A bipartisan bill now in the US Congress proposes to bring in legislation to put a stopper on the use of Photoshop. It has already caused a rumpus in the advertising world. However, this is only for starters. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been asked to suggest ways of minimizing the use of perfect human bodies and other visual falsehoods in advertising. Regulations have to be developed to contain this misleading trend. The copy and brand names often go with the visual. The question is whether such norms can be set up at all, the Code of Athens notwithstanding. The Truth in Advertising Act in the US is comprehensive relating to eating disorders, food fads and the cult of the body. The US is the adman’s paradise. Authorities in that country are now considering how to regulate the use of Photoshop. Advertising is always glossy, a colourful exaggeration which is far from the bare truth. Extravagant claims are made and the adman thinks nothing of telling lies about products.
India is not affluent like the US but consumerism has swept the country. The sweat and tears of the common man are hardly brought into focus in ads in this country. Take ads of affordable housing. Graceful cottages surrounded by soothing greenery seem taken straight out of US magazines. The worst is the cosmetics industry. Beauty aids are advertised which may harm the skin. Some medicines are given properties which are hardly credible, even if accompanied by a doctor’s testimonial. Some ads are repugnant to our social values. Why in India should loveliness be coupled with fairness? While the US is fighting colour prejudice, India seems to be doing just the opposite.
