{"id":773480,"date":"2023-08-29T08:01:19","date_gmt":"2023-08-29T12:01:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=773480"},"modified":"2023-08-29T09:11:46","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T13:11:46","slug":"sea-things-in-a-different-light-controversial-dead-cat-advertisement-deemed-not-in-breach-of-standards-authority-code","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=773480","title":{"rendered":"‘Sea Things In a Different Light’: Controversial ‘dead cat’ advertisement not in breach of standards authority code"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

The ad intends to promote veganism and question the widespread assumption that certain species were more deserving of compassion than others. Fish, like cats and other animals, are intelligent, sensitive individuals. If you wouldn\u2019t eat your animal companion, don\u2019t eat sea life.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\n

LIAM O’DELL:<\/strong> Back in April, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) organisation revealed it had put up a billboard advertisement in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in Lincolnshire. The blog post announcing the advert came with a headline which made the argument that \u201ceating a fish is like eating a cat\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

The charity wrote: \u201cFrom one angle, you may see a smiling fishmonger holding a dead fish, but from another, she is holding a dead cat. \u201cThis unsettling sight has been erected by Peta to provide locals with food for thought. \u201cFish \u2013 like cats and other animals \u2013 are intelligent, sensitive individuals. If you wouldn\u2019t eat your animal companion, go vegan and don\u2019t eat sea life”…<\/em><\/p>\n

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received several complaints calling the advert \u201cexcessively distressing\u201d… The complainants also questioned whether the ad was \u201cresponsibly targeted\u201d, given it was in a public place \u2013 near a fish and chip shop \u2013 where \u201cchildren could see it\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

When approached by the ASA for a response as part of its investigation, Peta said the ad intended to \u201cpromote veganism by challenging the societal tendency to treat animals merely as a means of fulfilling human desires\u201d, and that it sought to \u201cquestion the widespread assumption that certain species were more deserving of compassion than others\u201d… “that the cat\u2019s portrayal was not graphic and had been carefully designed to minimise any risk of distress. It was not depicted with any external wounds, or other outward indicators of injury or suffering”…<\/em><\/p>\n

In their assessment, the ASA said: \u201c[We] acknowledged that some viewers would find the ad unsettling or distasteful. However, we considered that viewers would understand that the ad was for an animal justice charity, promoting the vegan diet, and that it aimed to challenge societal norms regarding the moral significance of meat consumption.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe considered that the cat\u2019s depiction was neither gruesome, nor shocking, and was unlikely to be considered particularly realistic by most viewers. On that basis, we considered that viewers, including children, were unlikely to regard the image as relatively mild”. \u201cFor that reason. We concluded that the ad was not excessively distressing, or likely to cause serious or widespread offence, and had not been irresponsibly targeted”. <\/em>SOURCE…<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

RELATED VIDEOS:<\/strong><\/p>\n