|
Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
|
|
UK: Rizla under fire over 'drug' ads
Claire Cozens The Guardian
Wednesday 19 Nov 2003 Rizla: campaign banned for cannabis references The advertising watchdog has banned an advertising campaign for Rizla cigarette papers after ruling it could be seen as condoning the use of cannabis. The Advertising Standards Authority launched an investigation after a rival manufacturer complained the campaign, which showed a packet of Rizlas twisted at one end with the words "Twist and... Burn" written on it, was a "clear allusion to drug culture", because cannabis cigarettes are twisted at one end. Tobacco giant Imperial Tobacco, which makes Rizla, has always insisted its cigarette papers are intended solely for making handmade cigarettes rather than rolling joints. But the rival manufacturer claimed the promotion "condoned the product's use for the consumption of illegal drugs". The ASA carried out an investigation and found that, in some dictionaries, "twist" was a slang term for a cannabis cigarette and "burn" could be referred to smoking one. It added it understood cannabis cigarettes were normally fatter than those filled with tobacco and twisted at one end to prevent the contents falling out. Imperial Tobacco said "twist and burn" was a phrase commonly used by motorcyclists and meant turning the bike's throttle and "burning rubber" along a road. Although the company said it was aware "a minority" used Rizlas with soft drugs, it said "it was not its intended purpose" and it "did not condone that use". The watchdog concluded the wording in the advert and the twisted packet "were likely to be seen by many readers as an allusion to the culture of cannabis use". It accepted the advert had been approved by the advertising industry's vetting body but told Imperial Tobacco not to use the same promotion in the future.
After you have finished reading this article you can click here to go back.
|
This page was created by the Cannabis Campaigners' Guide.
Feel free to link to this page!