`Disclosure' poster an approved distraction

A poster for the film Disclosure, showing Michael Douglas and Demi Moore in a clinch and bearing the words "Sex Is Power", which is displayed at bus stops, has been approved by the Advertising Standards Authority despite complaints that it could distract drivers and offend passers-by, writes David Lister.

Disclosure, based on the novel by Michael Crichton, is about sexual harassment of a man by a woman executive.

The poster, which is displayed at thousands of bus stops across the country, shows Miss Moore's skirt riding up, and she is holding Douglas's hands on her bottom. Earlier this week, a Merseyside transport company ordered the poster to be removed from bus stops because it considered it incompatible with its campaign for safer travel for women. Motoring companies also said it could distract drivers and the film company Warner Brothers agreed not to display it near schools.

An ASA spokesman saidabout 50 people had complained, but added that the poster fell within guidelines that such an advertisement should not cause "widespread offence".