Shaving brand Gillette has launched a new advert that tackles, among other things, sexual harassment, bulling and toxic masculinity.
The company has produced the short ad, looking at its famous tagline - it opens asking: "Is this the best a man can get - is it?"
Focusing on bullying, sexual assault and the MeToo movement, it says: "We can't hide from it - it's been going on far too long, we can't laugh it off, making the same old excuses".
"But something finally changed, and there will be no going back - because we believe in the best in men.
"To say the right thing, to act the right way - some already are, in ways big and small.
"But some is not enough because the boys watching today will be the men of tomorrow".
Image: YouTube/Gillette
On the advert, the company says: "Thirty years ago, we launched our 'The Best A Man Can Get' tagline. Since then, it has been an aspirational statement, reflecting standards that many men strive to achieve.
"But turn on the news today and it's easy to believe that men are not at their best.
"Many find themselves at a crossroads, caught between the past and a new era of masculinity.
"While it is clear that changes are needed, where and how we can start to effect that change is less obvious for many. And when the changes needed seem so monumental, it can feel daunting to begin. So, let's do it together."
"It's time we acknowledge that brands, like ours, play a role in influencing culture.
"And as a company that encourages men to be their best, we have a responsibility to make sure we are promoting positive, attainable, inclusive and healthy versions of what it means to be a man."
"From today on, we pledge to actively challenge the stereotypes and expectations of what it means to be a man everywhere you see Gillette.
"In the ads we run, the images we publish to social media, the words we choose, and so much more."
It has also committed to donate US$1m per year for the next three years to non-profit organisations in the US designed to inspire, educate and help men to become role models.
However, opinion appears divided online:
#Gillette is probably delighted at all the coverage its ad is getting, but it highlights the wider trend of treating maleness as a problem to be solved. Newsflash: maleness is a good thing, and so is femaleness.
— David Quinn (@DavQuinn) January 15, 2019
All these histrionics over am advert asking men to do better. Telling AF. But here’s the gag... Women buy over 50% of all household items... including men’s razors. Gillette knows who is actually PURCHASING their products. https://t.co/eWcbGjmvJr
— LeslieMac ?? (@LeslieMac) January 15, 2019
Ads for women: Be thin, be thick, love your body, your boobs look bigger in this, dye your hair, embrace your grays, these pants are slimming, be feminine, wear makeup, look natural, hide your age...
Women: K.
Gillette: Men should be less shitty.
Men: Don’t tell us what to do!
— The Volatile Mermaid (@OhNoSheTwitnt) January 15, 2019
That @Gillette ad is about the worst thing I’ve ever seen.
It’s a leftist fantasy of negative stereotypes not just about men, but about white men.
In the ad, 43 males exhibit "undesirable" behavior. 42 white, 1 black. 7 males exhibit "desirable" behavior, 5 black, 2 white.
— John Cardillo (@johncardillo) January 15, 2019
Dear Gillette
What I wanted from you was sharp razors, now I'll get those elsewhere
We don't need more piling on to the
Toxic masculinity BS bandwagon https://t.co/HIDupZBTVn— Jim Hanson (@Uncle_Jimbo) January 15, 2019
Dear @Gillette ,
I know you’re gonna get nailed for that commercial. But I want you to know it meant the world to a lot of us.
Keep on — please.— Jordan, with an A (@JMegonigal) January 15, 2019
If you're offended by the new #Gillette ad, you might be part of the problem bud!
— TheAlphaVictor (@TheAlphaVictor) January 15, 2019
