Khloe Kardashian ad makes the cut for London Underground placement: Report

An ad promoting a weight-loss product and featuring a swimsuit-clad Khloe Kardashian has been approved for posting in the London Underground, the British capital’s subway system.

“The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received 14 complaints about Protein World’s ’socially irresponsible’ promotion,” the BBC reported Wednesday. “But it ruled the campaign did not ’encourage harmful dieting behaviour.’”

In his 2016 election campaign, spurred in part by controversial Protein World advertisements, then-London mayoral candidate Sadiq Khan pledged to ensure that advertisements within the Underground did not cause offense by body shaming passengers with unrealistic body images.

Mr. Khan fulfilled that campaign pledge in June when he announced the new policy. “As the father of two teenage girls, I am extremely concerned about this kind of advertising which can demean people, particularly women, and make them ashamed of their bodies. It is high time it came to an end,” Mr. Khan said in a statement at the time.

The Kardashian advertisement — which features the tag line, “Can You Keep Up with a Kardashian?” — was deemed acceptable by London’s transit authority, Transport for London, as well as the ASA.

“We did not consider that she appeared to be out of proportion or unhealthy,” said the ASA in a statement. 

Judging by the low volume of complaints, the general public may well agree. The ASA received a mere 14 complaints about Ms. Kardashian’s ad, the BBC reported.

By contrast, in 2015, Protein World’s “Are you beach body ready?” ad campaign — featuring a well-toned, sultry model in a canary yellow bikini— “drew 380 complaints amid widespread social media outrage,” according to the BBC.

Ms. Kardashian’s ad campaign for Protein World comes after the model has shed more than 40 pounds in the last couple of years, The Sun newspaper reported Wednesday.

“For those starting training or already aiming for a goal, my biggest piece of advice is to remind ourselves that we all have to start somewhere,” Ms. Kardashian said, reported The Sun. “I also love that someone once told me you can’t get it all in one day. You have to remember to set realistic goals.”