Board says bare bums okay but violence not on

Several apparel companies have found themselves in hot water after using hard-on simulations, bare buttocks, domestic violence and anti-social behaviour to promote their products.

A raft of companies, including DC Shoes, Bonds, Aussiebum and Adina Jewellers, were called to defend their television (TVC) and billboard advertisements following complaints to the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB) last month.

Both DC Shoes and Adina Jewellers were forced to take their ads off air as a result of the ASB's findings.

The board heard that Western Australian jewellery company Adina had launched a television commercial showing a man arriving at his girlfriend's door and offering her a gift, for which he is then slapped. The scene is repeated several times with the final scene showing the man offering the woman a watch for which he then receives a hug.

Complainants said the advertisement encouraged the perception that violence was acceptable when female to male.

The board found that while the ad was intended to be humorous, the slapping of the face was not justifiable in the context of the product being advertised. It also found the ad was demeaning to both genders suggesting the man would put up with anything to get the girl and that the woman was only interested in material items.

In the case of DC Shoes' brand Jetty Surf a skateboarder is shown riding his skateboard on the boot of a taxi. The board determined the ad breached the Advertiser Code of Ethics relating to community standards on safety and violence.

Complaints against Sydney menswear brand Aussiebum whose ad showed a nude man wading in the ocean and Bonds whose TVC de