Sex And Swearing Gets Rise From ASA
Sex sells, or so the saying goes, but it can also get you in trouble with the Advertising Standards Authority, as two advertisers discovered this week.
Both Virgin Mobile and radio station Kix 96.2 FM attracted complaints by using images of scantily clad women in posters. In the case of Virgin, the woman was wearing a black PVC dress, gloves and high heels. She was sat in a chair holding the end of a lead. On the other end was a man dressed in a nappy on his hands and knees. The text read “Fun isn’t dog collars, riding crops and a stiletto heel in the privates. Fun is free sports results texted straight to your phone.” Meanwhile, Kix FM’s woman wore a basque, suspenders and long boots and was holding a whip. She was standing over a man who was also wearing a nappy. The text read “That ain’t how I get MY KIX! KIX 96.2 FM. Coventry’s Rhythm.”
Objections to both posters concerned their offensiveness and inappropriately placed, especially as children could see them. Both advertisers defended themselves by claiming that their intended audience would understand the humour and that the intention was light hearted. In the case of Virgin, where complainants had pointed out that children could see the image, they said that children would not understand the image and that they had asked media buyers to place the ads where children were unlikely to see them.
The ASA was convinced by neither advertisers’ defence, and upheld both sets of complaints. Virgin, whose campaign had finished, was told to seek advice from the CAP Copy Advice team before using a similar approach, while Kix FM was told not to use its poster again.
Separately, Telewest got in trouble when part of its latest awareness-raising campaign (see Telewest Launches Ad Campaign) also raised complaints, over the prominent use of the word “bloody” in press and poster advertising. The advertisers claimed that the headline phrase “Stay on that bloody phone” was humorous reversal of a commonly used household phrase. Complainants from across the country said that the word was offensive, especially in a public medium that could be seen by children. The ASA agreed, and welcomed a decision by the advertisers to remove the poster and end the campaign.
ASA: 020 7580 5555 www.asa.org.uk
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