Ryanair must withdraw controversial "Jab and Go" advertisement
Ryanair must withdraw a controversial advertisement featuring the slogan «Jab and Go,» which the low-cost airline had used to promote carefree vacations this coming summer following a COVID-19 vaccination. The British Advertising Standards Authority said Wednesday that Ryanair must remove the advertising slogan—which can be roughly translated as «Get vaccinated and go»—because it could mislead consumers.
The ad, which aired on television in December and January and featured 20- to 30-year-olds on summer vacation, had provoked more than 2,300 complaints - making it the third most complaints about an ad ever, according to the agency. Several viewers had called the clip "tasteless." Others had criticized Ryanair for downplaying the pandemic or implying that everyone could travel carefree on summer vacation.
However, how quickly vaccination programs will continue to progress and how long travel restrictions will have to be maintained to contain the pandemic is completely unclear - and so is the outlook for tourism. Young adults, as shown in advertisements, are also at the bottom of most vaccination program priority lists, as they are the least likely to become severely ill with Covid-19.
Ryanair said it had not made any specific claims about vaccinations and had wanted to give an optimistic view of the future. "Important contextual factors" must be considered when looking at advertising, he said. (SDA)
