Durex Screws Itself in South Africa

by Jordan Yerman | November 28, 2011 at 05:49 pm

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#DurexJoke Social Media Campaign Blows Up in Condom Maker's Face

Durex tried its hand at a Twitter campaign in South Africa, but did it wrong. Starting the #DurexJoke hashtag probably seemed like a good idea, and, in more experienced hands, may have worked.

However, the Durex Twitter campaign went horribly wrong. The company itself tweeted a blatantly sexist message: "Why did God give men penises? So they'd have at least one way to shut a woman up."

The South African new-media community noticed right away. YehBaby, a Cape Town-based creative agency, tweeted, "This particular Twitter fumble from Durex SA stands out as one so supremely tone deaf, offensive and insensitive... "

Of course, Durex blamed the ad agency, Euro RSCG. When Jen Thorpe of Feminist SA challenged Durex on the offensive tweet, the company replied thusly:

@FeministsSA We have posted many jokes, see our timeline… And they not violent against woman! Re-read it!!!!!

Aside from suggesting that Euro RSCG hire more grammar-savvy tweeters, we must say that re-reading the original tweet does not make it seem less offensive.

It is a self-perpetuating cycle. Norms that say men’s most important attribute is their penis, and that a woman better celebrate that by taking what she can get, are part of rape culture, which I argue is bad for everyone.

Durex SA's response to @FeministSA was particularly strange:

Apologies go out to @FeministsSA, but also thanks. You reminded us that rape and violence against women is still a major concern in SA.

With roughly 25% of men admitting to committing rape and an HIV infection rate that can only be described as terrifying, Durex somehow forgot that rape is "still a major concern"?

So, what can we learn from this?

Don't tweet rape jokes as part of a social media campaign. Probably best not to tweet rape jokes at all; just ask Forrest Griffin.
Don't blame the ad agency. If you sign off on a campaign, it's your throat to choke: your brand will always be the face of business-to-consumer communication. The public doesn't care who your ad agency is.
When you inevitably have to apologize, do so directly and plainly. Don't pass the buck.
See item 1. As Bas Rutten says, "Don't you ever do this!"

Now the #QantasLuxury gong show doesn't seem quite so bad.