Safety Gone Mad

Safety Gone Mad

This is what happens when people have too much power and authority,  no idea about discerning risk or any concept of the by-products of just banning things for ‘safety reasons’. See Rob Longs recent article: The Safety Worldview. This is going straight to our HOT TOASTER PAGE

As if there aren’t a 1000 other things that kids are exposed to in advertising that can cause substantially more harm in the long term than this (ie fast food and soft drink) but in Safety we just don’t think beyond simple hazards. Thank you Silly Safety for once again being there to save us from ourselves – how do we survive without you?

The ad was banned because it didn’t show the sharp edges being taped – ummmm…. how many are more likely to get cut during the taping process???

Advertising Age reports:

A commercial for Heinz Baked Beans has been banned from broadcast TV in the U.K. because it allegedly encourages dangerous behavior in children.

The “Can Song” spot by Bartle Bogle Hegarty London, echoing the “Cup Song” made popular by Anna Kendrick in the movie “Pitch Perfect,” has pulled in more than 311 million views online with its elaborate percussive routine with a can and a catchy tune.

“We all need love, that simple love, and we are whole again,” sing children, teenagers and adults as they drum out a rythm on empty tin cans. The ad ends with a call to “Learn the #CanSong.”

The Advertising Standards Authority regulatory agency received complaints that the behavior in the ad would be dangerous for children to emulate because open cans can have razor-sharp edges.

While the actors in the spot are clearly unharmed and well-rehearsed at flipping and tapping the cans, the ASA judged that consumers who tried the “Can Song” at home were “unlikely to be as proficient as the actors” and mistakes could be made with an empty can.

Heinz told the ASA that the ads were not aimed specifically at children. The company also pointed out that consumers had created their own video versions of the “Can Song” and uploaded them onto social media sites without causing any harm.

But the ASA decided against Heinz, ruling that the spot could not be broadcast again. “We considered there was a health and safety risk [in recreating the “Can Song”] particularly if a child was to attempt to play the song with an empty tin without adult supervision,” it said in a statement.

You be the judge: