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news
Emirates ad Sydney (cropped, source Bicycleadagio on Twitter).PNGHelmet 'added' to image of Amsterdam cyclist for Australian ad campaign
An advertising campaign in Australia for the UAE-based airline Emirates has attracted derision on Twitter – because it depicts an Amsterdam cyclist who according to people who have seen the poster in person has clearly had a helmet placed on her head with the help of Photoshop or similar software.
Twitter user @BicycleAdagio posted a picture of the advert to Twitter, with other users of the social network saying that they had also seen it in Perth and Brisbane.
Emirates ad on a bus stop in Sydney. Yes, that's a photoshopped helmet on a cyclist in Amsterdam. pic.twitter.com/tKrJwWtU7p
— Stephen B (@BicycleAdagio) June 15, 2016
The Dutch capital, of course, has among the highest modal shares of cycling in the world and among people who use bikes as a means of transport, those who wear helmets are in a tiny minority.
In Australia, cyclists are required by law to wear a helmet, with those who go bare-headed in New South Wales facing a fine of A$319 (£166).
The soft focus of the image posted to Twitter means it’s hard to determine for sure whether or not the image has been manipulated, but user @geoff_tewierik wrote: “Saw one of these joke ads from @emirates in Brisbane the other day too. Clueless marketing department.”
Another user, @cyclingtiger, said: “Sadly I suspect that this is because it's cheaper to photoshop than to put up with angry complaints about helmetless riding.”
Assuming the image was indeed altered, that may have been done so as not to fall foul of the country’s advertising watchdog.
Last year, Australia’s Advertising Standards Board upheld a complaint against a television advert for a health club which included footage of two women riding a tandem without helmets.
The advertiser, Fernwood Fitness Centre, argued amongst other things that the women were riding on private property and were not therefore required by law to wear helmets.
In considering whether the advertisement did indeed breach health and safety guidelines, the watchdog said:
The Board noted that community standards are very clear on the issue of health and safety whilst riding a bicycle and considered that a depiction of an adult riding a bicycle without a helmet is a depiction which is in breach of these community standards.
In the current advertisement the Board noted that the two women on the bicycle are not wearing safety helmets. The Board noted the advertiser’s response that the advertisement was filmed on private property. The Board noted that the women are depicted riding on a footpath adjacent to a road and considered that it is not obvious that this area is private therefore the most likely interpretation is that the women are riding on a road-related area.
Upholding the complaint, it added:
Overall the Board considered that the advertisement did depict material contrary to prevailing community standards on health and safety.
The advertiser subsequently edited the spot to remove the offending footage, which lasted just 3 seconds.
While in part the Advertising Standards Board’s decision was based on the fact that it wasn’t clear whether or not the women riding the tandem were on the public highway, what is abundantly evident from the Emirates poster is that the cyclist isn’t in Australia at all.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
Latest Comments
- Rendel Harris 5 hours 15 min ago
Thank goodness for that. I don't suppose anyone would want you to. You certainly behave like one though.
- Eton Rifle 5 hours 23 min ago
You do see some utterly ridiculous examples of car use....
- Eton Rifle 5 hours 45 min ago
Exactly. Every road death is a tragedy but this is at the "twat deserved it" end of the spectrum, looking at the state of that car.
- Rendel Harris 5 hours 53 min ago
I'm not the editor of this article, nor indeed of anything on this website. One would have thought that didn't require explaining.
- Eton Rifle 5 hours 53 min ago
I think the answer is in your question. I genuinely didn't know he was married to her. It does kinda explain it. Disappointing, nevertheless.
- Daclu Trelub 10 hours 38 min ago
In a perfect world, we'd have a measure of how easily distracted someone is, as part of their driving test....
- Sredlums 11 hours 6 min ago
These products are nothing but ridiculously expensive and superfluous, and they bring nothing but bragging rights....
- Daclu Trelub 11 hours 25 min ago
Of course they are, and not so different. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09B662CDN?crid=34M42BETAMFT0&th=1 The bugger's got four versions up now!
- squidgy 11 hours 42 min ago
At least the van driver was nowhere near the stationary cyclist.
Add new comment
71 comments
Did he get himself banded? Been a while since I seen anyone argue bilge with such fervour so tirelessly. Bet he's a delicate flower in real life though! Always the way of it...
Better for for him to get banned really. He needs time away from the computer to get some perspective. Coming online to pick the same stupid fight every day.. Seriously sad.
I imagine he is, as we speak, manufacturing another sock puppet account........
Has he been banned or deleted his account or what, I can only see his posts in quotes.
The number of comments on this story has just dropped from 77 to 61?!?
That guy in the second photo looks pretty uncomfortable in his suite.
It just comes across as a doomed-attempt to conceal from Australians the fact that other countries don't share their peculiar fixation on head-gear.
Its as if the Oz regime fears their entire system will collapse if the people ever discover its possible to ride a bike without a polystyrene hat.
The old USSR had a fairly rational reason for concealing from its citizenry the truth about life in the West, whereas Australian helmet-Stalinism is more like a collective mental health problem.
"Willo's Law":
the number of posts made on a Website by L.Willo is directly proportional to the probability of one of the more balanced members changing their unique and quirky avatar to a graphic saying "Fuck Off Willo".
To avoid causing any offence, I've had my avatar approved by the Australian Government.
How are they promoting illegal activity when it's not illegal to ride a bike without a helmet in Dutchland?
Illegal in Australialand.Never mind what those crazy dutchlanders do in their own country ... there are standards to maintain in Australialand ....
But it's not illegal to cycle without a helmet in Dutchland, so they are not promoting illegal activity... Unless you're suggesting a cyclist could cycle without a helmet in Dutchland while in Australialand, but if that's the case I think there'd be some more fundamental laws that they're breaking.
Groundhog day.
New Hampshire no seatbelts.
Brazil sex with 14 year olds.
India children smoking.
Netherlands. Cycling headless chicken style.
All legal.
All completely inappropriate to depict positively in ads in countries where said activities are illegal.
Willo's Law.
Of infinitely greater relevance, AASB guidance.
The End.
Arbitary list of things, ignoring much greater list that could also be included. Willo's law is self selective.
Now show us examples where those have been photographed to promote tourism and then removed by photoshop for publication.
Still hasn't worked out that's what we're making fun of (not Emirates). Bit slow.
[/quote] Groundhog day. New Hampshire no seatbelts. Brazil sex with 14 year olds. India children smoking. Netherlands. Cycling headless chicken style. All legal. All completely inappropriate to depict positively in ads in countries where said activities are illegal. Willo's Law. Of infinitely greater relevance, AASB guidance. The End.[/quote]
The difference being that the rest of the world have not banned a completely normal activity due to there being very little evidence to suggest it is any safer with compulsory helmet use, and it is the Australians who are going against the grain. The picture could have been someone on a moped without a helmet on, but that would not make you believe you could do the same in Australia and not contravene Australian law, any more than if the advert was shown in London.
The sex with 14 year olds that you keep refering to is crass, but I will counter with this point. It is illegal in most of the world, and immoral in all of it. To promote sex tourism with a billboard advert showing sex with children would be promoting an abhorrent act that most Brazilians are not engaging in. Promoting an advert with people riding bicycles without helmets is something that almost all nipping-about-town type cyclists are doing in Holland, and in no way reprehensible. They are very different and it has nothing to do with legality.
Australians tourists that then visit those countries, also have to wear special glasses that photoshop helmets onto people in real time.
Ah, helmets! Nothing like a good chat about them to bring cyclists together...
Helmet (singular), a purple one, bell shaped.
He claimed to have children some way back. No doubt they are whiter than lily white child prodigies who can solve differential equations while rattling off Rachmaninov 3. Or they are Action Men figures (wearing helmets of course)
You guys make me laugh. You remind me of the bitchy sorority girls in a crap American college movie .....
Like, oh my God, that Willo, like oh my god, i hate him, he is so un pop u lerr and stuff, ...
Honestly, who gives a fuck?
You do.
It's already been said, but you do.
And quite a few other posters have bemoaned every thread you post on turning into some awful Daily Mailfest as opposed to a decent kickabout of the article.
Thank you for proving my point.
"Who gives a fuck?"
Well you clearly do
Would make more sense if their ad was "Escape from helmets and travel on Emirates airline."
For those who are also a bit hard of reading, have another go at this section from the article:
The Board noted that community standards are very clear on the issue of health and safety whilst riding a bicycle and considered that a depiction of an adult riding a bicycle without a helmet is a depiction which is in breach of these community standards.
Australian Advertising Standards Board
But sod that Emirates, stick it to the man, yeah!
So don't show Dutch cycling, or use a picture of someone with a helmet on. Badly photoshopping a helmet onto an existing image is laughable. Unless it was a deliberate act in protest at such a stupid regulation.
Maybe you missed the fact that this article is about people commenting on the image being modified ("has attracted derision"), because your a bit thick and suffer from seletive reading. I know you're not replying to me, but I'm still going to rip into you. It's a hobby.
Except that the board were referring to a completely different advert in a completely different context.Maybe you should read the article again
Fook me you're a sad sack. I truly pity your kids. They must be mainlining valium just to make it through the daily evening sermon.
You think he really has kids? He's mainlining high purity bullshit.
the helmet has clearly been added as there's no 'movement' streaks as compared to the remainder of the bicycle rider...
and here's the original stock photo...
http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/photo/netherlands-amsterdam-woman-cr...
Now. Why did I stop commenting on this site? <Reads this thread>
Oh yeah.
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