Is Photoshopping a person’s likeness OK in marketing?

As part of First 5 California’s anti-obesity campaign targeting kids’ sugar intake, a child’s face was digitally fattened. Critics call the distortion ‘hateful’ and ‘racist.’

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It all started with the state-funded organization’s ad campaign, which was meant to illustrate the effects of sugar consumption on children. The message, however, may have gotten lost in translation.

“It was intended to show parents the real-life consequences of obesity and what sugar can do to our children’s lives,” First 5 spokesperson Lindsay Van Laningham told MSN. “The ads have just started going up in a series of convenience stores in certain parts of the state where it’s hard to get access to healthy food … areas deemed ‘food deserts.'”

Critics have called the ads “hateful” and “racist.”

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