Ad watchdog clears Ford, KFC, Snickers and Lipton as complaints focus on safety, sexism and innuendo

Interesting that the last ad (Schticky) didn’t seem to get any complaints directed towards the line “And ladies, you always wanted to schtick it to your husband, now you can!” … Sexism and derogatory behaviour towards males is clearly OK and accepted in Western countries.

Please ban the Schticky advertisement. That is by far the most annoying, painful, useless piece of tripe ever seen on Australian television. Okay, a little bit harsh, but it is an awful piece of communication.

I suspect the first complaint about the KFC adverts is Melinda Tankard Reist. She seems to get agitated at the drop of a hat these days.

I don’t know who actually takes the time to complain about ads. Most of these complaints were completely frivolous. And the agencies sit back and gauge success of a campaign by the complaints it got because “at least people are talking about it”.

The Simpsons said it best, if you don’t like it, “just don’t look, just don’t look”.

@AndrewB – well, have you read all the complaints? If someone wrote in to complain, then there’d be a complaint to answer to, so give it a go next time. And no, sexism towards men isn’t cool, just like it’s not cool towards women. Doofy dad ads are just painful and embarrassing, just like the hot chicks love BRAND deodorant ads.

See, there’s clever advertising that makes me go “Huh, that was awesome. Awesome feeling = awesome brand!”, then there’s advertising that gets your attention for the wrong reasons, which makes baby Jebus cry, and make you wonder about the people who appreciate them.

It’s the equivalent of the pics on your facebook timeline, the ones your idiot school mates “share” and “Like”, promising that Bill Gates will personally write you a cheque when you do so. Embarrassed, and a handy way to identify who you need to unfriend next.

@Andrew B, Interesting double standard there. Or is it that when it comes to sexism, guys don’t really feel the need to complain?

@Steve (#3): Aren’t MOST ad complaints instigated by MTR and her jolly band ? (Oh, and Wendy Francis…)

The KFC ad is great. ‘The bro code” addresses the target audience perfectly. Good job Ogilvy!

The complaint about the lipton tea ad… “My concern is that suggestible young children may view this advert and think it is possible to live and breathe under water.”

Have these people who complained watched Spongebob Squarepants – he lives in a pineapple under the sea and he works for a guy named mr crab who sells crabby patties (which implies that he’s selling his own crab people as food!)

Just remember … Soylent Green is people!

In my case I probably am more likely to begin complaining about the way men are portrayed in advertising and media now, where I would not have before, purely because the blatant double standard exists. But in reality I believe in the sort of equality where both sexes should be mature enough to handle derogatory tongue in cheek to some degree. If the double standard is left to fester then the risk is, ironically, that men will increasingly be portrayed as thicker skinned and more tolerant than women. And I have a feeling some women won’t be pleased with that conclusion either. So perhaps the ones complaining about a exist towards women ought to keep a hawk eye out for sexism towards men, too. It won’t be hard, you can’t watch one evening of Australian television without being subjected to it. Which just reinforces my decision to download all my shows 😉

Is anyone here one who submitted a complaint? I did and I’d like to hear from you.