Afraid, More afraid, Most afraid

Small kids are afraid of the dark, and also very afraid of the scary clown on the bus-shelter poster for the annual Halloween party in fun park Walibi. The bus-shelter was located within 170m of a day-care centre and pre-school play centre. Too close, according to the Advertising Code Committee (ACC). Obviously, the question of whether the advertisement is contrary to good taste and decency is subjective. However, in the case of advertisements in public spaces, one cannot avoid them, and thus this is judged a bit more strictly. The location is decisive for the ACC: children leave the primary school on the way to the day-care centre and pass the orange monster with pointed teeth and a ominous glare. Therefore, this is the first decision in which a specific location, the bus-shelter next to the Bernard Bridge in Moordrecht, is forbidden territory for a scary poster. The children can sleep well again, which is not quite the case for advertisers and their agencies. They better pay attention to specific locations when dealing with advertisements that border on good taste and decency.

Ebba Hoogenraad