'Cougar' dating site ad banned for depicting violent act
The Advertising Standards Bureau of Australia has banned an advert for the dating website CougarLife for portraying acts of violence against women.
The advert, which has had 129,000 views on Youtube, depicts a mature woman chastising younger ladies in a bar room setting. The mature woman shoves food in the mouth of a younger rival, and pushes another off a chair.
The mature lady is portrayed by a well known pornography performer, Julia Ann. The board noted the humorous intent of the campaign, but ruled that the acts of violence warranted withdrawal of the advert.
"The Board particularly noted two scenes in which acts of violence are depicted. In the first scene the older woman shoves a burger into the younger woman's face. In the second scene the older woman pushes the girl off a chair and, although she is not seen to hit the floor, the sound of breaking glass is heard," it said.
“The majority of the board considered that two scenes in the advertisement depicted a woman committing a violent act against another woman. The majority of the Board considered that in a bar or licensed venue, such aggressive behaviour is not considered humorous or acceptable.
It added that the ad contained “sexually suggestive material and is offensive in its suggestion that older women can take care of young men better than younger women could.”
It ruled that the ad breached Section 2.3 of the advertising code, which states that “Advertising or Marketing Communications shall not present or portray violence unless it is justifiable in the context of the product or service advertised.”
However, it found that the ad was in compliance of Section 2.4 of the Code, which states that ads or marketing communications “shall treat sex, sexuality and nudity with sensitivity to the relevant audience.”
Cougarlife.com did not respond to the complaint, and the permit to air on Australian Free TV as been revoked. The ad has already been banned in Canada.
The site previously drew criticism for a billboard which described CougarLife.com as "for mother f**kers"