MIAMI — A bus stop ad from gay dating site Squirt.org is taking heat from the city of Miami.
The“Non-Stop Hookups” shows two shirtless men embracing along with the site’s tagline, “Hot ’n horny hookups,” and the campaign slogan, “Non-Stop Hookups.”
According to local reports, the ads were placed near popular gay clubs and establishments in Miami, including Eros Lounge, Magnum Lounge, The Dugout, Club Azucar and Club Aqua Miami.
But local resident Marta Viciedo complained to the City about the ad’s "over sexualized" content telling Local 10 News that she didn't want to have to explain the sexual references to her seven year-old kids, and thought it was inappropriate in a public space.
Squirt maintained that the ad’s creative content went through the usual rigorous approval process. Soon after the ad went live, Toronto, Canada-based Pink Triangle Press (PTP), the operator of Squirt.org, was informed about the complaint and asked to provide updated creative without the tagline “Hot ’n Horny Hookups” and the words “Non-Stop Hookups.” PTP provided an updated version and the new creative was approved.
But in the interim the ad was vandalized, stolen and never replaced by the City.
“We always work very closely with our ad reps and locations when it comes to creative approval,” said Attila Szatmari, digital business director at PTP. “Our creative was approved, and we just want to have the same treatment as any straight sexy ad would have. Lots of straight-themed ads are as sexy as ours: look at Step up revolution, Tom Ford, Michael Kors, Guess, Viktor & Rolf and Calvin Klein ads. If these ads can be on streets across America, we don’t understand why two men embracing cannot.”
Squirt said that when asked when the updated creative would go live, its ad distributor replied that the case had become “too political” for the City of Miami to touch.
PTP has started a petition against the City on Change.org to have the ad reinstated and Is inviting people to express their opinion about the matter via social media under #adequality.
The City has also removed all of the remaining Squirt ads throughout Miami.
