Category Archives: Advertising

UK political parties on track to spend £1m on election day online ads

Posted on by

Digital campaigning gets round media blackout rule restricting broadcasters’ coverage while polls are open

The UK’s political parties are on track to spend more than a million pounds on online adverts on Thursday, circumventing a media blackout rule that forces television and radio stations to stop their election coverage when polls open.

British parties have traditionally ceased top-level campaign activity when voting began as they had no way to get out their message out. This is because of a longstanding broadcasting rule, enforced by the media regulator Ofcom, that states: “Discussion and analysis of election and referendum issues must finish when the poll opens.”

Continue reading...

Beer advertisements shown to kids during streamed TV programs like Lego Masters

Posted on by

David Pocock urges government to fix gap in the law after 28 complaints, but Labor says it will not support amendment

Independent senator David Pocock is urging the government to fix a gap in the law that allows alcohol to be advertised during children’s television programs when streamed rather than using a traditional TV aerial.

Pocock has identified 28 complaints about alcohol being advertised during programs including Lego Masters, Australian Idol and The Voice and during the broadcast of Carols in the Domain around segments featuring Disney characters and The Wiggles.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Play it Safe: Sydney Opera House short film wins Grand Prix award at Cannes Lions festival

Posted on by

Judges say four-minute piece featuring Tim Minchin is ‘a celebration of the creative spirit, of brave ideas and taking huge risks in the face of critics’

A short film celebrating the Sydney Opera House’s 50th anniversary has won at the Cannes Lions, considered the world’s most prestigious advertising awards.

Satirically titled Play it Safe, the 2023 campaign collected one of two Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions international festival of creativity awards last week.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest can sue Meta over Facebook scam ads, US court rules

Posted on by

The Australian mining magnate can try to prove that Meta was negligent in allowing scam ads on Facebook, judge says

A US judge has rejected Meta Platforms’ bid to dismiss a lawsuit by billionaire Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest over scam Facebook advertisements that use his likeness to promote fake cryptocurrency and other fraudulent investments.

In a decision on Monday, US district judge Casey Pitts in San Jose, California, said Forrest could try to prove that Meta’s negligence in allowing the ads breached its duty to operate in a commercially reasonable manner.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Revealed: Meta approved political ads in India that incited violence

Posted on by

Exclusive: Ads containing AI-manipulated images were submitted to Facebook by civil and corporate accountability groups

The Facebook and Instagram owner Meta approved a series of AI-manipulated political adverts during India’s election that spread disinformation and incited religious violence, according to a report shared exclusively with the Guardian.

Facebook approved adverts containing known slurs towards Muslims in India, such as “let’s burn this vermin” and “Hindu blood is spilling, these invaders must be burned”, as well as Hindu supremacist language and disinformation about political leaders.

Continue reading...

‘Really upsetting’: Grenfell Tower edited out of TV advert

Posted on by

Exclusive: Man whose uncle died in 2017 disaster describes ad for pain relief gel Voltarol as ‘insulting’

Grenfell Tower has been edited out of a TV advert in a move described as “insulting” by a family bereaved by the June 2017 disaster.

Karim Mussilhy, whose uncle Hesham Rahman was among 72 people who died as a result of the fire, noticed the edit while watching the Channel 4 streaming service on Monday when an advert for the pain relief gel Voltarol showed people playing football on the Westway football pitches close to the council block.

Continue reading...

Catholics’ fury as Italian TV ad depicts nuns eating crisps for communion

Posted on by

Viewers’ association accuses Amica Chips of resorting to blasphemy in order to increase sales

An Italian TV advert that depicts nuns eating crisps instead of altar bread while receiving holy communion has been accused of blasphemy by an outraged association of Catholic TV viewers.

The 30-second advert for Amica Chips – one of Italy’s top crisps brands – takes place in a monastery and opens with nuns preparing to receive holy communion. Their mother superior realises that the tabernacle is empty of hosts, and so fills it with crisps.

Continue reading...

Instagram ads in UK promoting ‘butt lifts’ in Turkey as part of holidays in potential breach of rules

Posted on by

Watchdog warns cosmetic surgery providers abroad as analysis reveals thousands of Facebook adverts

A post on Instagram shows the back of a woman in tight blue leggings, her lower body taking up most of the frame. The words “Temptingly sexy curves ahead … Ready to turn heads and break hearts?” are written in the caption. It is from a company offering Britons the chance to get a Brazilian butt lift while enjoying a luxury holiday abroad.

The advert is one of thousands on social media promoting cosmetic surgery tourism by companies in Turkey to UK residents, including gastric band operations, hair transplants and Brazilian butt lifts (BBL) – a process that involves fat taken from elsewhere on the body being injected into the buttocks – in a trend that has triggered safety concerns among doctors in Britain.

Continue reading...

Cleaners, builders, Primark shoppers: ads for London mayor hopeful Susan Hall reveal Tories’ targets

Posted on by

Analysis shows content is aimed at working-class over-50s, and plays on fears of crime, stirs anger and pushes conspiracy theories

Are you a cleaner or builder who likes Primark, the pub or reality TV – but doesn’t care about the environment? If yes, the Conservative party wants your vote.

These are some of the interest categories used by the campaign team for the Tories’ candidate for London mayor, Susan Hall, to target audiences on social media.

Continue reading...

Global gambling company to leave Australia’s peak lobbying group

Posted on by

Entain will withdraw from Responsible Wagering Australia in coming months, as a government crackdown on betting ads looms

One of the world’s biggest gambling companies has abandoned Australia’s peak lobbying group, just as the federal government prepares to announce tougher restrictions on betting ads.

Policy analysts believe Entain’s withdrawal from the Responsible Wagering Australia (RWA) group highlights how bookmakers would be disproportionately affected if the government restricts betting ads, as recommended by a parliamentary inquiry.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

‘Suddenly it’s cool’: children believe use of influencers in gambling ads make it seem fun

Posted on by

Researchers say study funded by the Australian Research Council demonstrates the need for strict gambling advertising regulations

Children as young as 12 believe celebrities and influencers who are paid to promote gambling are making the practice seem safe, normal, attractive and fun, according to a new study.

The study, funded by the Australian Research Council, heard from children who believed the use of stars like former basketball player Shaquille O’Neal in ads were making their peers more likely to consider gambling.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Nationwide’s Dominic West ad prompts complaint from rival

Posted on by

Watchdog receives complaint, reportedly from Santander UK, that advert paints misleading picture of bank branch closures

Dominic West’s portrayal of an arrogant, smoothie-drinking, branch-closing banker has landed Nationwide in potentially hot water, with the building society now facing a formal complaint over its TV advert from a rival lender.

Santander UK is understood to have lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over the television commercial, on the basis that it “discredits and denigrates” Nationwide’s rivals and paints a misleading picture about bank branch closures.

Continue reading...

Channel 4 plans deepest job cuts in over 15 years after TV ad slump

Posted on by

Exclusive: As many as 200 roles could go as firm seeks to accelerate digital streaming strategy and limit cuts to content budget

Channel 4 is drawing up plans to cut potentially as many as 200 jobs in its biggest round of layoffs in more than 15 years, as it seeks to make savings to weather the worst TV advertising downturn since 2008.

The broadcaster, which has undergone a rapid expansion in recent years with staff numbers swelling to a record level of more than 1,200, aims to dramatically reduce a wage bill that now stands at more than £108m a year.

Continue reading...

England heads for obesity disaster as minister frets about nanny state

Posted on by

Government has shelved policies that could have helped to change landscape weighted in favour of unhealthy food options

Less than three weeks into her new role as health secretary, Victoria Atkins left health campaigners aghast when she suggested her approach to tackling obesity would largely focus on dietary advice.

Obesity is a devastating public health problem harming millions of people in the UK that will never be resolved by tips on what to eat and what to avoid. Two in three adults are overweight or obese and the problem costs £100bn a year.

Continue reading...

‘A true icon’: Melbourne mourns death of renowned furniture salesman Franco Cozzo

Posted on by

Due to his TV ads in the 1980s and 90s, Cozzo’s name became synonymous with the western suburb of Footscray

Melburnians are mourning the death of renowned furniture salesman Franco Cozzo, who has died aged 88.

Cozzo’s family announced his death on social media on Wednesday night.

Continue reading...

Lobbyists lining up to put their case to minister over Australia-wide ban on gambling ads

Posted on by

Exclusive: Freedom of information reveals long list of concerned parties meeting with Michelle Rowland

Gambling companies, broadcasters, sporting codes and global tech companies have all sought or secured meetings with the communications minister, Michelle Rowland, and her staff to respond to a proposed total ban on wagering advertising.

Documents released under freedom of information reveal the wide range of industries worried about a financial hit if the government accepts the recommendations of a parliamentary inquiry into online gambling harm.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Record $15.9bn in US political ad spending expected for 2024

Posted on by

Assessment by GroupM expects spending totals for presidential election year to be up 30% on 2020 election cycle

With little more than a month to go before the US presidential election season kicks off in Iowa, a new projection of political spending says a record $15.9bn will be spent on advertising, up more than 30% up on the 2019-2020 election cycle.

The assessment, by GroupM, one of the world’s largest paid advertising agencies, suggests total political ad revenue could add a billion more to reach a total of $17.1bn, if including direct mail pitches.

Continue reading...

UK ad watchdog to crack down on ‘biodegradable’ and ‘recyclable’ claims

Posted on by

Consumers left angry and dismayed when they found out the truth about these terms, says Advertising Standards Authority study

Plastic bottles, takeaway cups and food packaging that could take an unlimited amount of time to break down are being advertised as “biodegradable”, with the advertising regulator calling for more clarity on such claims from businesses.

British consumers believe they are making green choices while disposing of waste when they are often not, according to a new report. The study, from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), based on extensive interviews with consumers, found widespread misunderstandings around common terms such as “biodegradable”, “compostable” and “recyclable”, leaving participants angry when they discovered what they meant.

Continue reading...

Elf Bar vape adverts banned in UK over ‘greener’ recycling claims

Posted on by

Ads gave misleading impression that recycling vapes is easy and can be done at home, says watchdog

Adverts for the vaping company Elf Bar have been banned after using the slogan “recycling for a greener future” over concern they were misleading because of the environmental damage of discarded vapes.

A study by Material Focus shows that 260m disposable vapes were thrown away in the UK in 2022, making them a leading cause of the rise in plastic pollution in recent years.

Continue reading...

Dylan Mulvaney says woman-of-the-year award ‘means so much more’ after Bud Light backlash

Posted on by

Attitude magazine celebrates TikTok star who collaborated with beer maker who left her high and dry after conservatives boycotted

After gaining Attitude magazine’s first-ever woman of the year award, US trans activist Dylan Mulvaney said receiving such recognition from the UK-based LGBTQ+ publication “means so much more” after a substantial transphobic backlash undermined her Bud Light advertisement.

“No matter how hard I try or what I wear, or what I say, or what surgeries I get, I will never reach an acceptable version of womanhood by those hateful people’s standards,” Mulvaney said in social media videos that showed her accepting the award this week. “But as long as I have the queer community that sees me for my truth – I’m gonna be OK.”

Continue reading...