Sinn Féin ran ‘misleading’ advert for 1916 exhibition

Sinn Féin should have made it clear that its Revolution 1916 exhibition in Dublin also included material on the H-Block hunger strikers, the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland (ASAI) has said.

The ASAI, which is the watchdog for the advertising industry in Ireland, upheld three complaints from the public who expressed surprise that the Revolution 1916 exhibition in the Ambassador Theatre included references to the hunger strikes of 1980-1981.

It held that an advertisement which appeared in newspapers and online was misleading under the terms of the ASAI advertising code and should not be run in the same format again.

It also held it breached the code in that advertisers “ should not exploit the credulity, inexperience or lack of knowledge of consumers”.

Three customers who had attended the exhibition complained that the original advertisement for it included no reference to the hunger strikers. They felt the inclusion of the hunger strikers in an exhibition about the Easter Rising was inappropriate.

Complaints committee

The ASAI’s complaints committee stated the title of the exhibition would leave people to conclude that the exhibition was just about the events of the Easter Rising.

The newspaper and online advertisement described Revolution 1916 as a “must-see exhibition”. It stated that it would examine previous armed rebellions against British rule, the 1918 general election and the first Dáil of January 1919, but did not mention the hunger strikers or that the exhibition is organised by Sinn Féin.

The committee stated the referencing to “specific events from modern day history” should have been included in the advertisements so an informed choice could be made as to whether or not a person wanted to attend it.

The committee, however, did not uphold a complaint that the original advertisement contained no reference to Sinn Féin’s involvement in the project.

One person said he only realised Sinn Féin was involved when he bought a commemorative programme at the event.

In response the ASAI noted that a reference to Sinn Féin was included in the “about us” information on the exhibition website.

It stated Ireland 1916 Commemorations Ltd, the company which hosted the exhibition, had been set up to operate the Sinn Féin centenary programme.

The committee also held that it was not normal practice to include the backers of an exhibition in third-party advertising though that might lead to concerns that a consumer could be attending an event set up by a political party.