Bartle Bogle Hegarty, which created the ad, claimed the phrase "Street crime is up again" was simply a play on words, designed to catch viewer's attention.
The poster in question, featured teenage killer Katy Harris and her father Tommy back to back, was meant to imply that crime was up in Manchester's fictional 'Coronation Street', which is often referred to by viewers as "The Street", with the murder of Tommy by his daughter.
The agency also pointed out that the poster had ITV branding and because it would not appear again as the storyline had moved on, there was no need to take action.
The Advertising Standards Aurthority did not uphold the complaint because it felt consumers were likely to realise that the poster reflected a TV drama, especially because 'Coronation Street' regularly attracts of between 11m and 13m viewers.
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