Posted by Eugene Volokh:
U.K. bans car ads for showing gun:
[1]Bloomberg.com reports:
Ford Motor Co., the world's second biggest carmaker, has had a
television commercial for its Land Rover brand banned by the U.K.
communications regulator after it was judged to "normalize" the use
of guns.
The advertisement, which featured a woman brandishing a gun later
revealed to be a starting pistol, breached the Advertising
Standards Code and must not be shown again, Ofcom said in an
e-mailed statement. The regulator received 348 complaints against
the ad, many concerned that the commercial glamorized guns and made
it "appear that guns are fun and cool." . . .
Ofcom said glamorization is "part and parcel" of the advertising
process but this commercial "normalized" gun ownership in a
domestic setting. The pistol, fired by the woman into the air as a
man got into his car, was used in "an apparent casual manner and
just for fun," Ofcom said. . . .
Handguns, as I understand it, are indeed largely banned in the U.K.;
but this wasn't an ad for handguns. (Even under U.S. law, which as I
understand it is more speech-protective than are U.K. or European free
speech norms, an advertisement for an illegal product is unprotected.)
Rather, it was an ad that the government thought spread an idea --
handguns are "fun and cool" -- that the government disapproves of. So
of course the solution is: ban it.
Thanks to Dan Gifford for the pointer.
References
1. http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=awhOkOKszkVE&refer=uk
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