Should Ten-Year-Olds be Considered ‘Sexy’?

Calling 10 and 12 year olds ’sexy’ seems to be fine according to the NSW Office of the Children’s Guardian (OCG), which regulates the employment of child models. The government body supposedly OK’d a photographers brief for a David Jones advertisement (right), which said that the girls should be portrayed as “slightly more adult and sexy”.

This document, obtained under Freedom of Information laws, appears to support claims by The Australia Institute that retailer David Jones used advertisements that intentionally sexualised children as young as 10.

The Director of advocacy group Kids Free 2B Kids, Julie Gale, has been trying to access the documents relating to the David Jones ad for the Alison Ashley, since the department store was named in the 2006  “Corporate paedophilia  —  sexualising children by advertising and marketing” report by The Australia Institute. The damning brief was revealed in the Daily Telegraph two days ago.

David Jones later sued the institute and its then director Clive Hamilton, however, they dropped the legal action in May 2008.

David Jones has distanced themselves from the ’sexy’ brief, claiming it was written by a freelance photographer. The store’s agency Saatchi and Saatchi have also washed their hands of the affair, insisting that the photographer no longer works for them.

Which brings us back to the Office of the Children’s Guardian.

Children’s Guardian Kerryn Boland said  her job was to ensure compliance with a code of practice when employing minors, not to approve ads. She admitted however, that her department would normally ask questions when seeing the word “sexy”. Not in this case, obviously.

Pre-teens are not adults, or even teenagers. They are children, and don’t need to be photographed with sultry, “knowing” smirks. If photographers and advertisers can’t make teh right judgements, we need a watchdog to step in and make it for them.

[Via Crikey]