Dove Launches the 'No Digital Distortion Mark' - an Initiative to Further Commit to Differentiating Real, True and Accurate Imagery

NEW Dove Mark makes brand more responsible for depicting women as they are

TORONTO, June 28, 2018 /CNW/ - Beginning this July, Dove is taking another step in ensuring beauty is a source of confidence and not anxiety, with the launch of its 'No Digital Distortion Mark'. The Mark will roll out across all new branded content globally. By January 2, 2019, the Mark will be incorporated into all Dove static imagery showcasing women—across print, digital and social—that will represent a non-distorted image of the women. Dove will be held accountable to only show accurate and genuine portrayals of people, as they appear in real life. The objective of the Mark is to help women and girls navigate images they see in media and help them differentiate what has been altered to fit the ideals of what beauty is and is not.

"When content in the media is not reflective of reality, it has a profound negative effect on the viewer," says Jess Weiner, Cultural Expert and Adjunct Professor at University of Southern California (USC) Annenberg School of Journalism and Dove Self-Esteem Spokesperson. "By viewing unrealistic and unachievable beauty images it creates an unattainable goal which leads to feelings of failure. This is especially true of young girls who have grown up in a world of filters and airbrushing."

Research from the Dove Global Beauty and Confidence Report (2016) shows that women globally have lost trust in what they are viewing. 77 percent believe that all images in the media have been digitally altered or airbrushed. Brands need to take note of this, since 69 percent of women cite increasing pressures from advertising and media to reach an unrealistic standard of beauty as a key force in driving appearance anxiety.

The 'No Digital Distortion Mark' joins the Dove Self-Esteem Project tools, and will work to ensure that young people are taught to quickly identify digitally distorted images within media, becoming more critical of what they see. Since its launch in 2004, the Dove Self-Esteem Project has helped more than 20 million young people across 138 countries build positive body confidence and self-esteem, making the Dove Self-Esteem Project one of the largest providers of body confidence education in the world. In Canada alone, the Dove Self-Esteem Project has reached a total of 2.5 million young people and has a goal of reaching 204,000 young people in 2018. Globally the goal is to reach another 20 million lives by 2020.  

"Through the work of the Dove Self-Esteem project, we teach children to question what they see in the media and not to take everything at face value," said Dr. Phillippa Diedrechs, Body Image Expert. "However, the responsibility shouldn't solely be on the viewer. Brands can do more to showcase reality and take this unnecessary pressure away. By doing so, we can have a positive impact on the lives of young girls."

This Mark is a continuation of the Real Beauty Pledge – a recommitment in 2017 to only portraying what is real, true and accurate for women and beauty. It was a public commitment to never present the unachievable, manipulated, flawless images of "perfect" beauty, which the use of retouching tools can promote. The Mark will not only eliminate the guess work out of consuming media, it will also encourage other brands to follow suit by agreeing to not use digital distorted images.

"Last year, we pledged to use images with zero digital distortion," says Dove Global Vice President, Sophie Galvani. "This year, we want to go one step further and give women a tool to help them understand what is real and what isn't. The Mark will take help women identify reality and relieve some of the pressure to look a certain way, which is why we have created a new Evolution Film which reveals the extent of digital distortions and manipulations that takes place in media and advertising and brings to life the issue that women experience. We are hoping more brands join us in this movement, as this commitment needs to be widespread."

To learn more about the Dove Self-Esteem Project visit dove.ca.

ABOUT DOVE  

Dove®, manufactured by Unilever, is the No. 1 personal wash brand nationwide. One in every three households uses a Dove® product, which includes beauty bars, body washes, face care, anti-perspirant/deodorants, body mists, hair care, styling aids and Dove® Men+Care™, developed specially for men.  Dove® is available nationwide in food, drug and mass outlet stores.

ABOUT DOVE AND THE DOVE SELF-ESTEEM PROJECT

Dove has a long-standing commitment to creating a world where beauty is a source of confidence, and not anxiety. The Dove Self-Esteem Project is a global Dove initiative under the umbrella of the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan. Its mission is to educate and encourage the next generation of girls to build a positive relationship with beauty and to help raise self-esteem, enabling them to realize their full potential in life.

Since its launch in 2004, the Dove Self-Esteem Project has helped more than 20 million young people across 138 countries build positive body confidence and self-esteem, making the Dove Self-Esteem Project one of the largest providers of body confidence education in the world. In Canada alone, the Dove Self-Esteem Project has reached a total of 2.5 million young people, and has a goal of reaching 250,000 young people in 2017. Globally the goal is to reach another 20 million lives by 2020.

ABOUT UNILEVER AND THE UNILEVER SUSTAINABLE LIVING PLAN

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of food, home and personal care products with sales in more than 190 countries. In Canada, our portfolio includes brand icons such as: Axe®, Becel®, Ben & Jerry's®, Breyers®, Degree®, Dove®, Fruttare®, Hellmann's®, Klondike®, Knorr®, Lipton®, Magnum®, Nexxus®, Ponds®, Popsicle®, Q-Tips®, Simple®, St. Ives®, TRESemmé®, Vaseline® and others. All of the preceding brand names are owned or used under license by Unilever Canada Inc.  

Unilever's Sustainable Living Plan underpins the company's strategy and commits to:

• Helping more than a billion people take action to improve their health and well-being by 2020;
• Halving the environmental impact of our products by 2030;
• Enhancing the livelihoods of millions of people by 2020.

For more information about Unilever and its brands, please visit www.unilever.ca. For more information about the USLP visit www.unilever.ca/sustainable-living.

SOURCE Dove

Nicole Legate, [email protected], [phone] x280