The Self-Esteem Act - Coming Soon to a Magazine Near You

Almost a year ago on the blog we posted about new standards being set in Britain to hold magazine and advertisers accountable for the images they publish in advertising campaigns. As the amount of digital enhancement and photo shopping continues to increase the need for accountability has become even more important. Which is why in Britain they set new standards for digital enhance and photo shopped images, which included labeling those photos.

These new standards went above and beyond last July when a series of L’Oreal ads, which featured Julia Roberts and Christy Turlington, were banned in Britain for being overly airbrushed. On our blog we wondered if standards such as the ones being enacted in Britain would fly here in the United States. Well it looks like we may get a chance to find out.

Seth Matlins and wife Eva Matlins, founders of Off Our Chests are now working to pass the “The Self Esteem Act of 2011”, which will require “all ads and editorial that have significantly airbrushed or photo shopped the human form to carry "truth in advertising labels" on them.”

According to Eva Matlins, "Real, serious, and enduring problems occur when we don't recognize that the images and ideals of the human form being presented in the media are setting unrealistic expectations and standards for our country's female population. Our daughter is five and our son is four, and they're going to start seeing these ads and depictions soon. We want them to be contextualized each and every time they see one, just like a pack of cigarettes."

We here at SheHeroes can’t help but be extremely excited about this piece of legislation. Is this one of the first real steps in finally forcing the media to hold themselves accountable for the ongoing farce that is advertising images?

Will girls today finally start seeing huge labels on the pictures of models and actresses clarifying that they are false?

We certainly hope so.

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