Trigger warning: This blog contains references to child sexual abuse, please be aware of and prioritise your own well-being.

Shopping with my with my 10 year old daughter one Sunday afternoon, she suggested she needed new school socks. I could not have envisioned the chain of events that would quickly unfold as a result of her request….

The Board noted that in order to be in breach of this section of the Code the image would need to use sexual appeal in a manner that is both exploitative and degrading.

The Board noted the advertised product is lingerie and considered that the pose of the woman is not necessary to promote the product and in the Board’s view this depiction of a woman bending slightly to look in a mirror so that her bottom is towards the viewer is exploitative.

The Board noted that the woman in the advertisement is viewed from behind as she leans in towards a mirror on a dressing table and considered that while only the bottom half of her head is visible in the Board’s view the focus is on the lingerie and the overall image is not degrading to this, or any other, woman.

*Insert head desk*

Yes you read it right, here we are again, talking about Ultra Tune and their sexist ads. We've written about Ultra Tune numerous times, they have featured on our #CrossedOff list for the last three years and were also in the Top 10 most complained about ads for 2016. 

This week they launched video #5 in their 'Unexpected Situations' series which is set to be televised during the Australian Open (you know, when families and kids are watching). The ad involves close ups of womens sexualised parts whilst spraying each other with a fire extinguisher. We are supposed to believe they are attempting to put out a car fire but the display more closely resembles a wet T-shirt competition. 

At Collective Shout, we campaign against the objectification of women and the sexualisation of girls. The term 'sexualisation' can at times be misunderstood - so what exactly does sexualisation refer to?

The American Psychological Association’s 2007 Task Force into the Sexualisation of Girls makes a clear distinction between healthy sexuality and sexualisation. Sexualisation occurs when a person’s value comes exclusively from their sexual appeal, when a person is sexually objectified, or when sexuality is inappropriately imposed on a person. 

With your support, Collective Shout has continued to challenge sexploitation at every level during 2016. It is because of our supporters all over the country (and overseas) that our collective voice and impact continues to grow so thank you and here's to keeping up the fight in 2017!

Earlier this month Melanie and her daughter were shopping in Ringwood when they passed by a hyper-sexualised poster in the front window of a snow boarding store. 

Our motto here at Collective Shout is "Silence is the language of complicity, speaking out is the language of change". And speaking out is exactly what Melanie did. 

We exposed Shade Sunscreen for using sexually objectifying women to advertise their products. Shade Sunscreen’s social media was dominated by sexualised images of women’s bodies and body parts. Following a single complaint, all of their Australian social media sites were suddenly taken down. 

On November 16th 2016 the NSW Committee on Children and Young People released the report on the Sexualisation of children and young people. 

The report contained 10 recommendations. 

For years, Bratz dolls have attracted criticism for their hyper-sexualised appearance and unhealthy messages to little girls. This week we spoke with Miriam, who decided to makeover the dolls in a unique and positive way. Read the interview below:

New on our list of corporations that have exploited women are Volley with their recent #Grassroots campaign. Volley have been a popular shoe company for decades, but for some reason they got lazy and decided they were going to try the 'sex sells' method of advertising (which we know doesn't actually lead to more sales as detailed here).