Socialite Paris Hilton’s beer commercial has been deemed too hot for television by Brazil’s Secretariat for Women’s Affairs.
The ad shows Hilton, 29, in a short black dress preening and rubbing a can of Devassa beer on herself, to the delight of onlookers watching through her window.
Even though the ad may not initially appear very explicit, Brazil’s regulations say beer commercials cannot treat women as overtly sensual objects.
“It’s an ad that devalues women - in particular, blonde women,” the Telegraph quoted a spokeswoman for the Women’s Secretariat who said it had received numerous complaintsEduardo Correia, a spokesman for the regulator Conar, which has opened three separate investigations into the campaign, said many Brazilian beer ads feature women in bikinis - but a key difference is that those are set on the beach.
“The problem with the ad isn’t a lack of clothing, but its sensual nature,” Correia said.
{{/usCountry}}“The problem with the ad isn’t a lack of clothing, but its sensual nature,” Correia said.
{{/usCountry}}“A woman in a bikini on a beach isn’t necessarily sensual; it depends on the context,” he added.
Conar is a private agency that cannot legally force a company to remove an advert.
But Correia said that in 23 years of existence, Conar has conducted more than 7,000 investigations and not one of its recommendations has been ignored.
Grupo Schincariol makes Devassa, which can also be translated as “naughty”, and Devassa’s “Bem Loura” beer, meaning “Very Blond”, also features an Internet campaign with Hilton wearing lingerie and high heels.