ASA Non-broadcast Adjudication: Shark AG

Complaint

Objections to four posters for an energy drink called "Shark" that featured a pack shot and the strapline "BRING OUT THE BEAST". a. The first poster showed a naked man lying on his front with a towel half-covering his bottom; there were four deep scratch marks across his back. The poster was headlined "SHARK VICTIM Luke Byrne Mauled 25.02.02 Newquay". b. A second poster showed the head and torso of a naked woman lying on her front; her face was turned towards the camera and she had a red bruise mark on her neck. The poster was headlined "SHARK VICTIM Sasha Sheridan Ravaged 16.02.02 Brighton". c. A third poster was headlined "SHARK VICTIMS A guide to identification" and showed three Polaroid-type photographs in a line down the centre of the poster. The first photograph showed a man's shoulder with a red bruise on it and was labelled "BITES"; the second showed a man's back with four deep scratch marks on it and was labelled "SCRATCHES"; the third showed a man's naked bottom with a red bruise on it and was labelled "BRUISING". d. A fourth poster used the same format as poster (c) but the images shown in the photographs were different. The first photograph showed a woman's neck with a red bruise on it and was labelled "MARKINGS"; the second showed a woman's back and elbow with a red mark on it and was labelled "ABRASIONS"; the third showed a woman's naked bottom with a red bite mark on her left buttock and was labelled "BITES". The complainants objected that the posters were offensive because they condoned sexual violence.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Adjudication

Complaints upheld

The advertisers said they intended to portray their product as an exciting alternative to other high-energy drinks and as a social facilitator between young people. They said humour was crucial to the campaign, which targeted 16- to 24-years-olds. They explained that they had used the concept of the shark attack because it combined a humorous reference to the product and light-hearted word play on the colloquial term "sharking", which meant to search for a partner. They argued that the campaign suggested a playful encounter with a partner, not sexual violence. The advertisers maintained that equality and empowerment were essential to the campaign and said they had designed versions of each poster with a man and a woman. They believed the face of the woman in poster (b) showed she was in control and enjoying herself. The advertisers pointed out that three of the four posters featured love bites, which they considered symbolic of adolescence. They said the place names used in posters (a) and (b), Brighton and Newquay, had immediate and strong associations with the youth market. The advertisers said they consulted the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) Copy Advice team, Viacom and other regulatory bodies about their campaign and changed their posters based on the advice received. They explained that they ran a test campaign in Birmingham before launching the campaign in London; they regretted that they had not had time to make some of the suggested changes before the test campaign went to print. They said the campaign due to be launched in London had been fully changed to comply with all the recommendations made by the CAP Copy Advice team. The Authority noted the advertisers had used poster (b) for their test campaign in Birmingham before making all the changes recommended by the CAP Copy Advice team. It understood that the CAP Copy Advice team had advised the advertisers to change poster (b) by replacing the word "ravaged" and cropping the image to show less of the woman's body; the CAP Copy Advice team considered those changes would make the image less overtly sexual and readers, therefore, would be less likely to believe the woman had been sexually assaulted. The Authority nevertheless considered that the posters were sexually explicit and concluded that they could be seen to condone sexual violence. It told the advertisers to remove the posters.