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Dopey complaints
By Steven | June 24, 2008
Pity the Advertising Standards Complaints Board. Get a load of these complaints, all from its latest summary of decisions:
- The word “shitty” in a Burger Fuel poster was “offensive and socially irresponsible”.
- A newspaper ad for Waikato draught beer with the tagline “for a hardcase thirst” was said to contain “an unduly masculine theme”.
- A Land Transport NZ TV ad alerting us to the usefulness of air bags “could cause people, whose cars do not have side airbags, to be anxious about driving.”
- A radio ad for personal loans should have “warned people against borrowing money”.
- A KMart pamphlet depicting men and women in underwear in city street setting “promoted indecency in public places”.
- A TV ad showed four red-headed men emerging from a limousine and being acclaimed by a crowd to the tag line “Refreshingly ginger. New Frank Ginger Beer.” The complainant thought it was “degrading to people with auburn/red hair” and might cause red-headed children to be teased at school.
- Another Frank Ginger beer ad depicted a mother giving birth to a red-headed child. The complainant said this was insensitive to women who suffered trauma during childbirth.
- Let me give you the whole summary of this one:
Television
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