Who watches the watchdogs (UK)

Ryanair (a budget airline based in Ireland) and the Advertising Standards Authority (a British government agency) are on a collision course over a racy newspaper ad.

RYANAIR has refused to pull an ad showing a model in what looks like school uniform which has been banned by watchdogs.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled the “irresponsible” image appeared to link teenage girls with sexually provocative behaviour and feared it could offend readers.

Here's the irresponsible ad in question:

To their credit, Ryanair is not sitting down quietly, instead preparing to storm the watchdog's cockpit.

The airline hit back, saying the number of complaints was insignificant when compared to the newspapers’ combined readership [13 complaints out of 3.5 million readers].

It said the model’s short skirt and bare midriff reflected the type of clothing fashionable among young women in the UK.

He 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.

And this time, it's personal.

“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.”

Across the pond, Ryanair is also being sued by French president Nicolas Sarkozy (an elected dimwit, at least) and model/singer/girlfriend Carla Bruni.

 

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