Cadbury’s Naomi Campbell ad ruled not racist

The Advertising Standards Authority has thrown out complaints accusing the recent Cadbury Milk Bliss ad of racism by comparing model Naomi Campbell to the chocolate bar.   

The decision follows an assessment by the council of the whether to launch an investigation to see if the press campaign, which included the strap line “move over Naomi, there’s a new diva in town” was in breach of the advertising code relating to racism.

Cadbury initially defended the campaign, saying it was intended as a tongue-in-cheek play on her reputation for diva-style tantrums and had nothing to do with her skin colour. However, after taking took legal advice Cadbury withdrew the campaign and made a public apology on its corporate website.

The ASA assessed four complaints, including one from Operation Black Vote, which branded the campaign an insult to black women, and has concluded that there are “no grounds for an investigation” and that the ad was “likely to be understood to refer to Campbell’s reputation for ‘diva-style’ behaviour rather than her race”.