New Norwegian Law States Social Media Influencers Must Label Retouched Photos
In an effort to dismantle the internet’s unrealistic beauty standards.
It is now illegal in Norway for social media influencers and advertisers to post a retouched photo without labelling that it has been edited.
Last week, amendments to the country’s 2009 Marketing Act were made by the Norwegian Ministry of Children and Family Affairs. The new change indicates that advertisements that involve the act of altering someone’s body or skin tone, as well as the addition of a filter, will need to be tagged with the Ministry’s standardized label. This, of course, affects the paid advertisement posts of influencers and celebrities. Those who fail to comply will face heavy fines and potential imprisonment.
With the implementation of this new law, Norway hopes to dismantle the internet’s unrealistic beauty standards. “Body pressure is always there, often imperceptibly, and is difficult to combat,” the Ministry said in a statement. “The measure will hopefully make a useful and significant contribution to curbing the negative impact that such advertising has, especially on children and young people.”
However, despite this move, the Ministry admits one won’t be able to really tell if an image has been altered or not. Another issue raised is that if lighting or saturation adjustments, which can also change the color of a subject’s skin, will be appraised as a violation.
Let us know what you think about Norway’s new law in the comments below.
