The advertising watchdog has cleared an “inappropriate” Telstra advert featuring a snowman, a “firm” carrot and two kangaroos.
A complaint has been made to Ad Standards about an advert promoting Telstra mobile coverage at the Mt Buller ski resort in eastern Victoria.
The controversial ad showed two animated kangaroos building a snowman.
While the older kangaroo talked about the benefits of Telstra, the younger kangaroo placed a carrot on the snowman’s genital area.
The older kangaroo noticed and moved the carrot to the correct nose position.
The complaint filed with Ad Standards claimed the Telstra ad contained “inappropriate content and placement that implied a carrot-like penis.”
The complaint claimed the advert breached section 2.4 – Sex, Sexuality and Nudity of the Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) Code of Ethics.
The ad had received a ‘G’ rating from the ClearAds service that provides a compliance review and could air at any time of the day.
The complaint lodged with advertising watchdog Ad Standards claimed the Telstra ad contained “inappropriate content and placement that implied a carrot-like penis”.
In the advertisement, the older kangaroo noticed that the carrot was in the wrong position and moved it to the correct nose position.
Telstra denied the advert breached any community standards or guidelines.
In its rebuttal to Ad Standards, Telstra stated: “There is nothing to suggest the ability to experience and express sexual desire.”
“There is no suggestion that the snowman is sensitive or that the carrot is placed in a sexual region to indicate a response to any external sexual stimulus.”
‘Furthermore, concluding that the use of a carrot is a substitute for an erect penis and suggesting sexual desire would be unreasonable.
Telstra denied the ad breached community standards or guidelines: “There is nothing to suggest the ability to experience and express sexual desire.”
“A carrot is inherently firm and generally has a straight cylindrical shape.”
“It is also commonly used as a nose on a snowman, as the advertisement finally shows.”
Regarding the alleged nudity breach, Telstra stated: “The advert does not contain humans or living creatures, and neither snowmen nor kangaroos normally ‘wear clothing’ such that any of their appearances are ‘naked’.”
Watchdog Ad Standards agreed and dismissed the complaint.
An Ad Standards spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia: “The Ad Standards Community Panel determined that the ad did not breach the AANA Code of Ethics.”
‘While the Panel acknowledged the slight sexual innuendo associated with the placement of the carrot, it found the advertisement to be light-hearted, humorous and not inappropriate for the relevant broad audience.
A Telstra spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia: “We’re glad it was seen for what it was – a bit of fun.”
in a reddit post about Telstra’s announcement, commenters accused the whistleblower of overreacting.
“He seems more like a person bored at home all day who complains professionally,” one wrote.
“Those who actually complain about this harmless shit to the point of formally complaining are just sad parents who need means to be in a bad mood,” wrote another.