It’s 2026 – why are brands still objectifying women to sell e-bikes, air-conditioners and more?

Women From Chinese e-bikes to TVs and air-conditioners, sexually objectifying ads continue to spark backlash. Their persistence reflects how readily women’s bodies are still used to grab attention. It’s 2026, yet women’s bodies are still being objectified and used to sell everything from e-scooters to laundry disinfectant. (Illustration: CNA/Jasper Loh) New: You can now listen to articles. This audio is generated by an AI tool. Imagine an advertisement for an electric scooter. A young woman drapes her stockinged legs over motorcycle handlebars, with low-angle shots of her thighs, and frames of her adjusting her skirt after climbing off.All that sexual imagery to sell an electric scooter.By the time I heard about Chinese electric scooter brand Luyuan’s ad, it had already been taken down. I caught it via screengrabs and this CNA report.The backlash on Chinese social media platform Douyin, complete with visceral reactions and biting comments, was so fierce that the brand pulled the ad and issued an apology for objectifying women.Objectification broadly refers to seeing or treating a person as an object rather than as a person, according to the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy.This came weeks after Dettol in China culled its five-minute microdrama, centred on a man seeking a partner who was “clean” and not “tainted by others”. The plot twist – that he was the toxic one – appeared too late in the ad. Viewers had already rejected the framing and lashed out.Chinese netizens called the ad’s purity themes a reinforcement of misogynistic stereotypes, rather than challenging them. Boycott calls followed on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo, and the brand removed the ad, issued an apology, and promised to review its internal processes. A screengrab from an advertisement produced by Chinese electric two-wheeler brand Luyuan, which sparked backlash online over its risque messaging. (Image: Weibo/满电的小贺) There are also brands that use female content creators as part of their social media strategy. The women wear revealing clothes in these videos while showcasing the products.Whatever the location or product, the playbook remains the same: Use attractive women playing into stereotypes as the hook.The year is 2026 – why are we still objectifying women?THE ATTENTION ECONOMYToday, attention is currency, whether it converts into sales or contributes to any meaningful narrative.Social media platforms like Douyin, TikTok and Instagram reward content that stops the scroll. The industry’s assumption is that a woman’s body does that – and much faster than a list of product features.Does using sex appeal to sell products work? I asked two advertising veterans whose combined experience spans four decades in the industry, and neither could point to any evidence.“I don’t believe there is real data on whether sexualised imagery sells better,” said Daniel Ko, an advertising creative with more than 20 years’ experience working on FMCG brands, government and alcohol campaigns, including Lynx body spray ads back when the brand’s positioning rested on sex appeal.He attributes an industry-wide fixation with performance metrics, in which clicks, views and reactions get mistaken for effectiveness. “They don’t always convert (into product sales),” he said. Screengrabs from a since-pulled advertisement by British hygiene brand Dettol that triggered accusations of misogyny and objectification of women. (Images: WeChat/欣欣在睡亿分钟) Loo Yong Ping, executive creative director at ad agency TBWA, agreed: “I don’t know of any actual data behind using such imagery and whether it sells better, though that old saying of ‘sex sells’ might ring a bell.”Does controversy itself count as a win? Ko was unequivocal: “Controversy is never a win – especially for long-term brand building.”Loo, who has worked on campaigns ranging from the BBC to Jewel Changi Airport and Singtel, was less absolute, saying that healthy public discourse around a campaign can sometimes be considered a success.Clients ultimately sign off on campaigns. But unlike traditional media, where ads may face regulatory review by the Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore (ASAS) or even the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), social media has fewer guardrails, Ko said.At TBWA, Loo said the agency’s internal culture provides that safeguard: “Using sex to sell is not even an option for my team, and such ideas would not pass any internal reviews.” Women’s bodies have been used to sell everything from engine spark plugs to air-conditioners. (Photo: iStock/Kasyanov-creation) So, is objectification ever necessary? Loo said: “Attention can be earned through shock, humour, a disruptive concept, craft, or storytelling. Sex appeal is simply a low-brow method to capture attention.”“Come on, it’s 2026 and we need to do better,” Ko said. “Consumers are ahead of the curve – which explains why more brands are getting called out these days.”Loo agreed that alternative concepts can still achieve marketing objectives. A father of two young daughters, he said: “I have an added responsibility to produce work which creates a world that is healthy for them.”BEYOND THE CAMPAIGN – INTO EVERYDAY LIFEDr Michelle Ho, assistant professor of feminist and queer cultural studies at the National University of Singapore’s Department of Communications and New Media, said: “Even though it is 2026, not 1996, sexual objectification continues to exist simply because gender inequality remains present in our society.” Women are disproportionately victim-survivors of online harms because of gender norms that objectify and sexualise women. (Photo: iStock/AntonioGuillem) Asst Prof Ho leads Campus Sexual Misconduct in a Digital Age (CASMIDA), an independent local research project studying the role of digital technology in sexual misconduct on university campuses in Singapore.Her team’s concern isn’t limited to advertising. Women disproportionately make up the victim-survivors of online sexual harms, she noted. “It’s a pattern deeply rooted in the same entrenched gender norms of imagery that sexualises, objectifies and dehumanises women.”Exposure plays a role too. Regularly consuming objectifying imagery makes it easier to normalise other forms of violation, including non-consensual content, she explained. “Indeed, this is a vicious cycle.”A gender norms study by SG Her Empowerment (SHE) found that millennial and Gen Z men in Singapore were more likely than older men to condone spousal violence. SHE’s director of research Natalie Chia told CNA Women that younger men grew up with greater access to sexual content, such as depictions of violence and even coercion.Objectification feels offensive and outdated to some but appeals directly to the belief systems of others, explaining why it endures.“We are living through a moment of immense polarisation when it comes to gendered attitudes,” Asst Prof Ho said. WHAT CHANGE WOULD TAKEIf change is uneven and slow, what moves the needle?The Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), Singapore’s women’s rights and gender equality advocacy organisation, isn’t new to this fight.In 2011, AWARE complained about a London Weight Management ad that linked a woman's professional and personal rejection to her weight. The ad was eventually removed after the then-Media Development Authority intervened.“Public awareness has sharpened considerably,” said Lim Shoon Yin, AWARE’s executive director, pointing to decades of advocacy work including the group’s contributions to ASAS’ original guidelines in 1989. But the enforcement has barely evolved. In 2011, AWARE complained about a local weight management ad that implied a woman’s professional and personal rejection was related to her weight. (Photo: iStock/Stock photo and footage) Singapore’s system still relies largely on industry self-regulation, without meaningful penalties. Transparency is limited too: In 2022, local digital news platform TheHomeGround Asia asked ASAS how many complaints it had received about sexist ads, but its secretariat declined to comment.A new layer has emerged too, Lim said. Algorithms are shaped by engagement data that favour sexualised imagery, amplifying the kind of content that AWARE is warning against. People aren’t choosing to self-objectify – platform reward systems are designed to incentivise it.Lim added that consumers also need media literacy, specifically, the ability to recognise engineered content and understand how amplification systems shape what they see.For this to happen, change needs to take place on two fronts.The first is cultural. It starts with education, respect for personal agency and recognising when something crosses a line – including when “sexy” is doing the work that an actual idea should be doing, or when a norm is built on gender disparity, as Asst Prof Ho observed.The second is regulatory. Current guidelines have not kept pace with digital media, and brands that cross clear boundaries need consequences beyond an apology after the backlash.“Brands need to review campaigns before they launch, at the concept stage, rather than pulling them once the backlash has already landed,” said AWARE’s Lim.Luyuan apologised. Dettol apologised. The challenge now is turning public outrage into lasting change in how brands portray women. CNA Women is a section on CNA Lifestyle that seeks to inform, empower and inspire the modern woman. If you have women-related news, issues and ideas to share with us, email CNAWomen [at] mediacorp.com.sg.