Family group protest over bloody ad

Herald Sun ^ | 23 March 2006 | Peter Mitchell

[Aussie Dasher]

A KEY conservative American lobby group is set to unleash a campaign of protest against Australian tourism's "where the bloody hell are you?" TV advertisement.

The controversial commercial made its US debut tonight in front of 20 million American TV viewers and one influential group was not amused.

The American Family Association (AFA), which has more than two million members and leads campaigns against abortion and gay rights, was upset with the bikini-clad model Lara Bingle's use of "bloody" and "hell" in the ad's tagline.

AFA members are expected to bombard Tourism Australia with thousands of emails and phone calls in coming weeks to vent their feelings.

Members are also expected to boycott Australia as a holiday destination.

"I just feel pretty sure the typical American family who is watching TV with their children and they're exposed to this ad are going to be upset," AFA director of special projects, Randy Sharp, told AAP.

"I don't want my children to hear that phrase.

"It's a shocking phrase because we're not familiar with it.

"I guess they use it all the time in Australia, but it's a foreign language here so I think it'll have a negative impact rather than positive."

British TV authorities dropped a ban on the use of the word "bloody" after pressure from Australia, but now Canadian authorities are unhappy with the way the ad portrays beer drinking.

Tourism Australia launched the ad in the US with a 30-second spot during the hit TV series Lost, which draws around 20 million American viewers each week.

The ad also aired on some of America's most-watched cable TV channels, including Rupert Murdoch's FOX News, the popular A&E channel, TNT, TBS, Fine Living and the home improvement network, HGTV.

The ad has not upset America's broadcast regulator, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), but all it takes is for one viewer complaint for the FCC to launch an investigation.

FCC spokesperson Rebecca Fisher said she was unaware of any complaints.

Tourism Australia acting managing director Andrew McEvoy said US TV networks had no problem clearing the ad.

The Mississippi-based AFA's campaigns have had enormous lobbying success in the US.

Last year the group called on its members to file formal complaints against US TV network CBS for a "teenage orgy scene" depicted in Australian actor Anthony LaPaglia's hit TV series, Without A Trace.

The FCC last week fined more than 100 CBS affiliate stations $US3.6 million ($5 million) for airing the orgy scene.

The AFA website congratulates its members on the campaign with a "You did it!" headline and a link to send the FCC a thank-you message.

The AFA is also calling on its members to lobby Pizza Hut to ban a "sexually suggestive" ad featuring pop princess Jessica Simpson, in which she feeds food into a teenager's mouth, causing the boy to faint.

Mr Sharp said he enjoyed the Tourism Australia ad until the end when Bingle asks "where the bloody hell are you?"

"When you think 'bloody' in America you think the red liquid that flows from human bodies which is usually a sign of some kind of violence," Mr Sharp said.

Tourism Australia contact details will be made available to AFA members.

"They will hear from a lot of our members who are going to be insulted," Mr Sharp said.

"Australians are spending all of these millions of dollars inviting us, and if we go over there are we going to be exposing our kids to foul language and images of bloody?

"We don't want our kids to hear the term 'bloody'.

"We certainly don't want our kids to hear profanity."

[Aussie Dasher]

This is getting bloody ridiculous!

Obviously the fight against killing babies and gay rights has been won! The AFA can now move on to being 'insulted' by Aussies. What nonsense!

[AnotherUnixGeek]

"I just feel pretty sure the typical American family who is watching TV with their children and they're exposed to this ad are going to be upset," AFA director of special projects, Randy Sharp, told AAP.

Oh, brother. I feel pretty sure that the typical American family isn't nearly as hyper-sensitive as Mr. Sharp. I'm also pretty sure that the typical American family can form a better sentence than Mr. Sharp.

[opinionator]

"It's a shocking phrase because we're not familiar with it."

Wrong. When I lived in England the term 'bloody' was a lot more offensive to the Brits than it was to us Yanks. It was almost like saying the F-word.

[Hexenhammer]

Obviously the fight against killing babies and gay rights has been won! The AFA can now move on to being 'insulted' by Aussies. What nonsense!

Indeed. Wasting time on this nonsense is pointless and counterproductive.

[trubluolyguy]

See this is where I think these types go too far. You don't like it, don't friggin' go "down under."

[Aussie Dasher]

If they don't come down here, it's their loss!

[raccoonradio]

It's possible "bloody" was derived from "by Our Lady".

---

Wikipedia: "Some say it may be derived from the phrase "by Our Lady", a sacrilegious invocation of the Virgin Mary...The use of bloody in adult UK broadcasting aroused controversy in the 1960s and 1970s but is now unremarkable (as can be seen by the fact that in the Harry Potter movies, which are geared toward children, the character Ron says "bloody hell" many times in all four movies).

"The origins of the United Kingdom's objection to "bloody" may be in part due to the connotations of Bloody Mary, most commonly referring to a particularly divisive queen of England notorious for her violent suppression of anti-Catholic views.

"Usage outside of the U.K.

"Bloody has always been a very common part of Australian speech and has not been considered profane for some time. The word was christened "the Australian adjective" by The Bulletin on 18 August 1894. In the 1940s an Australian divorce court judge held that "the word bloody is so common in modern parlance that it is not regarded as swearing". Meanwhile, Neville Chamberlain's government was fining Britons for using the word in public."

[raccoonradio]

>>Members are also expected to boycott Australia as a holiday destination.

Next: Picketing the Outback Steak House

[schwing_wifey]

My husband was looking at it last night and I said "Oh wow, the one thats causing so much controvery!!!" And watched it with him.

At the end I said, "Oh, you must have linked to the cleaned-up one... there's one that's really pushing buttons out there!"

He says to me... This is it... they're using the term "bloody".

I stood there for almost a minute looking at him like he was crazy... all I could reply was "What??????" "Are you serious???"

So I went for a glass of wine... Fire Block Old Vine Shiraz..great Aussie wine.... after all, I have a life...

[Aussie Dasher]

Meanwhile, we'll be inside having a great old night!

[Hank Rearden]

These AFAers sure sound like fun folks.

Party Down Prudently!

[Aussie Dasher]

Yep, we got some sensational wines down here.

Have one for me!!!

[Aussie Dasher]

I doubt I'll be inviting them to a barbie in the near future...

[Hank Rearden]

That's more fun for you, then! Cheers.

Y'all do make some fine, fine wines down there.

[schwing_wifey]

Have one for me!!!

Tonight... I just finished my morning coffee... I have this silly not before noon and usually not before 5pm rule... and I KNOW I KNOW... its 5pm somewhere on the planet!

;D

[Aussie Dasher]

I'll have one (er, maybe two...) for you!

[Hank Rearden]

Well, it's midnight here and now you've made me hungry for something grilled.

Thanks a bloody hell of a lot. Grrrr, what can I kill and cook at midnight?

[HIDEK6]

Back when schools taught English, I was taught that "bloody" was a curse referring to The Precious Blood.

Since then I have considered it to be a horrifying swear word.

[schwing_wifey]

Possum - white meat...
Raccoon - dark meat....

If you live in a suburb, get your gun and check outside...they're always lurking somewhere.

Sorry, I couldn't resist....

;D

[Aussie Dasher]

There could be a Dem roaming the nearby backstreets...