Several ads on Amazon for tank tops that use the term “wife beater,” a phrase deemed offensive by Canada’s advertising watchdog, have been pulled from the retail giant’s Canadian e-commerce website following a CBC News investigation.
Amazon told CBC by phone that it has no issues with the phrase and said the third-party dealers selling the tops on its website must have acted on their own initiative.
The slang term “wife beater” refers to a certain style of fitted men’s tank top. CBC News recently reported that Amazon allows third-party sellers to use the term in ads, despite an Ad Standards Council ruling in March that the phrase is offensive, trivializes domestic violence and violates Canada’s advertising code.
Ad Standards, Canada’s self-regulatory ad industry watchdog, oversees the country’s Code of Advertising Standards, which is voluntary.
Amazon chose to ignore a request from Ad Standards to drop the term “wife beater.” The U.S. based e-commerce giant told the industry watchdog that the phrase is accepted in popular culture and doesn’t violate its Offensive Products Policy.
As part of its investigation, CBC News informed eight dealers using the term in a total of 10 Amazon ads about the Ad Standards ruling. So far, nine out of the 10 ads have either been removed, amended to exclude the term, or, in one case, the product listed is now unavailable for purchase.
Two of the dealers responded directly to CBC News.
“I am deeply sorry,” said NATPOST. “I’ll remove the link immediately.”
“I deeply regret that it has caused harm,” said WANGYUNHUI2025, a dealer who removed the term from their tank top ads.
“I understand how important it is to use language that is respectful and inclusive, and I assure you that this will not be an issue moving forward.”
The one ad that remains unchanged happens to be the only one selling tank tops for women, rather than men.
Amazon Canada informed CBC News it did not ask the dealers to change their ads, and still stands by its position that the term, “wife beater” is acceptable as a clothing descriptor.
‘Amazon is just too big to care’
Ad Standards took on the Amazon case after receiving a complaint from Diana Swales of Regina in 2024. Swales says she was taken aback when the retailer sent her an email about products on its site she may be interested in, including a men’s “wife beater” tank top.
“It’s so obviously offensive,” she said. “It should be offensive to all women, but it’s certainly offensive to ones who’ve been impacted by that activity.”
Swales was disappointed Ad Standards couldn’t make Amazon remove the phrase from its website.
“I guess Amazon is just too big to care,” she said.
But Swales was pleased to hear that almost all the ads CBC News found have disappeared or been altered.
“I congratulate them,” she said, referring the the dealers. Swales said that perhaps they just needed to be made aware that the phrase could be considered offensive.
Amazon told CBC News in an email that it strives “to maintain a store that is welcoming for all,” and that it exercises judgment and keeps “cultural differences and sensitivities … in mind” when making decisions about product listings on its website.
Despite a ruling by Ad Standards Canada that the term ‘wife beater,’ used to describe a type of men’s undershirt, violates the country’s advertising code, ads on Amazon’s Canadian website still feature the term. Some women’s rights advocates are frustrated because they say the term trivializes domestic violence.