Pure Blonde blocks ‘offensive’ comments beneath River of Blonde ad on YouTube
Pure Blonde has blocked comments from running beneath an ad it posted on YouTube earlier today, saying that some of the comments used offensive language.
The ad was part of a campaign, created by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne, to define a “Pure Blonde moment” for the Carlton United Breweries-owned beer brand.
Andy Meldrum, general marketing manager for Pure Blonde told Mumbrella: “Since the ad went live we received a couple comments that contained offensive language, so we made the decision to remove this functionality temporarily. In light of the ASB ruling on VB and social media last year we won’t cop offensive or inappropriate sentiment on our channels.”
The Advertising Standards Bureau ruled that Victoria Bitter was responsible for comments on its Facebook page last year, some of which were deemed sexist, racist and homophobic.
However, Meldrum has said that comments would be allowed to run on Pure Blonde’s Facebook page, where the ad has also been posted. At the time of writing the ad had only received a handful of comments, all of them positive.
The ad has already attracted a number of comments on Mumbrella, some posters criticising the ad for seeming to imply that a large group of white people represents purity.
One post read:
Did nobody consider the racial implications ramifications of this ad? The intent is irrelevant and the fact that the beer has blonde in its name is irrelevant, it’s irresponsible to represent “purity” with a hoard of just white people. Like wow, straya
CUB responded to these criticisms by saying that using blonde-haired people in its ad simply “made sense” given the nature of the product.
Meldrum said: “We have a history of using blonde people in our imagery since we first launched, representing the brand, name and style as you’d expect – with blondes. The people in our ad filling the city streets represent the flow of Pure Blonde beer and as the liquid is golden in colour the use of people with fair coloured hair and light coloured clothing made sense.
On how CUB would manage comments on its Facebook page, Meldrum told Mumbrella: “We will respond on Facebook to our fans and moderate as we always do, keeping in mind that not everyone will like the ad, but that offensive sentiment is not on. We look forward to further feedback from our Facebook audience once they see the ad for themselves.”
Robin Hicks
Sounds like some need to complain for the sake of complaining.
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How many of those “positive” facebook comments have come from people connected to the campaign?
If they don’t have the balls to keep the comments open on Youtube then they shouldn’t be posted in online….keep it on cinema and TV only..social media 101!
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Dramatisation of the brand name. A moment of Pure Blonde. Pretty straight forward to me.
By no means is Clems best work, but this will certainly cut through all the other shite on TV. And I actually like it.
I say well done.
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This will be interesting. Managing response to campaigns in social spaces requires some expertise, particularly when it gets willing…
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Offensive comments on YouTube? That’s preposterous.
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Good to see Steve Winwood rehabilitated too.
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This has got to be one of the most vacuous ads I’ve encountered in a long time (pun intended as well).
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You know, I think the just didn’t consider why this could be offensive to the whole Jewish community (which I am a member of). And the fact that their response is to censor comments… oh the irony!
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Agree completely with @betty boo. All of the “positive comments” on Facbook have come from managers at CUB. Talk about getting high on their own supply.
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I watched it once and had no desire to watch it ever again, I think that says a lot about an ad made with a budget this big
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I guess that’s a form of crowd-sourcing.
What’s with the mincy castrato voice singing?
And why are blond men in there? Nobody cares about blond men – ponces, the lot of them.
Does nothing for the brand. Make mine a Cooper’s.
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They take their beer brands very seriously at Clems so I’m not sure why this got past all the levels. Not good at all.
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Didn’t clems have a PR blow up on carlton draught a few years ago as well?
The ads got pulled from memory.
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Where is this filmed?
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To Auschwitz we go…
This is scary.
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CUB have ruined Peroni in Australia. (They brew it here under license…) I can only drink the imported version, which is great!
I will be swerving Pure Blonde (I do anyway as it tastes awful, a bit like Aussie made Peroni), even more so now, because this ad is evidently aimed at Aryan’s.
I wonder if any ‘ethnics’ worked on this campaign at Clems? I also wonder if any ‘ethnics’ had anything to do with sign off client side?
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Lazy marketing in my opinion, this is a creative concept that I would expect to be presented by a 10 year old. And for the client to roll with it… Seriously??? I would never put my name to something that could be construed with so much Aryan innuendo . Shame on them.
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I say well done its a awesome ad and the concept works
I also say type in “black people” blonde hair in google and see how many responses u get.
Glad u decided to block negative comments
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what the saying “all publicity is good even when bad”…
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Storm in a teacup. I love the add, haunting music. Hey it’s a Blonde beer! If you want black, then go drink stout! Political correctness gone pathetically stupid! And I certainly ain’t no brewery exec!
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what is the song
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This ad campaign has it all: censorship, racism and dramatisation that tells you absolutely nothing truthful about the product. I noticed there’s no black people with blonde hair and its not as though they don’t exist. Did the ad campaingers think that a black person would ‘contaminate’ the product. Marketing 101 would suggest that this ad campaing is directed at young, white young adults. I And on that note, way to go CUB, you’ve successfully attracted the 16 to 25 year olds to your drinking fold. Its time that the community woke up to the savvy marketing and propoganda tactics employed by advertising companies and their clients.
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Whatever you do, don’t mention the war.
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its a blonde ad I drink it and Im not blonde wake up people it’s nothing to do with what color your are.
Any way I would like to know where was filmed, thanks
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Well put “Baffled” and “warren”! Do we really need to be subjected to the racial slur of the 20th century? I wonder how “Pure Black” might be portrayed if such a beer were to be produced? But hey, I’m reacting to subconscious negative advertising – just what the marketers wanted. Lets hope they never enter the world of politics.
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I love the commercial! I love the music, Higher Love and is sweet and relax! There is no double intentions or racisms or whatever negative people see on this, we are in 2013 for god sake!! Make love and not war!! If u dont like it change the channel, but there are people who like it and enjoy it! I dont drink beer by the way, I am not blonde
and I think this is a an inofensive and relax ad.
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