SMA GOLD ON EASTENDERS?

[Dalrymps]

I probably don't know what i'm on about but i just flicked on to eastenders and during one scene there was a carton of SMA Gold on the surface in the background, it was the house of the one who has just had the baby with the ginger husband i think (not too sure cause i don't really watch it), anyway i think her baby in it is quite young...
Anyway, i was just wondering if this is allowed, i mean, isn't it like an indirect form of advertising formula for newborns? I'm not totally against formula or anything, I mix feed myself, I just think it seems like their advertising it when they shouldn't? Any thoughts on this?

"I think you do have to ask yourself what was going through the minds (and the pockets) of the person responsible for choosing the props on East Enders. "

No, I really, really dont.

I just wish you would all be honest about why you are complaining - because it offends you personally - all this other stuff being mentioned is a way of trying to legitimise your argument and claim the moral/legal/ethical high ground.

I have nothing else to add now as I can see this is one of those shape-shifting arguments where you will all ignore when it is pointed out that you have your facts wrong and simply change what your point was meant to be in the first place.....cos god forbid you actually have to come out and say that you just hate to see formula legally on screen.

Had to pop back just to agree with Jeremy.

Thats the story, basically. There are people on this post that are offended by seeing formula on telly. They will always be offended. They are not offended beccause its 'illegal' to advertise at all, its totally a personal thing and it bothers them. The links are just a smokescreen.

blimey there you are at it again carmen
might I suggest (again) that you consider the possibility that other people may have a different view from you? that you might consider trying to have a little understanding and empathy, and if that's not possible then at least a little tolerance and respect for their point of view?
rather than dismissing their concerns as a "smokescreen"
I honestly can't imagine why you think you know better about someone's opinions than they do.
respect, and tolerance. I honestly think that is the key.

Good post harpsochord. Which could be well advised and heard by many on Mn. If only.

Perhaps JV and CE could re-read the post above by Victorian Squalor, as I think you are both way off on what this debate has been about. Well, perhaps JV not so much.. but for any of you reading this that is feeling 'got at' or that it is all about BF against FF, you have predictably got on the defense and got it wrong. Those who choose to FF, nearly always, with out many exceptions on MN, feel that they are being got at by those who BF. Is not the case.

To just quote VS, as I am feeling to rotten to string a decent sentence together (evidently) .I feel this summed up exactly what I was thinking and couldnt have out it any better my self ( sorry VS for steeling your words)

Sabire, you are spot on. Great analogy (and sadly could see it happening).

More worrying than the car seat is where is Tanya's post pregnancy tummy?

Oh. Good. Lord.

The SMA is allowed to be in the scene WITH the label showing.
It is LEGAL.
NO rule, no law, not even a guideline has been breached.

So you have no legal argument.

There is no suggestion (other than a completely imagined one by some of you) to beleive this is illegal product placement, ie that a backhander was recieved.

Again, no legal argument on that front.

You can have an opinion that it is wrong or unethical, but in the absence of any law forbidding formula being used in context as a prop then all you've got is a gripe.

You feel that formula should not be shown on screen in any context. But that is YOUR issue. It makes YOU feel uncomfortable. But there are small niche groups who will be offended by absolutely anything. I know someone who complains bitterly to the TV channels any time a dog is shown in cold weather without a dog coat - it offends her. It doesn't however offend most people hence there is no rule or law in place to stop it.

So I still dont get why you are all complaining.

Maybe you want them to introduce new guidelines to prevent formula ever being on screen? If so then good luck arguing why formula is SO exceptional.

I am still awaiting clarification from anyone as to whether it is actually legal.

It's legal but I wont be trawling the internet for links to prove that.

Isn't it more the case that those claiming the BBC have broken the rules need to provide evidence for this? (They cant btw as these rules dont exist).

It seemed to be suggested that the evidence of why this was illegal was somewhere on this thread. It's not.

This suggests that product placement does go on and that it is used as a form of advertising.

And this details how the messages given by the media may affect women's feeding choices.

The Food Safety Act 1990 Article 53 includes the following definition:

""advertisement" includes any notice, circular, label, wrapper, invoice or other document, and any public announcement made orally or by any means of producing or transmitting light or sound, and "advertise" shall be construed accordingly"

There was something on the BBC's website, which I will look for later, that says they hide brand names etc as much as possible when in shot and something else about ethical guidelines etc, which suggests that in light of the recent SMA debacle they would probably do something about it if it is brought to their attention.

As for being offended wrt seeing bottle feeding/formula milk on soaps, I have no problem with this at all, though I do think that programmes such as EE should, and easily could be more careful with showing brand names with respect of the advertising/promotion laws, even if it isn't advertising.

I would expect that the replies EE/BBC will give over this issue will be that although there are no legal guidelines as it was not paid advertising they understand the situation with infant formula and as such will take more care in future. That is all I, myself ask for, that they think about what they are doing and the possible effect it could have.

It was possible not to show it or even to turn it round so the brand was not obvious, it wasn't needed to set the scene, there are bottles(full and empty), formula tins, baby accessories etc all over Tanya's house which set the scene perfectly, in the interest of the current climate with formula advertising and product placement it wouldn't be too much to ask them to take a little more care would it?

"As for being offended wrt seeing bottle feeding/formula milk on soaps, I have no problem with this at all"

Really?

There is no similar thread wrt the icandy or the bottle of Martini.

So what is this all about then?

(And fwiw I'm sure you'll all get your way, pester power works wonders. Cant see them showing formula again - I am just at a loss as to why you all want this)

The icandy and martini aren't illegal to advertise though JV. Formula milk is, and by showing the SMA EE have, maybe unwittingly, given SMA free advertising.

I know it isn't anyone saying 'use SMA' but the fact that it showed a brand of milk that is probably dead chuffed as they can't legally advertise it, is an issue!

Ok let's talk about what's "normal" then.

Yes, sadly, formula feeding is "normal" in this country. What else?

Smoking? Yes that's pretty normal - loads of doctors and nurses smoke. Do you see them doing it on Casualty? I don't think so!

Another one? Well there are hardly any ethnic minorities in some parts of the country. Does that stop them being featured in programmes that are set there? No, because the BBC wants to make sure they're well represented on TV. Nothing wrong with that, but it's not reflective of life in those areas.

The BBC is perfectly capable of using its position to portray a fairly political message over lots of things. What a shame it can't be bothered to use a little of its influence to help normalise breastfeeding.

If I had my way, they would've shown Tanya deciding to use formula rather than breastfeed in a conversation with Honey who was breastfeeding and told the facts about both of them, but I'm not the writers.

"But that is YOUR issue. It makes YOU feel uncomfortable"

You know what - this is a very common tactic used by people who are angry about breastfeeding advocacy: they refuse to see this as a political issue - which is what it is. It's about the interests of big business and the protection of the health and welfare of women and babies. They try to make out that anyone who engages in a protest against the tactics of formula manufacturers or raises concerns about the way artificial feeding is portrayed culturally, is actually just grinding a personal axe and is on a mission to denigrate women who don't breastfeed.

It stinks, it really does - I can't imagine any other activists being stigmatised and scapegoated in the same nasty, personal way that breastfeeding advocates are.

I think its very sad that so few people can see the bigger picture in relation to this issue.

Actually, Sabire, it's the fact that u feel you need to call yourself an "activist" and an "advocate" for breastfeeding, as if you're trying to stop the Vietnam war or something, that makes people stigmatise you.

I know you're saying it's all these evil cheating formula manufacturers you want to tackle and it's a political issue etc. But it does tend to have the knock on effect of making anyone who formula feeds (eg. me) feel like a thick piece of shit for doing it.

It seems you look down from your lofty position as a breastfeeder and say "There, there dear, you bottle feed if you must, you don't know any better do you? - it's not YOU I'm getting at my sweet it's those evil formula manufacturers who've sneakily put a tin of SMA in EastEnders and made you not want to breastfeed. You can't be blamed for making this appalling decision. Oh no, you're obviously as thick as two short planks anyway. But I CAN be cross with those naughty manufacturers and pretend I'm only being a caring soul with the interests of women and babies at heart."

Anyway, did we decide why Tanya needs a car seat yet?

I don't agree chardonnay, if sabire had said she was a baby feeding campaigner would that have sounded any better??

As has already been mentioned, the point of all this regulation wrt formula milk and the way maufacturers are allowed to pray on vulnerable new mums (which most new mums are) is that the mums who do formula feed have decided to make this decision fo themselves rather than based on some advertising slogan.

That advertising obviously doesn't matter anywhere near as much to mums who breastfeed, same goes for the fact that formula companies are allowed to put whatever they want in their milk to make it sell better, but really isn't to the benefit of the babies drinking it, is appalling IMO but it's the 'breastfeeding advocates' that seem to feel strongest about it, strange that.

This thread is really funny. Obviously EE were wrong to have used SMA Gold and I do feel a little annoyed myself. But some of these posts are laughable some of you obviously missed your vocation as scriptwriters

This has gone from bad to worse. I dont feel 'got at' because ive bf and ff but i can completely see why many ff mums would. In fact a poor girl yesterday posted a message saying people on here have basically made her feel like shit mother for ff. Thats how it looks im afraid and this is from someone who has often observed feeding threads but doesnt join in.

Its nothing to do with being a bf advocate. I consider myself a bf advocate, but this stuff on here is all political. Im sorry but i feel you all will have the opposite effect if trying to encourage bf.

This EE business is beyond a joke now. All this talk of the milk being supposedly advertised and illegal and unethical, honestly you would think some poor child had been neglected in the making of the show or an animal being neglected. Now that's unethical!!

Im not being funny but can you all really get so worked up about this? Ok so SMA have got a bit of free publicity and afew more customers but its hardly the end of the world is it??!

I tell you what some of you must be a barrel of laughs in real life

JV: "I just wish you would all be honest about why you are complaining - because it offends you personally - all this other stuff being mentioned is a way of trying to legitimise your argument and claim the moral/legal/ethical high ground."

How lovely for you to be able to correct others on what they really are thinking.

I used to work for a very well known chocolate company. It used to pay to place it's products on TV programmes. Or otherwise use its friendly contacts to engineer the same.

Now that there is a junk food TV advertising ban during kid's scheduled programmes to protect kids, how would you feel if branded chocolate bars started popping up in kid's programmes quite blatantly in shot? All terribly innocently of course...

Campaigner? No not really. Still makes her sound like an anti war protester.

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