ASA Ruling on Abscissa.Com Ltd
Abscissa.Com Ltd t/a
Jokers Masquerade
Union House
Kennet Side
Newbury
Berkshire
RG14 5PX
Date:
16 September 2015
Media:
Internet (on own site)
Sector:
Retail
Number of complaints:
2
Complaint Ref:
A15-299642
Ad
An ad on www.joke.co.uk featured a costume called "Psycho Clown Costume" and featured an image of a man holding a bloody machete and was wearing clown make-up, a blood spattered stained torn T-shirt, baggy trousers with thick red braces and a hat with bright red curly hair attached to it. The ad also featured text that described the costume and stated, “... You'll give your friends colrophobia when they see you in this frightening clown costume[..]”.
Issue
Two complainants challenged whether the ad was offensive, because it reinforced negative attitudes about serious mental health illnesses.
CAP Code (Edition 12)
Response
Abscissa.Com Ltd t/a Jokers Masquerade acknowledged the complaint and stated that it was not their intention for the ad to cause any offence.
Assessment
Not upheld
The ASA noted that the product was featured on a website selling humorous fancy dress costumes, but was not otherwise targeted. Although advertisers were entitled to sell any product that was legal, the Code required marketers to ensure that ads did not contain anything that was likely to cause serious or widespread offence.
Although we acknowledged that some consumers would be likely to find the costume distasteful, we considered that it was unlikely that the image would cause offence. We noted that the word "Psycho" was used in naming the costume, which along with the image, the complainants considered misrepresented people with mental illness because it implied they were violent and murderous. They considered that the ad contributed to the stigma surrounding mental illness.
While we appreciated the complainants' concerns, we considered, however, that consumers would interpret the ad’s reference to “Psycho” as a reflection of the themed costume resembling a villainous fictional character from a horror film rather than as a reference to a person suffering from chronic mental disorder leading to abnormal or violent antisocial behaviour. Therefore, we considered that the reference to "Psycho" in conjunction with the image of the costume was unlikely to reinforce negative stereotypes about mental illness, and concluded that the title of the costume “Psycho Clown Costume " was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence.
We investigated under CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 1.3 (Social Responsibility) and 4.1 (Harm and Offence), but did not find it in breach.
Action
No further action necessary.
