An ad posted on the Facebook page of a South Shields bar has been ruled offensive and breaches rules designed not to link alcohol and sexual activity.
Balance, North East Alcohol Office, and one other complainant went to the Advertising Standards Authority about the advert for Trocaderos which promoted a Thursday event with a poster with an image of two women both drinking from large glasses and text which stated “Got yourself drunk at Trocs? Woke up in someone else’s bed? Walk of shame? F*ck that it’s the stride of pride!”.
The bar’s operators, a tenant of Hartlepool-based Camerons Brewery*, has apologised for ‘for an advertising strategy which they considered could be misinterpreted’ and removed the promotion from its Facebook pages.
The ASA welcome the apology and ruled that the advert must not appear again saying:
“Because the ad used offensive language, encouraged excessive drinking and linked alcohol with sexual activity, we concluded that it was irresponsible and in breach of the advertising Code.”
Today’s ruling is the latest North East drinks promotion to fall foul of the ASA guidelines. Earlier this month we reported that Newcastle-based Koosday Events has been ordered not to run an ad campaign it posted on students’ car bonnets in the city featuring an image from the film ‘Wolf of Wall Street’.
*Updated 31 July: We have been asked by Camerons Brewery to make it clear the statement on the ASA website ‘came directly from the tenant and not an employee or representative from Camerons. The tenant runs Trocaderos independently as their own venue and is not an employee of Camerons Brewery.’
