Seven
complaints
over
a
billboard
featuring
Britney
Spears
climbing
out
of
a
car
with
her
private
parts
covered
by
large
blue
knickers
has
been
upheld
by
the
Advertising
Standards
Authority.
The
billboard
for
Sky
TV
carried
the
headline:
Something
Everyone
Wants
To
See.
One
of
the
complainants,
A.
Harper,
said
the
billboard
was
offensive
with
"a
huge
picture
of
Britney
Spears
with
her
legs
spread
eagled,
the
camera
angle
looking
up
her
skirt,
and
a
drawing
of
underwear
covering
her
private
parts."
The
complainant
said
the
picture
was
crude
and
represented
women
as
sex
objects.
The
chairman
of
the
authority
ruled
the
complaints
fell
under
the
principle
that
advertisements
should
not
use
sex
appeal
in
a
manner
exploitative
and
degrading
to
sell
products.
Lawyers
for
Sky
and
its
advertising
agency
DDB
New
Zealand
said
it
appeared
the
seven
complainants
were
unaware
Spears
had
been
pictured
in
Hollywood
last
year
getting
out
of
a
car
wearing
a
miniskirt
and
no
knickers.
The
picture
caused
frenzy
and
"there
is
little
doubt
Ms
Spears
did
all
this
deliberately
-
she
is
a
person
who
does
outlandish
things
for
publicity.
The
object
of
the
billboard,
the
lawyers
said,
was
to
use
the
picture
to
"say
people
wouldn't
want
to
see
Britney's
bits'
(hence
the
knickers
cover-up)
but
there
was
something
they
would
want
to
see
on
Sky."
The
lawyers
said
the
billboard
was
not
outside
the
rules
governing
such
advertising.
"There
will
always
be
advertisements
which
offend
some
people
and
it
is
accepted
that
each
of
the
seven
complainants
has
been
offended.
"However,
there
will
be
many
people
in
Auckland
who
have
seen
the
billboard
and
have
known
the
background
and
are
not
offended."
The
majority
of
the
board
said
the
use
of
large
cartoon-type
knickers
to
"censor" the
actual
photo
used
imagery
with
"sexual
overtones
in
a
manner
which
exploited
and
degraded
women