Topic: What Is Not Acceptable

From Great Britain: One of the Boyar Estates' advertisements for its embryonic Blueridge brand of wine attracted 20 complaints, including one from the Church of England, according to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). But the ASA's opinion did not uphold or agree with the complaint against the advertising line: "Jesus was born in a trough".

The judgment of the ASA stated: "The advertisers said the poster belonged to a campaign that showed important things could come from humble beginnings. Jesus was born in a humble environment but went on to be a great man. The advertisers believed the advertisement showed reverence for its subject (Jesus) and conveyed a Christian message by encouraging people to set aside preconceptions and prejudices and judge on merit, instead of origin. Although the ASA acknowledged the complainants had been offended by the poster, the ASA considered the advertisement was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence."

A spokesperson for ad designers M & C Saatchi said: "The tone is very much tongue-in-cheek; the message [is] that Blueridge is a good wine. The campaign is hard-hitting but fun and the message is definitely Christian: Judge on merit, not origin."

Steve Abrahams, Boyar Estates marketing manager, said: "We stand firmly behind the Jesus poster and all of the others. The brief to M & C was to get the brand noticed, and to state clearly that the wine is produced in Bulgaria," he said. It is a difficult task to introduce a new brand into the UK market, especially when trying to overcome preconceptions concerning Bulgarian wine, and I believe the posters do both. Does it matter where it comes from' refers simply to initially tasting a wine. Where it comes from should not matter when forming an opinion of the taste," said Abrahams.

Webmaster's Comment: It is acceptable to adopt Christmas for Christian purposes. IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE (in the webmaster's opinion) to use Christmas to advertise alcohol or any other assortment of truly non-Christian things. Unfortunately, the secularization of Christmas isn't going on just in the U.S., but all over the world.

Title: COMPLAINTS OVER BLUERIDGE AD
Adapted from article provided by: Don Johnson

Fair Use. Presented for educational purposes only.

If these words have been a blessing, please forward them to a friend

These words were posted at one of Shepherd's Care Ministries Sites called Wisdom Minute. This site is located at:
http://www.shepherdscare.net/wisdomminute

Shepherd's Care Ministries Main Site located at:
http://www.shepherdscare.net/