Bread ad showing teen posing in skimpy school uniform sparks uproar
London, Nov. 11 (ANI)
A TV commercial for a bread company, which shows a teenage girl posing provocatively in a skimpy school dress, has prompted scores of complaints from parents.
Advertising watchdogs said the 30-second advertisement for Kingsmill fruit and fibre bread had triggered claims that it "sexualises children," the Daily Mail reported.
The ad shows a teenage schoolgirl in the kitchen at breakfast. Her younger brother then relays their dad's warning to her, "If you think you're going to school in that skirt, you can think again."
The girl, played by actress Tara Berwin, responds to the comment by rebelliously pulling up her mid-thigh length skirt to strike a provocative pose.
The commercial featuring 18-year-old Berwin and 9-year-old Lewis Hardaker is the latest in a 4-million-pound campaign to promote Kingsmill bread.
Web forums were deluged with critical comments with one outraged viewer writing, "Perhaps it's because paedophilia is very much in the public consciousness at the moment but shouldn't this be illegal? Nearly seeing up the skirt of a minor?'
But criticism of the advert, which was uploaded to YouTube, prompted a response from Berwin, she said, 'There's no need to patronise me, I haven't done anything wrong.'
A Kingsmill spokesman said: "It captures the playful interactions that are typical of day-to-day family life and demonstrates our understanding of modern families and their needs."
He added that the advertisement had been cleared for the broadcast by the appropriate industry body.