Abstract:
The open family Foundation’s Roo Cull’ television advertisement, screened earlier this year, created quite a storm. It set a cat amongst the welfare pigeons, generating slanging matches between other welfare organizations and the Foundation. Open Family was charged with using offensive and objectionable imagery and adopting an ‘extremist position’; it was labelled sensationalist and was criticized for operating totally within the realm of fantasy’. Its advertisement featured men with machine guns in a 4WD ute speeding down inner-city laneways, with spotlights blazing, searching for ‘streetkids’. ‘Streetkids’ were shown huddled under piles of cardboard and garbage. The voice-over stated that in Brazil ‘vermin streetkids are being hunted and culled by vigilante death squads’. The imagery evoked a post-apocalyptic fantasy reminiscent of scenes from Bladerunner, Wake in Fright and Terminator. The Foundation’s explanation for the advertisement was that the same could happen here if enough was not done for Australia’s ‘streetkids’.
Details / PDF:
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