Political Watch 4/3/14

• U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) and U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Florida) introduced a bill to the House of Representatives on March 27, called the Truth in Advertising Act. The bill would direct the Federal Trade Commission to study the use of images that have been altered to change the physical characteristics of the face and bodies of the individuals depicted, and to develop a set of recommendations and rules to address the issue. A press release sent out by Capps’ office said that advertisers regularly alter images used in print and electronic media, and that an increasing amount of academic evidence links exposure to those images with emotional, mental, and physical health issues. “As a former school nurse, I know how influential unrealistic advertising images can be, especially on our children and teenagers,” Capps said in the press release. “We must do more to ensure that our nation’s young people have the tools necessary to distinguish real life from fiction as they form a healthy body image.”

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