A council has come under fire for an advertisement a member of the public complained was sexist and misogynistic. Photo / Supplied
A council has come under fire for an advertisement a member of the public complained was sexist and misogynistic. Photo / Supplied
A council’s attempt to reduce complaints about overgrown hedges has instead triggered a complaint about the advice it gave on how to deal with wayward vegetation.
A member of the public complained to the Advertising Standards Authority that the Carterton District Council’s digital ad “Trimmed ya bush lately?” was misogynistic, distasteful, unprofessional, contained sexual references and was “just plain grubby humour”.
The matter was settled at a meeting last month when the council conceded and removed the text from the advertisement.
The council’s communications manager Elisa Brown said it was the first complaint they’d had in the five years the campaign has been running.
A previous Trim ya Bush campaign ended up being shared internationally and was shared 50 times on Twitter, despite the council not having a Twitter account.
“We have been using the campaign since 2018 as a fun and friendly way to remind residents of their responsibility to keep their hedges trimmed back to their boundaries,” Brown said.
A council has come under fire for an advertisement a member of the public complained was sexist and misogynistic. Photo / Supplied
The digital advertisement was posted on the council’s Facebook page last December, with messaging to remind homeowners to trim hedges that are overgrowing onto footpaths.
The caption for the post said “It happens every year – someone lets their bush grooming get out of hand. You can’t walk past it without it tickling your leg and the postman has trouble reaching your box.
“Be a good neighbour, trim ya bush.”
The post reached more than 12,000 people, with an “overwhelmingly positive response”, Brown said.
She said a “successful and engaging campaign” such as this is an effective way to reduce complaints about overgrown hedges impeding footpaths, which frees up staff time to attend to core council business.
But a member of the public thought otherwise and went to the Advertising Standards Authority whose chair noted the complainant was concerned the advertisement was offensive.
The authority’s complaints board then considered whether the Advertising Standards Code had been breached.
As part of the self-regulatory process, advertisers have the option of amending or removing their advertising to comply with the codes.
When the complaint was received, the council removed the post and confirmed it would not be used in the future.
That might have ended the matter but momentum has gathered since coverage by The Wairarapa Times-Age, which then prompted the council to conduct a poll on social media, with a subtle shift.
“We have received considerable public support with a poll being created on a community Facebook page with people voting to ‘Bring back the bush’.
“We know people are concerned the messaging is only aimed at women but we want people to know men can trim their bush too.
“We hear it will make their house look bigger.”
Brown said it was widely known that council business can be “just downright boring” for most people so the district council tried to colour outside the lines and have a bit of fun where it could.
Although she knows their efforts are not everyone’s cup of tea.
Brown said the council “fully intended” to continue using the Trim ya Bush campaign, minus the text.
“We love walking around town hearing the Carterton community joking about their trimmed bushes,” Brown said.
