Procter & Gamble pulls Clairol shampoo commercial and apologizes to nurses

June 11, 2003 -- As a result of protests from nurses, Procter & Gamble promised on June 9 to stop running a Clairol Herbal Essences television commercial that showed a female nurse leave her patient unmonitored to wash her hair in his bathroom, then dance around his room, waving her hair in ecstasy. P&G marketing director Andrew Shepard sent a letter to American Nurses Association President Barbara Blakeney, with copies to American College of Nurse Practitioners (ACNP) Director of Marketing and Corporate Relations Phyllis Zimmer, ARNP, MN, FNP, FAAN and Center for Nursing Advocacy director Sandy Summers, promising that the ad would be discontinued "on the fastest possible timing," stating that P&G "holds the nursing profession in the highest esteem," and offering "sincere apologies" to Ms. Blakeney and the nurses she represents.

Ms. Blakeney had sent a letter to P&G protesting the ad. In the Center's campaign against the ad, concerned nurses sent over 30 letters to the company using the Center's web site. Many other letters were sent individually by nurses as discussed on www.allnurses.com and Nursing Spectrum discussion groups.

We have thanked Procter & Gamble for pulling this ad. However, since such commercials can cause lasting damage to the nursing image, we have also asked the company to make amends by creating a nurse-friendly commercial, running or contributing to an image campaign like the one sponsored by Johnson & Johnson, or taking other steps to improve the nursing image. We will keep readers informed as to our progress.

The Center would like to thank--and congratulate--everyone who took part in this campaign and helped to achieve this excellent result. You did it!

Click here to see P&G's apology in .jpg format.

See our former campaign to petition Clairol to pull its commercial.