A View From Middle England - Conservative with a slight libertarian touch - For Christian charity and traditional belief - Free Enterprise NOT Covert Corporatism

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Ryanair runs into a spot of ad turbulence!

Ryanair is the sort of company that regulators hate. It's run by a cheeky Irishman who has brought it up from a pilot and his dog operation to one of Europe's most successful airlines. Whilst some may grumble at paying for baggage and drinks, they still rush to fill the seats.

Part of the appeal is the advertising. Ryanair has never been short on a gimmick. Now the pointy-heads and penpushers at the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) have got themselves all in a lather about an advert featuring a Britney lookalike. It's all St. Trinian's stuff brought up to date. But as my mother might say "Sex reared it's ugly head!", and the "Authority" said it was an "irresponsible" image and it appeared to link teenage girls with sexually provocative behaviour. Oh, really? What in their minds or ours?

Quite rightly Ryanair have told these busybodies where to go. Peter Sherrard, head of communications for the airline, said "It is remarkable that a picture of a fully-clothed model is now claimed to cause 'serious or widespread offence', when many of the UK's leading daily newspapers regularly run pictures of topless or partially-dressed females without causing any serious or widespread offence. This isn't advertising regulation, it is simply censorship. This bunch of unelected self-appointed dimwits are clearly incapable of fairly and impartially ruling on advertising." Well said, sir!

Would these dimits, as he calls them, care to ask the editors of national dailies to review their titty count? I'd get Anne Widdicombe on the case to weed out sanctimonious behaviour, double standards, and "authority control".

Surely it's the Advertising Double-Standards Authority? I can't see much wrong with the picture myself, but then I'm not signed up to New Labour control freakery, which has permeated every government office, agency, quango, or service in the land!

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