Bondi Sands victim of racist fake social media ad
Australian company Bondi Sands, which makes and markets fake-tanning products, is one of the latest brands to fall victim to fake social media ads.
The fake ad read: “Australia’s fake tan for girls who want to be black, but not black black.”
A fake Bondi Sands advertisement has been brought to our attention. This is certainly not a placed advertisement on behalf of the Bondi Sands brand. We are doing our best to find the source so we can address this issue immediately.
— Bondi Sands (@bondisands) July 13, 2019
The brand said it is not yet sure who was responsible for the ad.
“We would never do anything like that. It goes against everything we are trying to do,” co-founder Blair James told Private Sydney’s Andrew Hornery.
The product has had paid partnerships with influencers including Kylie Jenner in the past.
Last week, Instagram shook up its platform in Australia, implementing a trial which hides how many ‘likes’ any given post has received, from everyone except the person or brand who posted it.
The social media platform said the move was concocted in a bid to make its users less competitive, and thus allow them to focus on content, rather than chasing likes.
In light of the trial, opinion has been split on the ramifications for the influencer community, and whether or not it will take away some of their appeal.