Advertising Standards Board dismisses complaints about Mike Tyson Ad

Numerous complaints to the ad watchdog about sexism, sexualisation and the promotion of convicted rapist Mike Tyson in Ultra Tune’s latest ad have been dismissed.

In a detailed response to the complaints, the brand said: “The advertisements do not promote nor endorse any sexual harassment, or assault. He [Tyson] has been punished for his crime committed over 25 years ago in accordance with the law.”

A majority of the complaints featured in the Advertising Standards Board’s ruling focussed on the inclusion of Tyson, who was convicted of rape in 1992.

In response, Ultra Tune said it takes its responsibilities – including the AANA Code of Ethics – very seriously and noted the brand “agrees sexual harassment, assault and rape has no place in our society”.

“However, we note that Mr Tyson served his punishment, publicly acknowledged his deep regret and remorse for that period in his life, and has re-joined society. Since that time, he has rebuilt his career as a celebrity personality.”

It also noted: “Our use of Mr Tyson does not promote his convictions nor condone sexual harassment in any way.”

The advertiser went on to detail its view that the ad could not be found to vilify, humiliate or ridicule women because “the advertisements are clearly designed to be hyper-realisatic and comedic”, noting “a road incident can happen to any person, regardless of gender.”

Ultra Tune also refuted the claim the ad exploits or degrades women, arguing: “At all times the female actors are fully clothed in fancy dress clothing. The fancy dress clothing was used to reinforce the comedic aspect of the advertisement. Their clothing is clearly not the focus of the advertisement.”

The Board also didn’t take issue with the women’s attire, saying it is consistent with Hen’s parties or costume parties. It said the women’s appearance was “sexy, [but] their behaviour is not sexualised”.

It also again noted the “hyper-real” nature of the advertisements, which in its view, ensured the community would not take safety pointers from the women’s actions: “The Board considered that the fantasy nature of the advertisement, the likelihood of a tiger appearing in the street, and the fact the vehicle was shown to crash all amounted to an overall impression that would be unlikely to suggest or condone swerving to avoid an animal on the road.”

The Board thus dismissed all the complaints against Ultra Tune’s ad.

Watch the full Mike Tyson ad here:


Read more on the story here: https://mumbrella.com.au/ad-watchdog-dismisses-numerous-complaints-mike-tyson-ultra-tune-ad-499026

Ultra Tune launches Ad with Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson stars in new Ultra Tune ad

Ultra Tune are proud to launch our new advert with Mike Tyson during the Australian Open 2018 today!

The ad is part of the Unexpected Situations series and stars the legend Mike Tyson as well as rubber girls Parnia Porsche, Tyana Hansen and Jasmin Rainbow. We filmed in 2017 in Las Vegas with the fantastic director Mark Richie who really brought our ideas to life! It was a great time on set and a wonderful experience working with Mike Tyson who was a total professional and a lot of fun!

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Sean Buckley (Executive Chairman Ultra Group of Companies) onset in Las Vegas with Rubber Girls – Jasmin Rainbow, Tyana Hansen, Parnia Porsche, Mike Tyson and Roadside Assistance Driver – Rod Cedaro

We look forward to hearing feedback from our customers and follow us on Twitter and Facebook for regular updates and more behind the scenes info!

Behind the Scenes with Mike Tyson!

Mike Tyson stars in New Ultra Tune ad!

Working with Mike Tyson on the new Ultra Tune ad was absolutely fantastic and the entire team had such a great time filming in Las Vegas!
As part of our Unexpected Situations series, we also featured our rubber girls Parnia Porsche, Tyana Hansen and Jasmin Rainbow.

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Sean Buckley (Executive Chairman Ultra Group of Companies) onset in Las Vegas with Rubber Girls – Jasmin Rainbow, Tyana Hansen, Parnia Porsche, Mike Tyson and Roadside Assistance Driver – Rod Cedaro

“I finally got him. For our brand, a very male-orientated market for our car servicing, he is perfect for it,” Buckley has told The Daily Telegraph. “He is an icon, people over 40 all know him. We welcome the controversy because it gets people talking.

“The more complaints we seem to get about these ads, the more our sales go up. Australia used to be a land of fun and comedy but everything has become politically correct to another level, so much so people are scared to do something different or funny … you can’t do anything without offending someone.”

We are so excited about the upcoming ad which will be screened during the Australian Open in Janaury 2018!