Dettol apologises after 'toxic men' advert sparks backlash in China
British hygiene brand Dettol has apologised for a Chinese advertisement that was widely condemned as offensive to women. The advert was pulled after social media outcry.
Dettol, the British hygiene brand owned by Reckitt, has apologised after an advertisement released in China in late May sparked a huge backlash on social media. The ad, intended to criticise 'toxic men', was perceived as offensive to women.
The five-minute micro-drama shows a man comparing his current girlfriend to his ex. Upon learning that his ex had lived with someone else, he calls her a 'secondhand product'. He then tells his friends he wants to find a 'clean and untouched' woman with whom he can be the first sexual partner. 'I may not be a virgin, but my future wife has to be,' he says, adding: 'Luckily, I met her now – she's clean and hasn't been contaminated by other men.'
The advert ends with the new girlfriend discovering his remarks, calling out his misogyny and breaking up with him. As she throws his socks into a washing machine, a voiceover says: 'A toxic man is just like these germs – you need Dettol to eliminate them completely to feel at ease.'
Following widespread criticism on social media, with many calling for a boycott, Dettol withdrew the advert on Sunday. In an apology, the company said the promotion had aimed to 'challenge unequal gender attitudes and promote healthy, confident views on relationships and lifestyles', but that edited clips circulating online had distorted the original message. The ad was produced by a third-party agency, but Dettol took responsibility for its content. The topic had been viewed more than 80 million times on Chinese platform Weibo as of Tuesday.
