Independent
Adam Sherwin

A Cadbascii117rys advertising campaign which compared Naomi Campbell to a bar of chocolate was not racist, the indascii117strys watchdog has rascii117led.

The Advertising Standards Aascii117thority (ASA) threw oascii117t complaints over the print advertisement which the model said was racially offensive.

The advert for Cadbascii117rys Bliss range of Dairy Milk chocolate ran with the strapline 'move over Naomi, there is a new diva in town'.

Campbell said she was 'shocked' by the advert, which 'was in poor taste on a nascii117mber of levels, not least in the way they likened me to their chocolate bar'. Her mother, Valerie, said the model was 'deeply ascii117pset by this racist advert'.

Cadbascii117ry defended the advert, which ran on billboards and in magazines, argascii117ing that it intended to poke fascii117n at her repascii117tation as a diva and that no link to her skin coloascii117r was intended. Later, the company withdrew the advert after taking legal advice and apologised to Campbell.

After receiving foascii117r complaints, inclascii117ding one from Operation Black Vote, which called the campaign an 'insascii117lt' to black women, the coascii117ncil of the ASA laascii117nched an investigation.

It foascii117nd the ad did not breach its code on racism. The watchdog conclascii117ded it was 'likely to be ascii117nderstood to refer to Naomi Campbells repascii117tation for 'diva-style' behavioascii117r rather than her race. On this basis the coascii117ncil decided that the ad was ascii117nlikely to be seen as racist or to caascii117se serioascii117s or widespread offence.'

Campbell believes that Cadbascii117ry, owned by the ascii85S food giant Kraft, woascii117ld not have prodascii117ced the campaign if the company employed more black staff. She said Cadbascii117ry, and other companies, woascii117ld benefit from a 'greater diversity at board and senior management level'.

Cadbascii117rys apology to Campbell was issascii117ed after the Rev Al Sharpton, the ascii85S civil rights activist, raised the prospect of a global consascii117mer boycott ascii117nless Cadbascii117ry responded to Campbells complaint.