AG Barr have issued an apology after an Irn Bru advert sparked a few complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). The ad aired on STV after 7pm on Friday. The ASA confirmed they had received 9 complaints with the majority deeming
the advert to be offensive and in poor taste. The 'Don't be a cunt' campaign depicts a man meeting his girlfriends family for the first time and when asked by her father about when he is going to marry his daughter he replies he can't right now
and asked to leave but is told by his girlfriend that they can't to which he replies Don't be a can't An AG Barr spokeswoman said: Our advertising always plays up Irn-Bru's cheeky sense of humour and our latest
campaign is no different. It's never our intention to offend so we're sorry if our new advert hit the wrong note with a few people. But we hope most fans will enjoy this spin on positive thinking in the spirit it is intended.
Update: ASA are usually can'ts but this time they are a can 24th March 2018. See
article from eveningtimes.co.uk
A.G. Barr's latest Irn-Bru advert has been deemed not offensive by the advert censors at ASA. ASA said, after receiving 37 complaints, it had decided not to launch a formal investigation against the campaign. An ASA spokeswoman added:
While we acknowledge there was some similarity between 'can't' and a swear word, as suggested by complainants, and that some viewers might find the ad offensive for that reason, we considered the spoken use of the word
'can't' had sufficient clarity. Therefore, it was clearly distinguishable from the swear word. We also considered the audience was likely to interpret the ad as an attempt at humour by linking being a 'can't' with negativity while
associating 'can' with positivity and their product.
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