Censure for Turners over burnout
A complaint about a burnout featuring in a “Tina from Turners” advert on YouTube has been upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
The recent campaign for Turners Cars encourages viewers and famous New Zealanders to sell their vehicles with the company and the lyrics “Sell us your Ford, Lorde” are accompanied by a car performing a burnout.
A complaint was made to the ASA with a member of the public unhappy that the advert showed an illegal activity.
Other concerns raised by the complainant about the 90-second clip included a reference to police looking out for a car, implying it’s stolen, the use of the word “shit” and they considered some of the lyrics offensive to obese people.
The ASA notes the issues raised under the Advertising Standards Code covered social responsibility, decency and offensiveness, safety and violence and anti-social behaviour.
A majority of the ASA’s complaints board upheld the complaint, saying “it was not socially responsible to condone a dangerous, illegal or unsafe practice, by showing a car doing a ‘burnout’.”
As a result, the board said the YouTube advertisement was “not to be used again in its current form”.
Turners Cars has defended the campaign and says there are different versions of it for YouTube and TV.
The company says showing burnouts doesn’t encourage copycat behaviour and there is no link between the phrase “the cops are looking out for it” and the burnout scene, with that wording referring to a warrant of fitness not being legitimate.
In its response to the complainant’s concerns, it adds obvious hyperbole is acceptable and the use of the word “shit” is not in breach of the codes.
A spokesman for Turners Cars also says the burnout scene was on screen for one second at the most and is a commentary on a part of New Zealand culture and not encouraging unsafe behaviour, reports the NZ Herald.
They add the burnout scene was also filmed on private property.
Todd Hunter, chief executive of Turners Automotive Group, has also weighed into the debate and says the complaint and subsequent investigation by the ASA has “storm in a teacup vibes about it”.
“The TV versions of the ad have the burnout cut out of it already so this is just the YouTube version of our ad that has the one-second clip of the burnout,” he told Newstalk ZB.
Hunter continues that the company thought the fleeting scene was some fun and has only generated one complaint.
He says online comments from the public about the ASA decision suggest “people are overwhelmingly in support of the ad and in support of what we’re doing”.
