The 'Wallpaper' of Children's Lives
"Making your customers aware that you adopt a ‘family—friendly’ policy on display, you may find that parents with children are much happier to shop in your store."
National Federation of Retail Newsagents, 2011
10.
Following a campaign led by Mumsnet (Mumsnet (1)), a number of major retailers including supermarkets and petrol stations have agreed to take measures to ensure that 'lads' mags' are displayed out of the view of children.This is a very welcome development, but should be adopted across the whole of the news retail industry.
RECOMMENDATION
1.
Ensuring that magazines and newspapers with sexualised images on their covers are not in easy sight of children. Retail associations in the news industry should do more to encourage observance of the voluntary code of practice on the display of magazines and newspapers with sexualised images on their covers. Publishers and distributors should provide such magazines in modesty sleeves, or make modesty boards available, to all outlets they supply and strongly encourage the appropriate display of their publications. Retailers should be open and transparent to show that they welcome and will act on customer feedback regarding magazine displays.ACTION: Publishers, distributors, retailers and retail associations in the news industry, including the National Federation of Retail Newsagents and the Association of News Retailing
Volume and nature of sexualised images — in advertising
11.
In our Call for Evidence from parents we asked whether, when they had been out and about with their children in the last few weeks, they had seen any images aimed at adults that they thought were inappropriate for their children to see. A majority (576) of the 846 respondents who answered this question said they had.These parents who had seen things they thought were inappropriate were then asked to give details of what they had seen, and of those:
- 134 mentioned shop displays with the majority concerned about the display of 'lads' mags' in newsagents, supermarkets and petrol stations.
- 113 respondents were unhappy with on—street advertising such as billboards and posters in bus shelters.
- 63 respondents specifically mentioned the sexual imagery in advertisements for perfume and lingerie.
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