OVIEDO (Spain): A new code of conduct entered into effect in Spain on Thursday that aims to eliminate gender stereotypes in children’s toy advertisements.
Just as the Christmas shopping season begins, advertisers in Spain are set to stop standard practices like marketing dolls exclusively to girls or cars to boys.
It even forbids more indirect associations like using pink to sell “girl toys” and blue to sell “boy toys.”
“The goal is for toy commercials to be more egalitarian, accurate and constructive … and for the ads to use inclusive language and present positive role models to encourage healthy, responsible, and sustainable consumption,” Anadolu Agency (AA) quoted the Spanish government as saying in a statement.
The new code follows a 2020 government-commissioned survey of children’s advertisements, which found that children’s toy ads were rife with gender stereotypes.
For instance, 34 per cent of ads that involved a profession targetted to girls showed jobs related to the beauty sector. On the other hand, 50 per cent of the same types of ads for boys depicted pilots, police officers, or soldiers.
The survey also found that 11 per cent of all advertisements sexualised girls, another practice expressly forbidden under the new code of conduct.
Gender stereotypes appeared in the bulk of toy ads for girls, according to the survey. Most commonly, girls were associated with being beautiful and related to the domestic sphere.
On the flip side, 71 per cent of gender stereotypes for boys were related to being a warrior, hero, or adventurer.
The new code, signed by an association representing around 80 per cent of toy sales in Spain, means any advertisements violating the new rules should be taken down.
At the same time, it also requires advertisements to include pictograms that provide more information on the products, such as their price range and if an assembly is required.
“Toys free of stereotypes allow children to have fun with total freedom and reach their full potential as adults,” said Alberto Garzon, Spain’s minister of consumer affairs. “We must insist on (non-stereotypical) messages because advertising aimed at children also helps shape their identity.”-Bernama
