Singapore – Nearly 4 out of 5 APAC consumers agree that companies should do a better job at capturing Asian people’s true lifestyle and culture in advertising, a report from Getty Images revealed.
The new research showed that stereotypical and inauthentic visual representations of various Asian communities are still present in the Asia-Pacific advertising scene.
According to the data, only less than 10% of the most popular visuals for Australasia, Japan, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan accurately represent Asian people and their lived experiences. Instead, the findings revealed that the most commonly used imagery tends to lean heavily towards perpetuating common stereotypes.
The common stereotypes in the Asian advertising scene include depicting Asians as youthful, slender, having lighter skin tones, and predominantly portrayed in work-related contexts. Furthermore, popular visuals all portray the same underlying messages, styling, and emotion, which is often overly happy and has little to no connection to each culture.
Getty Images’ research report also showed that nearly 4 out of 5 consumers across APAC agree that companies also need to do a better job at capturing people’s true lifestyles and cultures. They felt that simply increasing the representation of individuals from diverse ethnicities, backgrounds, and appearances within advertising and media was insufficient.
Additionally, a striking 3 out of 5 also shared that they’ve felt discrimination based on body size, lifestyle choices, race, ethnicity, gender identity, disability, and sexuality.
The report identified a number of representation gaps that are specific to APAC, which include disparities in depicting cultural specificities, underrepresentation of older adults, a lack of diversity in gender representation, limited portrayals of Asian working life, a prevailing preference for Eurocentric beauty standards and body types, and an absence of individuals with disabilities, among others.
The representation gaps and lack of diversity in imagery limit the opportunity to showcase Asia-Pacific’s extensive span of cultures and demographics.
These concerning findings underscore the importance for the media and advertising industry to recognise the intricate diversity and multidimensionality inherent in Asian cultures and align their strategies with consumer expectations to deliver authentic and meaningful portrayals of Asian identities.
Yuri Endo, creative insights manager at Getty Images, said, “Despite the region’s diversity, everyday images and videos that aim to capture Asian experiences often fall short, perpetuating harmful stereotypes or missing the mark entirely. This misrepresentation and underrepresentation in TV shows, social media, and advertising has led to significant gaps in consumers’ understanding of the region’s realities.”
“By sharing these guidelines, the report takes a significant step towards helping brands serving APAC customers promote accurate and respectful portrayals of Asian communities, ultimately contributing to a more inclusive and equitable visual landscape,” she added.
