1. ASA Research Task
‘ASA’standsforAdvertisingStandardsAuthority andthe company/organisationis responsiblefor
the contentof advertsandmake sure that the advertsare no misleading,harmfuloroffensive.There
are 5 keyprinciples advertisingcodes:
Understanding:Thisalsocanact purposefullyandbe fairandbalanced
Support:Theywouldalsosupportthe advertiserssotheycanhelpcreate responsible adverts. The
companywouldincrease theirinformationsothateverybusinesswouldhave accesstothe support
it needs.
Impact: The Companywould make sure thattheywill spendtime onmatterswhichwouldaffecta
lotof the consumers.
Proactive:The Company will workwithothersandtackle problems inthe advertssothe consumers
are happy.
Awareness:The Companywould make sure thatthe publicwillknow whotheyare andknow what
theydo.It wouldalsogive the publicthe confidence inthe ‘ASA’work.
The ‘ASA’protectchildrenfrom unsuitable contentfor24 hours. All advertisersinthe UK are
responsible tofollow the ‘AdvertisingCodes’ whichrequiredtoaddressthe audience whichare
childrenwithcontentthatwill cause nophysical harm, mental ormoral harm. The companyhas also
joinedforceswithothermediaregulatorswhichcreate ‘ParentPort’.‘ParentPort’isawebsite which
make it easierforparentstounderstandwhatthe organisationhave tofollow acrossmedia. Itwould
alsohelpparentsfindtoprovide feedbackora complaint.
ASA protectchildrenwithadsacross the UK withall mediaincluding:
TV
RADIO
MAGAZINES
EMAIL
1st
Case Study
The date is17th
March 2010 and the companyis called‘Departmentof EnergyandClimate. There
was 939 complaintsmade aboutthisadvert. The centre of complaintwasthat the advert had been
WEBSITES
NEWSPAPERS
POSTERS
2. misleadingbecause ithada humanpersuade climate change whenitwasnotreally happening.It
had claimedthat40% of the CO2 was comingfor everydaythings.
The advertshowsa manreadinga bookto hisdaughterabout the CO2 levelsrisingwhichcaused
strange weathersuchas floodsandinsome otherareas the landshad awful heatwaves.The advert
alsousesfacts andfigurestomake it soundmore believable forthe audience watching.The
audience cutsfromthe cartoon of what ishappeninginthe bookto a reactionshotof the daughter
as she listentoherdad read the story.The advertalso makesthe adultssoundbandas it shows
adultsusinghairdryersandthe CO2 fromit floatsupto the CO2 monstercloud.Youconstantlyshow
the dad and Daughteras the Dad readsthe book.Thismakesthe situationseemtrue asyoucould
believethata dadwouldreadto hisdaughter.Whenyouget a close upof the daughteraskingthe
dad if it hasa happyendingyouwouldknow thatthe bookhas reallyaffectedthe child.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDthR9RH0gw
The main issuesof the complaintswhere:
It was alsoa political adwhichshouldnothave beenbroadcasted.
The advertshouldnotbe shownwhenthe childrenwere likelytowatchthe television
The advertalso exaggeratedpossible effectssuchasthe strange weatherandfloodinginthe
UK. Theyhad usedimagerywhichwere verymisleadinganddramatic.Forexample:A dog
was drowningwhileacat was reachingoutto save it.
The advertisingcodesthe advertbroke wasthatbefore theycandistribute orsubmitmarketing
communicationtheymustholddocumentaryevidence toprove all of theirclaims.Theymustalso
make sure not to claimcontentsuchas non-fictionbooks,tapesandvideosmustnotbe misleading
or exaggerated.Therefore the advertmustnothave gone throughthisprocedure otherwisethey
wouldnothave beenreportedformisleadingthe public.
CAP Code (Edition11)
3.13.27.19.19.249.149.3
BCAP TV Code
5.1.15.1.25.2.15.2.66.16.47.4.17.4.67.4.7
BCAP TV SchedulingCode
4.2.3
ASA acknowledgedsome of the complaintsandwere concerned thatchildrenorgrandchildrenmay
be upsetor worriedbythe ad. The animatedstorybookimageryandnarrative mightbe alarmingfor
some youngpeople whosawit.We concludedthat,whenshown inthe contextof the timing
restrictionappliedbyClearcast,the adwasunlikelytocause harmor undue distresstochildren. The
ASA had alsodone an investigationaboutthe advertaboutthe ‘Truthfulness’and‘Environmental
claims’butdidnot findit inbreach. Therefore ASA hadtakennoactiontowardsthiscomplaint.
3. Howevertheyhadnotedthat the ad hadbeenan ‘ex-kids’by‘Clearcast’therefore itshouldnotbe
broadcastedwhile youngerchildrenwatchingTV orput onChildrenspecialisedchannels.
2nd
Case Study
The date isthe 2nd
June 2010 and the companyiscalled ‘Departmentof Health’.There was2
complaintsmade aboutthisadvertfromthiscompany.The centre of the complaintchallenged the
claimthat woman wouldbe three timesmore likelytogetmouthcancer.The advertshowstwo
womanat home sharinga bottle of wine.One of the womenonscreenshowsherinternal organs
and skeletontoshowthe damage thathappenswhenyouconsume alarge glasson wine more than
once a day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2a5ICC0Iw0
The main issuesof the complaintswere thatthe adverthadbeenmisleadingandhadsaidthat you
are three timesmore likelytogetmouthcancer. Theyhad usedimagerysuchas the woman’s
skeletonandlungsshowingtoshowthe internal damage youwouldgetbydrinking.Itwouldalso
showthat youget a lotof internal damage youdonot notice. The advertalsoexaggeratesthe risks
of alcohol consumptionwiththe imageryasitshowsthatyou are three timesaslikelytogetastroke
as theyshowthe woman’sbrainas the damage starts developing.
BCAP TV Code
5.1.15.2.1
ASA had acknowledgedthe referencesmade byDepartmentof Healthwhichconsideredthe risksof
alcohol consumptions.The ASA hadalsonotedthat the National Instituteof Clinical Excellence
statedthat alcohol consumptionisan importantriskfactorfor cancersof the mouth.It would
become a greaterriskwith tobacco anda lotmore alcohol consumption.
Clearcastconsideredthe claimsabout the risksassociatedwithdrinkingalcohol wasexaggeratedin
the advert.Therefore Clearcastsenttheirmedical consultantwhoconfirmedthatthe claimswere
not false ormisleading.
ASA acknowledgedthe complaintsandthe advertwasinvestigatedunderthe standardTV
broadcastingcodesformisleadingadvertshowevernothingwasseenasa breach.Therefore no
otheractionwas necessary.
Case Study Links
http://www.asa.org.uk/Rulings/Adjudications/2014/10/Department-of-Energy-and-Climate-
Change/SHP_ADJ_258066.aspx
http://www.asa.org.uk/Rulings/Adjudications/2010/7/LOreal-(UK)-Ltd/TF_ADJ_48743.aspx
http://www.asa.org.uk/Rulings/Adjudications/2010/2/Lifescan-Ltd/TF_ADJ_48050.aspx
