Early Death Ad Campaign Not Unfair

It seems that the Advertising Standards Authority in the United Kingdom, which oversees the content and the delivery of ads, has announced that a campaign called Change 4 Life has not been misleading parents or offending readers with its controversial message.

The matter warrants a short recap. The British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research and Diabetes UK has launched a campaign designed to show young people the risks they face from heart disease. One of the images used was that of a child, looking particularly unhappy, who was holding a game controller. The phrase used was ”Risk an early death, just do nothing.” The obvious implication is that playing videogames, probably for any amount of time, is leading to early death of unhappy young men (maybe women as well).

The reaction in the United Kingdom was quite strong. Tiga, which represents game developers, complained to the Advertising Standards Authority saying that the claims in the ad were “absurd and insulting,” while the magazine MCV launched its own campaign against it. Still, the ASA claims that there's little potential for the ad to insult or misinform.

ASA stated that “The Council considered that most readers would understand that the ad was discouraging a sedentary lifestyle and used the example of playing a console game as an illustration of the type of behaviour which might lead to long-term health problems if no exercise were taken alongside more sedentary activities.”

If this was the case, then maybe the ads should also feature people watching TV, reading books or newspapers on a sofa or using a notebook while sitting in a chair. These are all very sedentary activities and as much of a risk as playing videogames. The ASA also says that the ad does not imply children and adults should stop playing videogames and enjoying their positive effects.