Ashley Madison Fat Ad Shames Women, Says Obese Model
Nov. 9, 2011 -- An obese model lying seductively in a red bra and black lace panties has become the poster child for why a husband should cheat on his wife in ads slapped across the Internet this week.
"Does your wife scare you at night?" asks an ad for Ashley Madison, the dating site that promotes affairs outside marriage.
When the model in the photo saw how it was used, she said it scared and offended her, because the ad was suggesting that fat women make repulsive sexual partners.
Identifying herself as "Jacqueline," she wrote a letter to the celebrity, sex and fashion website Jezebel, saying her image had been used without her authorization.
"I am mortified that my image and likeness would be used as advertisement for two things I am so vehemently against: namely cheating and, to an even greater extent, body shaming," Jacqueline wrote in a Nov. 7 guest column.
Her scantily clad, size 32 image adorns her erotic website, Juicy Jackie, which she says caters to "the tastes of those that love big women, their curves, rolls and all the plush softness that comes with being fat."
"I was under the impression at the time that people purchasing these photos from the photographer would be doing so for their own personal use," she wrote. "I had no idea that the photographer would endeavor to sell the photos to corporations and/or stock photo companies, who would then go on, repeatedly, to use them in rude and mocking ways."
Jacqueline told ABCNews.com that she is more upset about how "damaging" the ad is to women of all sizes."
"Beauty is not one size fits all, nor is the matter of body insecurity," she said. "This is a foul message to send women and to do so repeatedly shows a great lack of respect and overall sense of disdain towards women, especially those who do not fit this company's ideal body image."
Afterwards, Ashley Madison's CEO Noel Biderman shot back via Jezebel: "The best thing that could've happened to this woman is that we used her in our ad. Despite what she may want you to think, she is reaping the press for her own pornography website."
This week, Ashley Madison launched a second ad of Jacqueline's image lying seductively beside a thinner look-a-like with an X mark through the plus-size model and a check next to her svelte alter ego.
It says, "We call it as we see it."
The controversy pit editors at Jezebel, who defended the rotund model, against Ashley Madison, a 12.2 million member site that proclaims, "Life is Short. Have an Affair."
Biderman told ABCNews.com that Ashley Madison paid Getty Images to use the photo legally.
"We bought them off the site, paid a licensing fee and [Jacqueline] knows that," he said. "As a model, she signed the waiver. It happens all over the world. I assume she is not the first model to complain.
"She is either being naive or she is the greatest self-promoter," he said. "No one does this for personal use. They try to make money off the image. As it turns out, she has her own website that sells pornography and is familiar with this industry."
Biderman said the site didn't choose Jacqueline because she was overweight. "It was a statement about finding you are in a relationship with someone who is unrecognizable," he said.
"I don't think it's a jab at fat people," Biderman said. "I always try to do advertising in real-life situations. For many people, a [spouse] is less attractive because they don't pay attention to their body type. I may still love my partner, but they are not sexually interesting."
