Six most ridiculous complaints about advertisements this year

THESE are some of the complaints that have tied up Australia's advertising watchdog in the past year. Some are more than a little ridiculous.

Stylist Gok Wan's Target ad was the subject of complaints. Picture: Supplied

THESE are actually some of the complaints the advertising watchdog, the Advertising Standards Bureau, has received from people in the past year.

Many of them are pretty strange.

For instance, one accuses a charity ad aimed at ending violence against women of being sexist.

All of them were thoroughly investigated and dismissed by a board of respected Australians who examine the ads to see if their complaints highlight valid issues.

But is the watchdog being trolled?

"There are so many different opinions about each ad out there," an ASB spokeswoman said, with what gets complained about often unpredictable.

"All complaints are taken seriously and people have the right to have different opinions and people do."

GOK 'ONLY GETS AWAY WITH IT BECAUSE HE'S GAY'

Gok Wan, a British stylist, is the new face of Target. His description of breasts as "bangers" in one ad attracted some complaints ... and so did his sexuality.

The complaints included:

1. "A female body is a beautiful thing, not to be cheapened by a (man) calling breasts

'BANGERS'!!! I WAS BREAST FED, NOT BANGER FED!"

2. "It's an offence to any decent person to watch some queer guy advertising and blaspheming and using insultive (sic) descriptive words re a woman's body and to be prancing around half dressed guys."

3. "I find the way he describes women's breasts as 'BANGERS' as very offensive to women, even my husband agrees. It's only because he's gay he can get away with it, if a heterosexual male used that term it never would have aired."

"STOP KILLING WOMEN" -- A 'SEXIST' MESSAGE

Stop violence against women. That's the explicit aim of the White Ribbon Foundation. This particular ad concerned a fundraiser for the charity.

The complaint:

"The advertisement is deceptive as it only condemns domestic violence against women and

therefore is misleading people to believe that only women are the victims of domestic

violence and implies that only men are the perpetrators. The advertisement is sexist as it only

condemns domestic violence against one gender - women."

Based on the above, the Board determined that, in this instance, the advertisement did not

depict any material that discriminated against or vilified any person or section of society.

CEREAL AD SAYS FEEDING CROCS 'IS SAFE'

In this advertisement for Kellogg's cereal Just Right, a very 'Strayan man is seen feeding crocodiles.

The complaint:

"The actor is hand feeding a 3-4m croc while standing on a log in the middle of a river ... Then he is clearly seen to dive off the same log into the crocodile-infested water.

"This is about the most irresponsible advertisement I have seen. What is it telling our tourists/kids ... that it is OK and safe to do this.

"The feeding looks real, so if that is the case, very dangerous for the actor too ... STUPID. I have tried sending feedback to Kelloggs but their form is unavailable ... I wonder why."

MILK AD 'ATTACKS MOTHERS IN LAW'

You'd think their mother-in-law would have spruced up their clothing. Picture: Thinkstock

It's an ad for Devondale milk. The main characters: farmer charms Dev, Dale, and The Mother In Law. Naturally, the mother-in-law cops it.

The complaint:

"The advert was about how long nine months can be, and referring to the fact that the man's mother-in-law would be with them for nine months while having her hips replaced.

"The inference was that the mother-in-law was a nuisance and would make the son miserable. I find it very offensive to depict an older person, needing support from her family, being treated as a nuisance. How many old people would be watching that advert while living with their children's families, and knowing that their presence was not welcome when then had no choice but to be there?

"It is demeaning to mothers in law, and to aged people dependent on their families. Incredibly insensitive."

LEG DANGLING 'VERY DANGEROUS'

Their feet are dangerously close to gently skimming the surface of the water. Picture: Thinkstock

A lottery ad shows the different ways winning Powerball can change your life. Including jumping on a cruise boat, where people are seen dangling their legs perilously over the side of a cruise boat.

The complaint:

"The ad portrays young people sitting on the front of a cruise boat with their legs over the side. "A program about water police pulled up a boat for this reason and explained that it was unlawful and very dangerous.

"Furthermore, the boat is almost within touching distance of dolphins, and the law states a minimum distance you must keep away from dolphins. Not sure whether it is 100 or 200 feet.

"It is not good for such a high profile ad to promote acts which, if copied, can get people into trouble with the law. All good time activities which they want to promote should be lawful."

SUPER SOAKER 'SHOULD COME WITH BIG WARNING'

Put your hands up. Picture: Thinkstock

Two boys are playing with water pistols, when one of the boy's water pistols transforms into a Super Soaker.

The complaint:

"The advert makes me cringe every time I see it (which has been reasonably often) - at the very least it should come with a big warning not to squirt water at someone's eyes.

"I've had personal experience with a family member spending weeks in (hospital) with his eyes bandaged and head packed inside sandbags after having sand thrown in his eyes in a friendly prank.

"Other friends and family have similar feelings about the advert so I thought I'd put our concerns in writing".

All of these complaints were dismissed. Not surprisingly. Continue the conversation on Twitter: @drpiotrowski @newscomauHQ

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