Regarding Marie Stopes Abortion TV Ad, this week's Guardian tells us that:
The advertising watchdog has cleared the first British television advert to offer advice on abortion services, despite almost 5,000 complaints.
The Advertising Standards Authority cleared the ad, one of a series of three, of breaking any of the rules in its code, while acknowledging that the issue was "controversial and distasteful for some".
The campaign has become the seventh-most-complained about of all time, with 1,054 official complaints. The ASA also received more than 3,300 postcards and petition signatures from the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children and 327 calls before the first ad aired.
The ads featured three women who may have missed their period with a voiceover offering Marie Stopes International as a source of pregnancy advice...
"Many complainants regarded the advertisers as advocates of abortion and therefore interpreted the ad as a promotion of abortion," said the ASA. "However, the ad was for an advice service for women dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, and stated that Marie Stopes could help women who were 'pregnant and not sure what to do'. We considered it was an ad for a general pregnancy advice service for women who wished to learn about and discuss their options, which might include, but were not limited to, abortion."
The ASA also said that the women in the ads looked "deep in thought" and therefore it did not trivialise unplanned pregnancy and did not suggest that only the woman would be affected.
It concluded that the ad would not cause widespread offence and was not harmful in that it would not encourage promiscuity or overly appeal to young people.
The Advertising Standards Authority cleared the ad, one of a series of three, of breaking any of the rules in its code, while acknowledging that the issue was "controversial and distasteful for some".
The campaign has become the seventh-most-complained about of all time, with 1,054 official complaints. The ASA also received more than 3,300 postcards and petition signatures from the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children and 327 calls before the first ad aired.
The ads featured three women who may have missed their period with a voiceover offering Marie Stopes International as a source of pregnancy advice...
"Many complainants regarded the advertisers as advocates of abortion and therefore interpreted the ad as a promotion of abortion," said the ASA. "However, the ad was for an advice service for women dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, and stated that Marie Stopes could help women who were 'pregnant and not sure what to do'. We considered it was an ad for a general pregnancy advice service for women who wished to learn about and discuss their options, which might include, but were not limited to, abortion."
The ASA also said that the women in the ads looked "deep in thought" and therefore it did not trivialise unplanned pregnancy and did not suggest that only the woman would be affected.
It concluded that the ad would not cause widespread offence and was not harmful in that it would not encourage promiscuity or overly appeal to young people.
Marie Claire's website tells us that:
The ASA added, ‘We were satisfied that any callers to the advice line would be advised about health implications of any intervention or procedure which might be appropriate for her, in consultation with a qualified and regulated healthcare professional.’
If you have had enough of this nonsense and want to see pregnant women receive real help and advice, why not support our advertising campaign, due to start on the London underground shortly. It's also a witness to the fact that catholics and catholic agencies provide real help and support to women in crisis pregnancies. But ads don't come cheap, so please follow the link to donate if you can to The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel: http://www.justgiving.com/goodcounsel/Donate
Clare McCullough
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