Rogue alcohol ad watchdog reckons 42 out of 44 advertisers are guilty
The self-appointed “Alcohol Advertising Review Board” set up by anti-alcohol campaigners in competition to the Advertising Standards Board has published its first findings.
The AARB’s first batch of findings dismissed just two out of 44 cases it looked at – upholding the other 42 in full or in part.
The volume of anti-industry determinations is in marked contrast to the ASB, which tends to uphold just three or four complaints a month across the whole advertising industry.
The AARB is operated by the McCusker Centre for Action on Alcohol and Youth and Cancer Council WA. At first glance its website appears to make it an official industry body. In March, the ASB labeled it a “self-appointed activist ad review board with zero authority”.
…and while you’re all at it, NO RUNNING WITH SCISSORS EITHER.
This is such a joke.
As director of the Independent Advertising Review Board Review Board I feel obliged to share our findings that 100% of Advertising Review Boards have at least 80% of their heads shoved firmly up their backsides.
95% of the time, codes are breached every time
Silly – the real ASB has lots of community people on the board – not just people from the ad industry
http://www.adstandards.com.au/.....erprofiles
So they’re suggesting that we advertise the products in a social vacuum, ignoring the fact that alcohol IS associated with the activities listed and it IS consumed by YOUNG people.
Yes, that association is partially created by advertising and sponsorships, but by and large it is society that associates a product with a particular event or activity.
You could spend millions on attempting to associate yoghurt with rugby league, but I don’t like the chances of getting your average rugby fan to bring a sixpack of Yoplait to the next Storm game.
All the ads are doing is creating positive emotions around a particular product. As long as they’re not breaching existing alcohol regulations (which are there for good reason) then live and let live, I say.
Statistically this doesn’t accord. They have upheld 42 of 44 cases, That is, 95.5% of ads are ‘in breach’ of their standards, which is an inordinately high proportion.
So, ask yourself the question – when I see alcohol ads on TV do 95% of them breach my understanding of what acolohol ads should and shouldn’t do (i.e. advertise to under-age drinkers, glorify alcohol consumption, increase your chances of scoring on a night out etc). If they don’t then ask yourself are you in the minority?
Even better, why doesn’t the alcohol industry stump up the funds to conduct some unbiased research into how the COMMUNITY feels? We could then see whether the AARB’s high rejection rate or the ASB’s low rejection rate most closely matches the community’s beliefs – or indeed whether neither do.