Sex sees 'Whopper' bourbon advert ruled out of order

The sexual imagery and wording of an advertisement for a popular bourbon and cola brand has fallen foul of the Advertising Standards Complaints Board.

And the board said it was disappointed the advertiser, Independent Liquor (NZ) Ltd, had not taken the board's previous decisions into account in preparing the ad.

The complaint was about an advertisement for Woodstock Bourbon and Cola, which contained a large image of the product, with a blonde female model in a black bikini standing beside it.

It also contained an image of the Burger King logo and a message stating "On Pack Promo".

Above a depiction of a hamburger, were the words: "Turn your Woody into a Whopper".

Under the headline "Woodstock" was "Same price, same taste, same great GP, but now ... better looking".

The complaint was lodged by Alcohol Advisory Council chief executive Mike MacAvoy who said the ad appeared in DrinksBiz magazine.

He said the council believed it breached the Code for Liquor Advertising.

Dr MacAvoy said the complaints board considered a similar complaint in 2002 - and that the advertiser had acknowledged that the earlier ad could be in breach of the Liquor Code.

One of the code's guidelines says advertisements shall not be sexually provocative or suggestive or suggest a link between liquor and sexual attraction or performance.

Independent Liquor said it had searched for any parts of the ad that could be breaching the code and drew a blank.

"So instead, we widened our search to include things that a watchdog might choose to complain about."

It found three things: the words "better looking", the words "Turn your Woody into a Whopper" and a woman.

On the first point, it explained the product had changed its bottle shape and was better looking.

"At no stage does the advert claim/imply or suggest that drinking Woodstock (or eating a Whopper) will make you better looking," the company said.

The words "Turn your Woody into a Whopper", the company said, were a clear concise explanation of an offer whereby consumers could buy two dozen packs of specially marked Woodstock and get a free Whopper from Burger King.

"Woody" was a well-known nickname for the brand and "Whopper" was a well-known brand of burger.

"To describe a link between bourbon and a great-tasting burger as sexually provocative is a stretch at best," Independent Liquor said.

As for the woman, the company said she was simply standing there, wearing a lot more than many promotional shots of women for other liquor brands.

"If having a woman standing next to a bottle is deemed provocative or too sexy then industry is in for a very large shake-up," it argued.

But the board disagreed.

It believed the "sexually provocative image of the model" beside the bottle made a direct link between liquor and sexual attraction.

The board referred to the previous decision on a different bourbon and cola advertisement, with the wording "Crack a Big Woody" and an image of a woman dressed and posed in a sexually provocative manner.

Taking that into consideration, the board decided the advertisement contained similar imagery and references and was in breach, as it did not observe the high standard of social responsibility required for a liquor advertisement.


b>Complaints against website and pool supplies company upheld

Two complaints have been upheld by the Advertising Standards Complaints Board in recent findings.

One complaint was against a website advertising itself as "New Zealand's No 1 department store". An online shopping website complained that the statement was "unsubstantiated and misleading".

The board found the ad breached its code of ethics for truthful presentation and that an advertiser should be able to substantiate a claim made in an advertisement.

The board ruled the advertisement made an exaggerated claim, misleading to the consumer.

The second complaint was against a pool supplies company, which advertised winterising kits with a saving of $23 on algaecide. The complainant, who wanted to buy only the algaecide, said he was misled when told the discount was applicable only to the whole kit.

The board found this advertisement also breached its code of ethics for truthful presentation, and said the offer as stated was unclear and ambiguous, and likely to confuse and mislead.

- NZPA