--- title: Yves Saint Laurent Ad Featuring 'Underweight' Model Is Banned description: An ad in Elle magazine was banned by UK's advertising watchdog for featuring a too-thin model. canonical: https://time.com/3906859/yves-saint-laurent-ad-underweight-model/ author: Sam Frizell article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-03T12:00:48.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:45:17.201Z og:title: Yves Saint Laurent Ad Featuring 'Underweight' Model Is Banned og:description: The model was too skinny og:url: https://time.com/3906859/yves-saint-laurent-ad-underweight-model/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Yves Saint Laurent Ad Featuring 'Underweight' Model Is Banned twitter:description: The model was too skinny twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Yves Saint Laurent Ad Featuring 'Underweight' Model Is Banned > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture recommendation newsletter, edited by culture editor Eliza Berman. Each week it surfaces the books, shows, films and ideas TIME's editors think are worth your attention, and explains why. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Does TIME have a culture newsletter? Yes. Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published weekly. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-worth-2026q3/newsletters?i=c96ce4d6-6162-4ccd-8db9-8eeb60721503&cr=time-nl-worth-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Naomi Campbell: "Racist" Runways Need to End [Watch (HLS stream): Naomi Campbell: "Racist" Runways Need to End](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/X5dXp9wu.m3u8) (2:50)  _Published 2013-09-17. As part of the Diversity Coalition, Campbell speaks out about the lack of diversity on major designer runways_ by [Sam Frizell](https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Jun 3, 2015 12:00 PM UTC by [Sam Frizell](https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Jun 3, 2015 12:00 PM UTC The U.K.’s advertising authority has [banned](https://www.asa.org.uk/Rulings/Adjudications/2015/6/Yves-Saint-Laurent-SAS/SHP%5FADJ%5F292161.aspx#.VW7r%5FkgZJU9) an Yves Saint Laurent ad for using a model who appears in the photo to be unhealthily thin. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld a complaint that the model looked too underweight in her ad in _Elle_ magazine, according to the[ authority’s website](https://www.asa.org.uk/Rulings/Adjudications/2015/6/Yves-Saint-Laurent-SAS/SHP%5FADJ%5F292161.aspx#.VW7r%5FkgZJU9). In its ruling, the ASA said the lighting effect in the ad drew attention to the model’s visible rib cage, and her legs, “where her thighs and knees appeared a similar width.” > [](https://twitter.com/PA/status/605960732115533824) Advertisers who use skinny models have come under fire for what critics say promotes unrealistic standards for women. Urban Outfitters and Drop Dead are two clothing outfitters that have been forced to remove promotional photos of skinny models, [_The Guardian_ reported](http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/jun/03/yves-saint-laurent-ad-ban-underweight-model). Yves Saint Laurent and _Elle_ declined to comment to _The Guardian._ ## Transcript Naomi Campbell [ SOUND ]. Iman [ SOUND ]. Two of the original supermodels. More than two decades after they first broke through. They say the fashion world is riddled with racism. We're not saying they're racist. We're saying it's an act of racism by not using models of color. In a sharply worded letter to the industry, they call out fashion's elite. Quote, Eyes are on an industry that season after season watches fashion houses consistently use one or no models of color. Dozens of fashion's biggest names are listed on what the fashion diversity coalition calls, a lack of black models on runways during the fall 2013 collections. Being a black model in the industry today is, more difficult than being a white one, that's for sure. Carol White, the agent who launched Naomi Campbell's career, says the problem is nothing new. Of the 300 models her agency represents, just 13 are black. And she says her agency represents more than most. We will take models that clients want. So therefore the ratio of black versus white is obviously quite big. We're more discerning about the type of black girl we take, because we know they have to be stunningly beautiful. Have incredible body, they have to be actually perfect. Nadia Garnatte is one of the industry's freshest faces. This is her first time being booked to walk at a Temperley London Fashion Show. She says that she didn't know that Temperley is one of many fashion houses that Naomi's campaign has called out. I would love to be, like, booked for shows, and not because oh, she's gonna be the, the only black girl. No, because I am me, you know, for my personality, for the person, the model I am. Alice Temperley says last season's casting decision was based on available models. We have loads of different girls, lots. We always make sure that we try to mix it up. Last source of winter, that last source of winter, we had five or six Asian girls. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful Asian girls. [ CROSSTALK ] I think the criticism is specifically about a, a lack of black models on the runway. Possibly because there's just not enough models coming to castings that are black. Campbell says her campaign has started to work. She noticed improvements during New York's fashion week, and hopes London, Paris, and Milan follow suit. We don't want to be a trend. We want this to last. And you shouldn't be chosen just because, not chosen because of the color of your skin. You should be chosen because you're beautiful. 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