L'Oreal in advert dispute

Don't believe all you hear, so the saying goes, nor should you believe all you read and see. Especially when it concerns fashion's advertisements. That fashion campaigns resemble fictitious beauty comes as no surprise, and most readers accept this with a pinch of salt. When 50-something actress Sharon Stone models for Dior, most readers know the image will have been retouched to an inch of the model's life. This is generally accepted when the advertisement concerns a perfume, accessory or ready-to-wear. However, when it comes to beauty, it's altogether a different story.

Cosmetics giant L'Oreal, whose latest ads feature Spanish beauty Penelope Cruz, has been reprimanded by British advertising watchdogs for its 'misleading' mascara advertisements. The TV and magazine adverts promoting L'Oreal's new Telescopic mascara claim the product boosts the length of women's eyelashes by up to 60 per cent. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) was forced to step in after it was discovered the acting beauty had been wearing additional false eyelashes for the shoot.

A spokesman for L'Oreal says, "It is common industry practice to make use of some artificial lashes in order to ensure a consistent lash line under filming or shooting conditions - the ASA had previously accepted on more than one occasion that this industry practice was not misleading." L'Oreal has been ordered to clarify the discrepancy and place a disclaimer on all future Telescopic advertising campaigns.