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Atheist bus complaint rejected


More news on Stephen Green's silly complaint to the Advertising Standards Agency about the atheist bus adverts which say "There's probably no God". Green said:

"Advertisements are not allowed to mislead consumers. This means that advertisers must hold evidence to prove the claims they make about their products or services before an ad appears."

The above complaint resulted in this verdict:

"The ASA council concluded that the ad was an expression of the advertiser's opinion and that the claims in it were not capable of objective substantiation. Although the ASA acknowledges that the content of the ad would be at odds with the beliefs of many, it concluded that it was unlikely to mislead or to cause serious or widespread offence."

I disagree with this verdict because I believe the claim on the buses is capable of objective substantiation. Indeed, it's substantiated.

Source here.
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Comments

Anonymous said…
Well to borrow a phrase "If it isn't hurting it isn't working."

Ought to strengthen the phrasing for the next ad perhaps.

Actually I gather Prof. Dawkins was after a new slogan. In the spirit of science it would be best to conduct some experiments first to determine which phrase is the most effective.
January 23, 2009 at 6:20 PM
Steven Carr said…
I see it didn't take long for Christians to respond with abuse, calling non-believers 'fools'
February 5, 2009 at 7:41 PM
Anonymous said…
"Advertisements are not allowed to mislead consumers. This means that advertisers must hold evidence to prove the claims they make about their products or services before an ad appears."

And yet Christians are allowed to advertise their religion on large posters in public place, with no evidence whatsoever that it's the truth?

Why is it one law for Christians and another for us Atheists?
March 8, 2009 at 9:48 PM
Achilles24 said…
I'm curious why it is says "Now stop worrying and enjoy your life", implying almost that because you may believe in God you are constantly worrying and depriving yourself of enjoyment. What utter nonsense.

Personally I'd feel much more relaxed and comfortable knowing that God did exist.
September 6, 2009 at 10:14 AM
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