UK Bans Volkswagen Ad For Showing Men Working And Mother Raising A Child

The ad for Volkswagen's electric eGolf vehicle showed a series of scenes including a man and a woman in a tent on a sheer cliff face, two male astronauts, a male para-athlete and a woman sitting on a bench next to a pram. Text stated: "When we learn to adapt we can achieve anything."

Complainants said the ad showed men engaged in adventurous activities, that unlike her male counterpart, the female rock climber was "passive" because she was asleep, and that the woman with the pram was depicted in a stereotypical care-giving role.

Volkswagen said its ad was not sexist and that caring for a newborn was a life-changing experience about adaptation, regardless of the gender of the parent depicted.

The ASA, however, "concluded that the ad presented gender stereotypes in a way that was likely to cause harm".