ASA ruling highlights UK/US endorsement divide

The ASA rejected a Colgate Total ad because it found that using a nurse in uniform who uses the phrase "As a nurse I keep people healthy by fighting bacteria" while on-screen text stated "Representation of nurse" suggested that the nursing profession generally endorsed the use of Total.  This is consistent with general EU treatment of health-type claims--individual endorsements are often not allowed and only approved bodies can endorse, something US advertisers might find surprising.

While I was writing this post--between the time I found the ad & the time clicked the embed link--ColgateUK made the video private.  I found it interesting that the comments I read before the page disappeared expressed skepticism about the ad because of the onscreen disclosures that the actress wasn't really a nurse throughout the ad; perhaps Colgate was pushing the boundaries of what UK consumers are willing to accept as well as those of the ASA.