The explosive growth of companies throughout the world has turned the advertising field into quite the competitive landscape. From flat-out offensive to pure ridiculous, advertisements sometimes cross the line – and in big ways. With all the content produced, it seems some overly offensive ads (which should never have been made) somehow slipped through the cracks. In other cases, vintage ads which may have been accepted then easily violate our sensitivities these days. Find some of these here in our list of 25 of the most offensive advertisements ever created. We still can’t believe these ads ever existed!
25
Comparing Naomi Campbell to chocolate never ends well
theguardian.com 24
Because guys with afros can't be "civilized"?
www.businessinsider.com.au 23
Sound relationship advice
erikanapoletano.com 22
It seems they've changed their advertising agency since then
styleite.com 21
Federici Ice Cream is definitely pushing the boundaries
20
More beautiful - from dark to light
thesocietypages.org 19
Could have just said you'd order a pizza
historybyzim.com 18
How did this ever pass the focus groups?
nydailynews.com 17
A margarita to die for
aorakest.wordpress.com 16
Wonder if this was seen as provocative then, too…
www.8-bitcentral.com 15
The images from a similar Game Gear ad seem to confirm the wonder
www.gamebreaker.tv 14
"She acts like an early Christian about to be lunch for a lion, but gives in."
nesbitsvintage.com 13
This is plain creepy
complex.com 12
Didn't anyone see the World War II ad "We can do it!"?
m.smh.com.au 11
We can see why they went out of business
www.businessinsider.com.au 10
"Oh, it's the best Christmas ever!" said no woman ever upon opening a Hoover
kenlevine.blogspot.com 9
Work Hard, Look Cute?
kenlevine.blogspot.com 8
Who can resist a message of "smoke and be skinny"?
likeables.wordpress.com 7
They say sex sells, but this is a bit much
pinterest.com 6
Was it so sexually suggestive in those times, too?
tobacco.stanford.edu 5
Not purely offensive but a bit shocking considering what we now know
4
The "Super Seven Incher"
qualitylogoproducts.com 3
Shaming people isn't the best way to advertise
nutritionunplugged.com 2
Not really the best comparison for being addicted to fashion
designbump.com 1
For when you really need to get clean
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