Samsung Did Not Break Rules Over Woman Running At 2am Advert

A Samsung ad criticised for showing a woman running alone at 02:00 has been cleared by the advertising watchdog.

People complained that the smart watch campaign was irresponsible for encouraging unsafe behaviour.

But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said the ads "did not encourage an unsafe practice and were not irresponsible".

Women's Running magazine editor Esther Newman said the ruling "makes people think there's nothing to worry about".

Samsung previously apologised for how the 'Night Owls' ad might have been received when it launched in April.

It showed a young woman running alone in London at night with headphones in to promote the Galaxy Watch and Buds.

The ad attracted 27 complaints to the ASA from viewers who mentioned the number of recent high-profile cases where women had been attacked in similar circumstances.

Woman's running groups and campaigners also told Radio 1 Newsbeat the ad was "unrealistic".

However, the ASA has since reviewed the ad and found it did not breach advertising rules - meaning no further action will be taken.

"We considered that running alone at night, of itself, was not likely to result in harm or injury," the watchdog said.

"Whilst we acknowledged that an attack could happen, that was outside of a person's control and it could also happen in other, everyday scenarios and at all times of the day or night."

Reclaim These Streets previously described the campaign as "tone deaf" in light of the death of 23-year-old Irish teacher Ashling Murphy, who was killed after she went for a run in January.

Reacting to the ASA ruling, Jamie Klingler, from the women's safety group, said they never thought the ad was illegal but was more "distasteful".

"The ad should not have been made and should have taken into consideration the reality that women face while trying to exercise in this country," she said.

"I would absolutely love to not have a night time curfew with my exercise. But the fact of the matter is, that's not available to me because of the epidemic of violence against women."

Esther said she "completely understands" the ASA's ruling that it is not false advertising but the issue of women's safety remains, which makes "complaints almost laughable".

"We know there are a lot of concerns out there that a lot of women feel unsafe no matter what time they go for a run," she said.

According to recent figures from the Office for National Statistics, half of all women have felt unsafe at some point walking alone in the dark.

Esther said a conversation with advertising companies should happen to discuss woman's safety and running as she believes it is a much wider issue.

Samsung said it was "fully co-operative" with the ASA's investigation into the 'Night Owls' campaign.

The tech giant previously told Radio 1 Newsbeat it never intended to "be insensitive to ongoing conversations around women's safety".

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