Stib’s use of meme doesn’t go down well with politician

Call it a case of bad timing … Just when Brussels’ public transport service Stib is in talks with parliament about unwanted advances in public transport, it launched a social media ad featuring a man leering at a woman. The image is meant to promote the new tram line 9.

The service has now been taken to task by a Brussels MP. “Right at the moment that we are in talks with Stib about how we can deal with sexism on public transport, I see this: A woman reduced to an object," said Magali Plovie. 

A member of parliament for Ecolo, Plovie said she would discuss the matter with mobility minister Pascal Smet. “It is time that Stib becomes a bit more coherent in its communication strategy,” she said.

To be fair, the stock image is one of the internet’s best-known memes, used to create an endless number of jokes. It has become famous precisely because it is so silly and over the top, something Stib knew all too well.

The transport authority responded by adjusting the meme to include an image of only the man. It also confirmed that the image was not part of an ad campaign but a one-off tweet.