Investigation uncovered eight adverts that portrayed women in a harmful or degrading way, says ASA An investigation by the UK advertising watchdog has found a number of shocking ads in mobile gaming apps that depict women as sexual objects, use pornographic tropes, and feature non-consensual sexual scenarios involving “violent and coercive control”. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) used avatars, which mimic the browsing behaviour of different gender and age groups, to monitor ads served when mobile games are open and identify breaches of the UK code ..read more

The United Australia party is no more but Trumpet of Patriots is making a lot of noise – and its ads look uncannily similar. Plus: policy bantz with Bandt Read more from the Shadow campaign See all federal election coverage Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Clive Palmer has a new party and a new slogan but it’s still the same old ads from the mining magnate. Not content with pouring hundreds of millions into the past two federal campaigns, for the princely return of one senator who seemingly spends most of his d ..read more

Film frustrationsFighter jetsDefence splurgeTriple brandiesTop dog at Crufts Regarding your article (Longer pre-film ads ‘wasting time’ of frustrated cinema fans, 8 March), you published my letter in 2015 suggesting that cinemas put on adverts after films, so those who want to watch them can stay behind, while those of us who find ads irritating can leave. Ten years have passed, and now is the time to implement my sensible suggestion. Richard Ross London • I support the aim to purchase UK-manufactured defence systems (6 March), but we need war-winning equipment. For example, the over ..read more

In past decade, pre-film reels have extended to about 25 minutes for ads and trailers, according to experts Movie buffs already lamenting the length of time it takes to get to the start of a film might be disappointed to learn pre-cinema ads are getting longer. Over the past 10 years, adverts for products and brands have taken up a larger proportion of pre-film reels in cinemas, according to experts ..read more

CEO refuses to comment on deal speculation as broadcaster benefits from hits including Mr Bates vs The Post Office Business live – latest updates ITV’s profits jumped in 2024 thanks to record earnings at the British broadcaster’s production arm, ITV Studios, as it benefited from hits including Mr Bates vs The Post Office, the Jilly Cooper adaptation Rivals and Fool Me Once. The FTSE 250 company said revenues were down 3% to £4.1bn in 2024 compared with the previous year, but its measure of adjusted profits was up 11% at £542m. Profit before tax more than doubled to £521m, up from £193m a yea ..read more

In the first of a series highlighting online strategy, social media wars and podcast forays in the federal election campaign, we look at a disturbing Liberal TikTok and Labor’s optimistic merch. Plus: who are the ‘Liberals for Independents’? The Liberal party’s strategy on TikTok is a bit more zoomer-friendly than Labor’s approach: think trending memes and audio, rather than politicians talking into the camera for 90 seconds at a time. We’ve previously brought you the mind-boggling pro-nuclear campaign from the Minerals Council, masterminded by the Liberals’ preferred online campaign group, To ..read more

The technology, just released in Europe and the UK, clearly has the potential to transform the film, TV and advertising industries OpenAI launches Sora video generation tool in UK If you want to know why Tyler Perry put an $800m (£635m) expansion of his studio complex on hold, type “two people in a living room in the mountains” into OpenAI’s video generation tool. The result from artificial intelligence-powered Sora, which was released in the UK and Europe on Friday, indicates why the US TV and film mogul paused his plans ..read more

The Coca-Cola sign at Kings Cross has hit its 50th anniversary – but other big ads around Australia have even older tales to tell Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email One of Sydney’s most renowned signs – and the largest billboard in the country – has received a makeover to mark its 50th anniversary. At 41 metres wide and 13 metres high, the Coca-Cola sign at Kings Cross presides over one of Sydney’s busiest thoroughfares, William Street, and has widely been regarded as the gateway to the inner city enclave since it was the epicentre of Sydney’s bohemia in the 1970s. The world’s most ..read more

Ad Standards Community Panel upholds complaint over Hancock Prospecting’s promotion in the Weekend Australian Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast The advertising regulator has found Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting misled consumers with an unsubstantiated claim that gas was clean, in an online advertisement in The Australian last year. Ads for Hancock Prospecting’s recruitment webpage futureaustralianjobs.com ran in the digital edition of the Weekend Australian in October 2024 ..read more

The slogan ‘Everyone must go!’ is being rubbished, but is it really that bad? Hong Kong and Vilnius have much stronger claims to this shameful title ... Having worked in the advertising industry for a while, I can tell you that creating a great ad is a lot more difficult than skewering a bad ad. That’s partly why I left a full-time gig in adland to focus on writing. Although the bigger reason, if I’m honest, is that I wrote a column saying I was going to quit my stupid advertising job before actually quitting, and my boss saw it and reacted as you might expect. But my poor life choices are not ..read more