‘Tainted by other men’: Dettol issues public apology after ‘sexist’ detergent ad sparks anger in China

BEIJING: British hygiene brand Dettol has apologised for a controversial advertisement promoting laundry disinfectant that has sparked strong backlash and calls for a boycott in China.

The five-minute ad, shot in the style of a Chinese microdrama, was first released in end-May and aired nationally before being pulled on Sunday (Jun 21).

It starts with a man looking for a girlfriend who is “clean and not tainted by other men”.

“I’m not a virgin myself but my future wife has to be,” he tells himself, also comparing his new partner to his former.

The woman then rejects his views and breaks up with him - later throwing his socks into the wash along with Dettol laundry sanitiser, and ends with a voiceover: “A toxic man is just like germs. You need Dettol to eliminate them to feel at ease.”

The ad, which was only released in China, triggered accusations of misogyny and objectification of women.

“We recognise that it has offended many people, especially women,” the company said in a statement shared to its official Weibo page on Monday (Jun 22), adding that the ad had been produced by a third-party agency and was meant to “challenge unequal gender attitudes and promote healthy, confident views on relationships and lifestyles”.

“We take responsibility for any negligence in creating and reviewing the content of the advert,” Dettol said, adding that it would strictly review its content moderation processes.

The brand is no stranger to controversy in China. Last year, it drew backlash over another ad which featured the line: “The woman was ‘returned’ just before her wedding. It must be because she was not clean.”

“WHAT EXACTLY IS THIS PROMOTING?”

Public reaction to the latest ad has been swift.

Online, social media users called for a boycott of Dettol products.

“The ad (was) beyond offensive - I don’t know if your apology is even enough to make up for all the offensive misogynism that was expressed,” wrote Weibo user Zhang Xinyi in a comment on Dettol’s official page that was liked more than 300 times.

“I think serious repercussions need to be made,” said another Weibo user with the handle Autumn Bear. “To hit companies where it truly hurts, boycott Dettol - support other brands.”

Liu Dingding, an internet industry observer, told the state-owned Global Times that such marketing was “utterly inappropriate” and “poisons public discourse”. He also called it a “classic exploitative marketing tactic” that “deliberately chases viral traffic”.

While the ad has already been removed, clips of it continue to circulate online.

“What exactly is this meant to be promoting - laundry detergent or misogyny? It’s hard to tell,” wrote Xiaohongshu user Zu Wei.

On Weibo, others criticised the ad’s “sexist tropes” and took issue with repeated references to women’s “cleanliness” and “purity”.

“It’s simply trash,” said one user, adding that it “left me speechless”.

“Objectification isn’t entertainment,” another said, noting the company’s delay in issuing an official apology weeks after the original ad had first aired.

“This was done in very poor taste and says a lot about the company.”