TfL Facebook Ad Banned for Perpetuating Negative Racial Stereotype About Black Men
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned a Transport for London (TfL) Facebook advertisement, ruling that it irresponsibly perpetuated a harmful racial stereotype about black men as perpetrators of threatening behaviour. The ad, which formed part of a campaign to encourage Londoners to intervene safely if they witness sexual harassment or hate crime on public transport, featured a black teenage boy verbally harassing a white girl.
Complaint and ASA Assessment
Following a complaint, the ASA assessed the ad as it would appear in isolation on users' Facebook feeds. The authority stated that the ad reinforced a negative racial stereotype associating black males, including teenagers, with threatening behaviour. Despite TfL's arguments that the ad was one of three shortened versions from a two-minute film called 'Would you know how to act like a friend?', the ASA found that the specific ad in question solely depicted the black youth as the aggressor.
TfL defended the campaign by explaining that the overall film featured a diverse cast, with the other two ads showing a white man committing a hate crime against a black woman and another white man targeting a white man. The transport authority also noted that in the full two-minute film, the incident involved two male youths—one black and one white—both intimidating the victim. However, the ASA countered that the ad did not show the white male friend as jointly intimidating, making the black teenage boy the only visible aggressor.
Statistical Context and Campaign Details
TfL provided statistics indicating a 10% probability that a typical Facebook user would see only one of the three ads, with just a 2% chance of viewing solely the complained-about version. Nevertheless, the ASA emphasised that the potential for harm or offence remained, as users could still encounter the ad in isolation. The campaign launched in October during national hate crime awareness week, aiming to promote bystander intervention on London's transport network, including the underground and bus systems.
The ASA concluded that the ad was irresponsible and likely to cause serious offence, issuing a ban on its future use. They instructed TfL to ensure that future advertisements are socially responsible and avoid perpetuating harmful stereotypes or causing serious offence on racial grounds. This decision underscores ongoing concerns about representation and ethics in advertising, particularly in campaigns addressing sensitive social issues like hate crime and harassment.
