Oliviero Toscani, the guy who fell out of Benetton shortly after his controversial “We, On Death Row” campaign in 2000, just got his wrist slapped by Italy’s Publicity Control Institute.
Toscani, who calls publications with Nordic models “Fourth Reich publishers,” is known for the touchy climate he stirs shortly after launching a campaign.
At one point he was responsible for a billboard across the street from the Vatican that featured a nun and priest kissing. (If that wasn’t enough to drive Benetton to push eject, we want to know what made the death row effort so special — it’s generated its fair share of copycats.)
This time Toscani’s getting heat for the use of naked anorexic women in a print campaign. The ads say “No Anorexia” in bold letters and were premiered at Milan Fashion Week last month.
The Nolita ad at left features Isabelle Caro, a French actress currently suffering from anorexia.
The shot allegedly breaches code of conduct articles having to do with the ad’s honesty, and the its potential to offend certain beliefs and maintain human dignity.
If we were nailed every time we failed to “maintain human dignity,” would we still have an industry? Isn’t advertising all about making people feel like life’s not complete without a new iPod or a carton of Haagen-Dazs?
Toscani calls the ban “censorship” and may consider legal action.
