I have to confess I haven’t watched the Oscars in several years, having grown bored with the same old, same old. While the success of “Parasite” was a welcome surprise, the 12 year dry spell of women writers not winning, or this year’s complete shutout of female directors, proves that the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences has a long way to go in terms of diversity. So, should it be that surprising that they’ve stirred up a hornet’s nest by rejecting an ad for postpartum products? The ad that’s shown below is from Frida Mom, and was submitted a week before the awards show. ABC and the Academy turned it down because they felt it was too “graphic” for their “family-friendly” ceremony. They also don’t air commercials for: political candidates, religious messages, guns/gun shows, feminine hygiene products, adult diapers, and condoms. How sad is it that the difficulties new moms have to cope with are deemed to be not suitable for family viewing?
By Hook Or By Book 
I hadn’t heard of this, but I’m shocked they wouldn’t air this commercial. “Graphic”? It honestly could have been a lot more graphic and still true! Plus, how many countless women go through this? Wow.
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Yeah. I thought this was a pretty tone-deaf, pathetic decision.
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Blimey though things have changed since I was a new Mum. We were hard back then 🙂 Not that I mind the ad, but don’t they teach this stuff at ante natal classes? And I’m gonna do a cynical Pete thing and say this company just got a whole load of advertising just for being banned, from one of the biggest shows on TV, and I can’t believe they didn’t think this would happen. $💵
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Not being a mom myself, I don’t know if this is part of childbirth classes. And you’re right. The company has most likely received far more publicity than if ABC and the Academy had just aired the commercial to begin with. It’s infuriating though that they pull things like this in addition to the continued inequality in regards to women and minorities being acknowledged in the industry.
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Agreed!
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The Academy has made many disastrous decisions over the last few years, resulting in the all-time lowest rated Oscar TV show EVER this year…maybe the Frida Mom people made the right choice: tons of free advertising due to the controversy – no money spent on a losing show!
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It’s funny, the Academy just can’t figure out why people don’t bother watching anymore. Maybe they should actually listen for a change.
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You are absolutely right! I worked with them for more than a decade, and when new leadership came in, with a very narcissistic agenda, the wheels came off…you know, kind of like the US now…
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Sigh.🙇🏻♀️
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I have been bored with the Oscars for a long time now. Unfunny presenters, and shoe-in awards. The Ad controversy went over my head.
Nice to see a subtitled film win though. 🙂
I suppose it will get to the stage where they have to have compulsory Oscars for a female director, and a black star. It doesn’t appear to matter whether or not they made the best films, or acted the best.
Korean actors in a foreign language film got Best Picture.
Diverse enough for me.
Best wishes, Pete.
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It was wonderful that Parasite won, but the Academy still has a huge issue overall as far as recognizing women and minorities. And as far as the ad, for me, it’s just part and parcel of their utter cluelessness.
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I do absolutely agree that postpartum is a message that people don’t seem to have enough knowledge or support about. But, at least it seems that they rejected ads from a number of specific topics and not just this one. If they had an ad for another medication, feminine product, condoms, or any other number of subjects I’d definitely be really angry!! (maybe they did… I don’t watch the Oscars.) As for more female writers winning… I can’t angry if they don’t. I just hope that it’s a fair fight. As a woman I’d like an award for my actual accomplishments. I wouldn’t want it just because people will get angry if they don’t give it to me. 😐
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I see what you mean Nicole, but I don’t think postpartum should be lumped in with guns, politics, and religion. As for women writers there have been so many over the last 12 years that were never even nominated. And no female directors were deemed worthy to be nominated this year. What about Greta Gerwig (Little Women), Lorena Scarfaria (Hustlers), Lulu Wang (The Farewell), and Marielle Heller (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood), for just a few. There are incredibly talented people that are going unrecognized by the Academy.
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Well, as a say, I shouldn’t even be one to talk because I haven’t paid attention to the Oscars in many years.
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No, no Nicole. Your opinion is valued by me. I agree someone shouldn’t win solely based on their sex or race. But there’s something wrong when year, after year, after year, despite a diverse pool of talent, there’s such an absence of acknowledgement. It’s one of the reasons why I stopped watching.
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Too true! 🍻
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I remember those days. It’s about time they come out with products like these and filling people in on what women go through is not too graphic. They show births on national TV.
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Well the good news for Frida Mom is that they’ve now received far more attention than is ABC and the Academy had aired it.
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The censorship of the Frida advert is what prompted me to start blogging. We don’t talk enough about the effects of birth on women’s bodies here in the UK. I gave birth completely clueless about what comes afterwards.
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Bravo to you! You have my deepest admiration!👏🏻
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