Badvertising

First there was Bananaman:

Then came Banana-Girl:

This is apparently a VERY BAD ADVERT for the Audi RS4.

 

Audi used this still from an advert showing it as a family car on Twitter and had to apologise.

 

Now, in terms of showing off the speed and the attributes of the car, I can see that it is failing on all counts - but that isn't really a reason to apologise unless you are the advertising executive who suggested to Audi that they use it.

 

No, according to one Twitter user, it is sexually provocative:

 

"Let's add it up: Red=eroticism, sports car=substitute for potency, animal print mini-skirt=sex appeal, banana=phallic symbol. But sure this is all just accidental..."

 

Maybe I'm not as perverted as some of these Twitter users but I am really not seeing it.

 

Talking of getting offended by ads, the BBC had this story yesterday about how "A new campaign called 'Badvertising' is demanding an immediate end to adverts for large polluting cars."

 

They don't seem to mind small polluting cars.

 

The campaign wants the Government to clamp down on sports utility vehicle (SUV) car adverts in the way it curbed smoking ads. Now, I'd quite like to ban SUVs - including the electric ones - but that's nothing to do with environmental concerns.

 

I looked up Badvertising on Google - I don't think it's anything to do with this lot.  I eventually found them here.  They are also worried about the impact of outdoor advertising signage in its own right -

 

"Outdoor advertising such as giant billboards, digital screens, and panels placed at bus stops and other places for public transport, are particularly problematic because unlike other mediums, we have no choice over whether we view them or not."

 

But when you are out and about, you are in the marketplace - I'd much rather that than have the advertisers come round to my front door.

 

The group behind the campaign are a worthy enough bunch of academics and artists and I wish them well - but they aren't going to convince the Mail Readers if they haven't convinced a Leftie like me - although maybe the fact I'm a Leftie Car-lover has something to do with that.

 

Advertising doesn't work on me anyway.  Now, I could just go a banana.