In London earlier this morning, the Advertising Standards Authority announced 2006’s Ten Most Complained About Ads in the U.K. Three were gay related.
Coming in at number one, with 553 complaints, thanks to a church-sponsored campaign, was the Gay Police Association’s print ad (above) suggesting that anti-gay religious rhetoric inspires anti-gay attacks. The ASA upheld the complaints that the ad was offsensive and misleading.
Coming in at number six, with 127 complaints, was French Connection’s tv ad showing two women fighting—Fashion v. Style—in a martial arts competition then kissing each other. The ASA determined that the complaints were not justified. And, at number ten with 89 complaints, was a Dolce & Gabanna television spot that briefly showed two men kissing. Again the ASA ruled the complaints were unjustified. Both tv ads had been approved for broadcast only outside of prime time.
In the enduring spirit of There Will Always Be An England: The number one most complained about ad of 2005, with more than three times as many objections (1,671), was a television spot for KFC, which, according to the BBC, “featured people in a call centre singing with their mouths full.” The ASA ruled the complaints that this would teach children bad manners were not justified.
For comparison, after Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction with Justin Timberlake at the 2004 Super Bowl, the FCC received between 550,000 and 963,000 complaints, of which the FCC said 99.9% were brought by the Parents Television Council, an activist organization. Viacom paid $3.5 million in fines.
The U.K.'s Top 10 Most Complained About Ads of 2006
1. Gay Police Association, 553 complaints/ offensive, misleading/ upheld
2. HM Revenues and Customs, 271 complaints/ implies plumbers evade taxes/
not upheld
3. Dolce & Gabbana, 166 complaints/glamorises knife violence; socially irresponsible and offensive/ upheld
4. Motorola Ltd, 160 complaints/ mobile phone ads condoning knife-related violence and glamorising sexual violence/ not upheld
5. Carphone Warehouse, 145 complaints/ lack of clarity, potentially misleading statements on its claim to be '˜free forever'/ upheld
6. French Connection, 127 complaints/ women kissing/ not justified
7. Channel 5 Broadcasting, 99 complaints/ perceived as racist towards Americans and socially irresponsible in that it could incite racial violence/not upheld
8. Kellogg Company, 96 complaints/ portrayed cruelty to animals (man riding a dog) and would encourage viewers to try the same stunt at home. Kelloggs said the ad was clearly surreal in nature, no dog was actually ridden during filming and that the ad also featured a 'Don't try this with your dog at home' warning/ not upheld
9. National Federation of Cypriots, 93 complaints/ offensive to the Turkish community and likely to incite racial hatred/ upheld
10. Dolce & Gabbana, 89 complaints/ men kissing/ not upheld