Mansion and What Katie Did Next.
Price has also written rom-com novels, autobiographies, a fashion guide and two series of children's books, as well as creating her own make-up line.
She began a podcast called The Katie Price Show in 2023, which she hosts with her younger sister Sophie.
She has five children: Harvey, Junior, Princess, Jett, and Bunny.
However, despite her successful career, Price has seen some hard times with money that resulted in her declaring bankruptcy.
Price reportedly previously had a net worth of around £40 million.
However, the former model was declared bankrupt in November 2019 and again in March last year, over an unpaid tax bill of £761,994.05, according to International Business Times.
Price faces a wait to see whether more of her income will go directly towards paying off money owed under her two bankruptcies.
In October 2023, HMRC demanded payment from Price that would cover self-assessments for 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022.
The Telegraph reported in March 2024 that she owed £100,000 in mortgage payments for her home, named the 'Mucky Mansion'.
Further evidence found Price had spent around £25,000 a year on plastic surgery and £120,000 on housekeepers, gardeners and nannies.
It's also understood that the star had a lavish lifestyle that saw her spend £1,500 a week on manicures and pedicures, £800 on massages and £1,000 on hair appointments.
While the bankruptcies have since been discharged, Price still owes money as a result, and had previously reached a voluntary agreement over her debts.
Last August, a court judge ruled that Price's income from social media platform TikTok be suspended as part of efforts to pay off her debts.
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And in February last year, a judge at a specialist bankruptcy court ordered that she must pay 40% of her monthly income from the adult entertainment website OnlyFans until February 2027.
Price has previously commented on her money troubles and the media coverage, stating: "Despite consistent stories trying to humiliate me for my personal misfortunes, I am neither embarrassed nor ashamed.
"I own my situation and am trying my best to work out of it and put matters right."