The Chaser banned: 'too political' to carry on the busesAN ADVERTISEMENT for The Chaser's War On Everything DVD has been banned by Australia's largest outdoor advertising company on the grounds it is "too political".
The ad, which was planned to run on State Transit buses, features The Chaser's APEC stunt and the slogan: "The only good thing to come out of APEC."
Despite being accepted by magazines and newspapers, the ad was considered too controversial for Buspak, owned by APN News & Media's APN Outdoor.
The decision has amazed The Chaser's Julian Morrow, who approved the ad along with executives from the ABC and DVD distributor Roadshow Entertainment.
"They have flatly refused to run the artwork we have provided because it has the slogan, 'The only good thing to come out of APEC'," he said. "They say that's too political. They said they will run the ad but they don't want anything that can be construed, even jokingly, as disparaging of APEC. It's ridiculous."
Many other media outlets have accepted the ad, which depicts Morrow as a driver and Chas Licciardello as Osama bin Laden waving his fake APEC security pass from the window of a bogus Canadian motorcade.
The APEC stunt resulted in 10 members of the team being arrested, but charges were dropped in April. The stunt is featured in the new DVD, scheduled for release next month.
"We've sent the ad to other companies and they seem to be willing to risk the inquisition but not Buspak," Morrow said.
"I suggested sending revised artwork to Buspak with a big black strip over the slogan saying, 'Censored by Buspak', but I don't think they were too keen on that either."
Richard Herring, chief executive of APN Outdoor, declined to comment on the ban, but Morrow fears it could be payback for The Chaser's public transport pranks.
SOURCE:
http://www.smh.com.au/news/tv--radio/war-declared/2008/07/26/1216492803477.html
