The tedious spat between the Labour party and the Conservatives over the Rishi Sunak ‘rolled eyes and poor pint’ deepfake did not surprise in the sense that it’s a conventional political exchange with all the value of two bald men fighting over a comb.Neither were we taken aback by the epic hy…

The recent Conservative party retention of Uxbridge and Ruislip was generally attributed to their anti-ULEZ campaign. The campaign took many forms; one of the most significant was the imaginatively named ‘Stop Ulez Times,’ which looks like doing what it said on its ‘tin’: stopping ULEZ. It als…

This note sets out our views on the issue that has become something of an online debate after our tweet that we regarded the Lib Dem letter to voters in Somerton and Frome as a ‘terrible’ campaign.  To those who may have missed this edifying exchange, a reference to the campaign material…

We’ve had a letter published in The Times today. For those without a subscription you can read it below. “Sir,  Daniel Finkelstein’s article “Divisive political ads are just getting started” (Apr 19)  was a heart-warming read for  those of us who have spent years campaigning for the …

Recent Labour party advertising, in particular – to paraphrase – Rishi Sunak protects paedophiles from prison – has attracted much commentary and most of it focused on the subject matter of child sexual assault, the ‘ad hominem’ nature of the approach, its credibility and the disse…

Generative AI is already having a profound and lasting effect on the advertising industry and political advertising is by no means exempt. My outlook about its impact on “normal” advertising is positive. The possibilities are exciting. But I am filled with total dread about what’s to come as t…

No prizes for the correct answer. Perhaps this shabby impersonation of a respected local paper is no surprise: for decades, politicians have been ripping off their local news services and burying their names in tiny type under a heap of dubious or outright untrue claims while wrapping themselve…

We held a parliamentary event with the APPG Compassion In Politics this week titled “Honesty in politics. What is it and how do we get it?”. Taking part in the panel discussion was Debbie Abrahams MP, Gina Miller, Jennifer Nadel and Lord Puttnam who joined virtually. You can listen to Lord P…

UK politics is suffering from a dishonesty crisis. Repeated mistruths and misrepresentations have led to the corruption of standards and the withering of basic ethics and honesty. This in turn has fuelled the escalating disengagement of the public from the political process.This panel discussion wil…

The tweet from the Conservative party (tweets are subject to regulation for most advertisers, incidentally), which includes the claim that ‘Labour are backing the strikers’ is the kind of unfounded assertion that wouldn’t survive in a commercial arena but which continues to be permitted in thi…

Misleading political ads that aren’t deemed electoral are in the scope of the ASA. So we’ve decided to complain about this one. The fact we can highlights the gaping hole in regulation for electoral ads which you can’t complain to anyone about! You can read it below. We’ll keep you posted as t…

Probably not the best advertising in the world, ‘greenwashing’ – deceptive environmental marketing – is very much in the regulators’ sights. Only recently, the ASA have ruled against Unilever, Tesco and Innocent Drinks, no less. And the government’s own statutory authority the Competition an…