Magnum ad promoting marriage equality cleared by ad watchdog
A Magnum Ice Cream ad celebrating the marriage of two women has been cleared by the Advertising Standards Board after a complainant said it promoted “lesbianism during family time”.
Unilever’s ‘Pleasure is Diverse’ spot shows a young woman preparing for her wedding day before being walked down the aisle by her father to meet her wife to be.
The complainant wrote: “Promotion of lesbianism during family viewing time. I know this will not be taken seriously as ramming this down our throats now happens daily.”
https://youtu.be/045S-0kbmio
Unilever Australia rejected the complaint, pointing out the ad fell within rating category C – general unrestricted – which can be broadcast at anytime other than during pre-school programs, and said the married couple kissing was in line with prevailing community standards “which treat gender and sexual preference fairly, impartially and tolerantly”.
“The complainant may regard homosexuality and homosexual acts as being contrary to his/her religious or ethical beliefs,” Unilever told the Board.
“The advertisement, in particular the wedding and kissing scene, is not portrayed in a humorous over-the-top way, it was filmed in a cinematic way and shows a serious depiction of a wedding ceremony.
“Consumers viewing the advertisement are not being prejudiced or treated or portrayed unjustly or unfairly by the imagery in the wedding scene.”
Unilever also disagreed the wedding scene and kiss was sexually suggestive or inappropriate.
“The name of the product appears at the end of the advertisement together with the words ‘#pleasureisdiverse’ and ‘Magnum for pleasure seekers,'” they added.
“Viewers will understand the message that while everyone, including same sex couples, can enjoy the pleasure of eating Magnum Ice Cream, same sex couples would also enjoy the pleasure of getting married.”
The ad watch dog considered the complainant’s concerns about inappropriate conduct and promoting lesbianism, however, said including a same sex couple was not in breach of the Code.
“The Board noted that the advertisement depicts a same sex marriage which is not currently legal in Australia but considered that it is not the Board’s role to say whether a particular issue or scenario can or should be depicted in an advertisement,” the ASB added.
A decision from the ASB also found the advertisement treated the issue of sex, sexuality and nudity with sensitivity to its audience.
The complaint was dismissed.
The ad, which is running globally, was created by LOLA MullenLowe Madrid.
When does the “boycott Magnum” campaign begin?
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It just goes to show how utterly unrepresentative of the average Aussie this Government is. If there was even a small number of Aussies who strongly opposed same sex marriage then brands would be way too afraid to do Ad’s like this as their products would be boycotted. The person complaining must represent less than 5% of the population.
I just wish more Brands would be tackling racism too.
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*Yawn* #bandwagons
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Following the Foxtel ruling, I wonder how far you can go with a marriage equality theme in your ad without requiring a political tag now…
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One day these idiots will see that sexual, race, religious discrimination is all based on one thing. Lack of education. Sooner these people get educated to see the world the way it really is, not how it used to be…. the better.
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#weddinggoals
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Absolutely BRILLIANT! Congratulations and thank you for producing this ad. I’m buying a sh&@ load of Magnums, Bravo.
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Unfortunately, marriage equality is hot right now, and has the numbers behind it. While it looks like these large companies are in support of it (and they certainly may well be) marketing is a numbers game and will always be designed to appeal to the largest audience. I can guarantee you that if racism turned into a ‘hot topic’ tomorrow with majority support, marketers would be jumping all over each other to get anti-racism messages into their advertising.
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Brilliant add. Will go and get a Magnum today!
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Haha! You’re so funny, go ahead and boycott if you feel so strongly, I’m sure they’ll notice…
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#bullshit
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Is racism not a hot topic…?
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When do we see the ads with a man and women getting married as well….that’s true equality. Not this “agenda of change” bullshit. We are talking about marriage, “possibly” rooted in religion. How many western governments are run by the church these days?. How many people go to church these days? No body gives a shit anymore if marriage is a religious thing or not. And they certainly don’t give a shit if two people of the same sex get married. So if no-one gives a shit why is it taking so long? Reason: Because the longer everyone bangs on about it and the louder they bang on about it the easier it will be for everyone to think that is the norm. Just because something is already in place (marriage between two people of different gender) and a given does not mean it cannot be changed. I will never support same sex marriage while it is being paraded around in front of me like a carrot unless there is another carrot being paraded around in front of me in the exact same way that represents the opposite, marriage between a man and woman. Then there is real choice. Where are all the ads and the talk of a man and women getting married and having a family? Nobody even talks about that anymore. “Yeah…we are going to get married and have children”…Children who will grow up and want to either marry someone of the opposite sex, the same sex or not even marry at all. That’s real equality…all this is is just another power struggle between more nutcase psychopaths. If you want real change force the powers to be to talk about both and the benefits of both…don’t just argue your own case. And I am not talking about you get this so we should to…I’m talking about promoting marriage between a man and woman. Then you will get more people to actually understand. Otherwise it’s just “I want what you’ve got!” There is no point whatsoever or any need whatsoever to make this a public topic. If it is policy then let the policy makers make the change. The reality is…it’s not even ILLEGAL to get married to someone of the same sex, is it. NO. It’s just that no-one will do it. And that’s what you are fighting. You are actually trying to change peoples mind. If it’s not ILLEGAL what is all the fuss? That’s why it’s and agenda of change bullshit story…just like every other!
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Large scale polling suggests support is not so one-sided. SO is resistance a surprise?
From the tele…
According to the poll of 2,500 people taken in December by Sexton Market Research for Marriage Alliance, just 33 per cent of Australians “strongly support” legalising same-sex marriage.
A further, softer, 19 per cent said they “somewhat support” it, making for a total of 52 per cent in favour. On the other side, 25 per cent were undecided, 20 per cent “strongly opposed” and three per cent “somewhat opposed”.
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Does the complainant have to pay costs?
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For real, Jim Bob?
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Awesome campaign Magnum. I wish I had seen this when I was a little girl.
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Ridiculous advertisement. Company’s doing whatever they can to jump on the bandwagon of whatever left wing agenda is being pushed. 90 seconds of a pointless rubbish (Couldn’t care less if it was a male, female, asian or donkey wedding btw) with a 2 second snippet of the product it’s actually selling… the ice cream. Just stupid. Leave politics to the politicians and just stick to what you’re good at, making people fat with your products. I’m not against gay marriage, but it annoys me the way it’s constantly being rammed down my throat.
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boycott Magnum time
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I won’t be buying magnums again.
I did used to like them
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so only some comments get added – right
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