Child abuse no joking matter

The Brisbane Times calls it a sick joke from the father of the bride.

The television commercial, which airs tonight, shows the father of a bride making a humorous wedding speech. Halfway through the ad he says: “I remember the first words that I ever said to her after sex – ‘Don’t tell Mum.’ “

“If only it was this easy to get over child abuse,” says the voiceover, over the laughter heard in the background.

 

Pictures will almost always carry a stronger message than the words.

The message is a very serious one and I watched the video of the ad with horror because the seriousness of the words in the voiceover were contradicted not just by the father’s speech but by the pictures – the expressions on the face of his daughter and the laughter in the background suggest child abuse is a laughing matter.

It’s not just a sick joke, it’s a sick advertisement.