Aerie
Photo retouching is a hot topic—and occasionally a contradictory one. Celebrities use social media to call for an end to it, while apps make it easier than ever to edit your own personal Instagrams. But Seth Matlins knows where he stands.
“Retouched images send toxic messaging about what women are supposed to look like,” he says. So Matlins, 52, a former Hollywood marketing exec who held high-level roles at CAA and LiveNation, did a career flip. He now fights for honest advertising alongside Emily Greener, 32, CEO of I Am That Girl, which promotes self-esteem in young women. The two helped bring the Truth in Advertising Act to Congress this year, and they spoke to Glamour about why they’re fighting for change. Listen in.
Glamour: Why is this new bill so important to you both?
Seth Matlins: Two years ago my then-eight-year-old daughter turned to me and asked, “Daddy, am I ugly?” I had to do something. The bill says to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that an ad that takes Meghan Trainor and changes her body, or changes Kerry Washington’s skin color, is deceiving. We’re asking the FTC to say, “We’ve got a problem. How can we fix it?”
Glamour: The bill would give the FTC 18 months to decide on an action plan. What do you hope the agency would institute?
SM: A seal on ads that tells you, “This has been manipulated.”
Emily Greener: Those marks will balance out the moment you see an image, compare yourself to it, and feel bad because you don’t live up. The mark says, “This image isn’t completely real.”
Glamour: Are there times when you feel image retouching is OK?
SM: We don’t care about flyaway hair or the wrinkle in a dress. What we care about are material changes to a person’s shape, size, proportion, or color. Some of these decisions are subjective. We’re trying to leave room for that subjectivity—but less room.
Glamour: You’ve said there’s a growing movement for honest images. What does that movement look like?
SM: Millennials expect transparency and authenticity. They expect businesses to make the world a better place. You see it with Aerie’s Real ads, with Under Armour’s Misty Copeland ads, with Always’ #LikeAGirl. These represent girl culture now.
Glamour: And how is social media influencing the movement?
EG: We see the worst of it there: On social media the everyday girl has the power to make herself look unrecognizable with apps. But when celebrities post photos that say, “This is what I really look like,” that pushes the conversation forward. And that’s how shifting the culture becomes possible.
Watch Model Barbie Ferreira Get Real About Body Shaming:
Source: http://www.glamour.com/story/i-am-that-girl-photo-truth-in-advertising-act
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