Provocative billboards promoting an Aboriginal awareness campaign run by the Victorian government have been scrapped because they were too controversial for one advertising company.
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The government decided not to use APN billboards after the company didn't want to use two of seven posters because of concerns they might breach the advertising code of ethics.
The ads feature questions including "Is being Aboriginal just the colour of your skin?" and "Why can't Aboriginal people just get over the past?".
"A few days before the launch we got word back that (APN) were not happy with it," Aboriginal Affairs Minister Natalie Hutchins told AAP.
"They were going to seek some advice from (Outdoor Media Association) and that they wanted to put it on hold for a few days, which didn't fit with our launch.
"We were pretty concerned that they didn't really understand that the campaign had been driven by Aboriginal Victorians and that the answers were being provided by Aboriginal Victorians.
"Companies like APN need a bit of Aboriginal cultural awareness training to figure out that this sort of stuff is really important."
The $1.3 million Deadly Questions website and accompanying campaign was launched a few weeks ago.
It is designed for people to pose questions they might feel uncomfortable asking Aboriginal Victorians face-to-face, to learn more about their culture as the state moves towards a treaty with indigenous people.
About 1400 questions have been asked so far and there were 10,000 visits to the site within its first four days.
"When the ads in question were submitted to us, we referred them to the Outdoor Media Association which in turn referred them to the Advertising Standards Bureau, which is usual practice," APN Outdoor Managing Director James Warburton said.
"The ASB advised that two of the ads might be in breach of the industry's code of ethics. This information was conveyed to the agency that created the ads."'
The ASB said it provides guidance on whether material is likely to comply with its set of codes.
"The advice is not binding and under the terms of our service all copy advice is confidential to the requester," an ASB spokesman told AAP.
The ads are still being run on billboards, bus stops and other spaces owned by JCDecaux and oOh!media.
oOh!media also sought advice from the Outdoor Media Association but decided to run the ads anyway.
"While the advice received back advised two of the creative executions could potentially be in breach of the code, we support the view of Aboriginal Victoria that some of these negative and unfortunately very real viewpoints needed to be acknowledged to open up discussion," a spokesman said.
"After all, Aboriginal Victoria is well placed to determine how the campaign will be accepted by the community it represents."
Australian Associated Press
