Seven West Media, the parent company of the Seven Network, has made a move to unravel the country’s reliance of stereotypes in advertising by joining the Australian chapter of the Unstereotype Alliance.
The Unstereotype Alliance is convened by UN Women and aims to affect positive cultural change by creating a world without stereotypes.
This push involves uniting media, advertisers and advertising agencies and changing the way they use advertising.
This will include moving away from campaigns which show men struggling with household chores or changing a nappy and those depicting girls as less academic or women who are unable to park cars.
Campaigns such as these, which cause offence and resentment and reinforce negative stereotypes, can restrict people’s aspirations and opportunities, Seven said.
The Australian chapter was set up in November 2021 as part of a global push to create a world without stereotypes.
Seven said as one of Australia’s leading media companies, it is committed to its responsibility to work with the industry and encourage the end of harmful stereotypes.
Katie McGrath, chief people and culture officer at Seven West Media, said the company takes its role as a positive and progressive force in society seriously.
“We recognise our important responsibility to work with brand partners to lead positive social change,” McGrath said.
“It’s clear that harmful stereotypes contribute to inequality in society and limit people’s potential. As an industry, we must continue to work with our peers to encourage diverse, inclusive and non-stereotypical representations of all people on-screen.”
Founding members and allies of the Australian chapter of the Unstereotype Alliance include Accenture, Bayer Australia, Coles, Diageo Australia, Facebook Australia, Google Australia, IKEA, IPG, Ipsos Australia, Mars Australia, Mastercard Australia, Omnicom, Optus, Publicis Groupe, Salesforce, Snap Inc., Suncorp, Unilever ANZ, WPP AUNZ, Westpac and the Australian Association of National Advertisers.
Last month, Seven West Media was the first media company in Australia to be named an Employer of Choice for Gender Equality by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency.