"Croc kills wildebeest" (Coca-Cola)

Tuesday, 29 April 2008

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180 complaints

ASA verdict - Not upheld

What the ASA said:

A vicious attack by a crocodile on an unlucky wildebeest who’s travelled thousand of miles to reach a watering hole attracted complaints from viewers who found this ad offensive and distressing because is depicted the violent death of an animal in a trivial way. Some complaints also objected that their children were frightened by the ad. The ad, which was for the soft drink Oasis, was cleared for broadcast after 7.30pm.

We considered the ad was likely to be seen as a light-hearted spoof of nature documentaries and noted there were no graphic images of the animal being struck or bitten. We considered the post 7.30pm restriction was reasonable to ensure it was not seen by children unsupervised and therefore unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence.

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I've seen worse. It did not seem frightening or startling at all which is usually what I experience watching those nature programs. As far as children being distressed or frightened, I would say it would have to take a minute or so for them to figure out what is actually happening to the beast if they are even able to figure out what is happening at all. The manner in which the scene is set up is more suggestive than it is played out.

Posted by B. Cannady | 05.05.08, 20:33 GMT