Dove's New Billboards Criticize the Way the Media Discusses Female Athletes' Looks

Displays in 3 cities call out sexist rhetoric

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When it comes to commentary about female athletes, media outlets often focus on their looks rather than their performance on the field and that has got to stop, according to Dove's latest campaign. 

In the next evolution of its "My Beauty, My Say" effort, the brand has partnered with former gymnast Shawn Johnson to call out this behavior and encourage the public to challenge the media to do better.

The new work, from Razorfish, uses digital interactive billboards in New York, Los Angeles and Toronto, to stream live commentary about female athletes' looks to showcase how often the discussion is focused on their appearance versus their performance. 

"Instead of focusing on their athletic performance, they're often talking about—whether it's their clothing or their looks—it's probably not appropriate to refer to women's nipples or ass when they're talking about their athletic performance," said Jennifer Bremner, director of marketing for Dove.

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