Ex-NMP Eunice Olsen lodged a police report against a Circles Life advertisement that featured her name. It read: "@euniceolsen Would you rather French kiss or take me out for the French Film Festival?"
Olsen said that she did not know anything about the advertisement and did not give her permission for them to use her name. She found it sexist and hopes that Singapore will have laws against similar advertisements in future. "This ad is sexist and derogatory, and using someone's name without permission. Companies should not get away with with putting up ads like these".
Her approach was however met with some disdain. Olsen had to clarify that she did not mean to profit from this matter and was just standing up for women's empowerment. She promised to promote more conversations on responsible advertising so that the nation can progress together:
"This is a larger conversation I would like to continue with all of you, whether you are in advertising or not. I am also hoping to meet the company to see what we can do together, and how I can work with different industry players in advertising to make sure that as our nation progresses, we can mature in our conversation around how women are portrayed in advertising, gender equality in the industry, and in Singapore."
Really? But people these days are more concerned about rising costs of living to even care about responsible advertising. Maybe she shouldn't bother. Talk about understanding ground sentiments.
