'We made a mistake' | What Bumble's ad controversy teaches us about cultivating diversity of thought

The dating app Bumble, once famous for giving female daters the power of messaging first, has found itself shrouded in controversy following a failed attempt to humour its largely female-consumer base in its latest advertising campaign.

“You know full well a vow of celibacy is not the answer,” reads one billboard from the campaign. While another in the same style exclaims “thou shalt not give up dating and become a nun,” and another reads “you know full well a vow of celibacy is not the answer.”

It’s no surprise that this campaign, which seemingly mocks celibacy, has been received so negatively by the public. CEO and founder of sex party company Killing Kittens, Emma Sayle, posted on LinkedIn saying how the advert fundamentally goes against the feminist idea of choice. While Julia Fox, the Uncut Gems star and public figure responded to the adverts saying “2.5 years of celibacy and never been better tbh.”

The campaign was such a flop that the dating app, which recently changed its ‘girls message first’ function, was forced to release an apology on TikTok, saying they “made a mistake”.