KATHRYN THOMAS ought to lighten up. We don't think the No Frontiers presenter did too badly out of the nixer for Eircom Broadband. Nor by the same token do we think she should be criticised merely for parlaying her media pro"le into an extra pay packet by selling the country on whatever Eircom was peddling. And we're pretty sure that Eircom wasn't unhappy to have its broadband for slow learners smoothed over by a familiar face.

But surely if you're going to take money for promoting a particular company you're stuck with them. The advertiser is lifted by the trust the public has in your persona; you are tied to the quality . . . or lack thereof . . . of the product you've endorsed.

In other words, you've made yourself fair game, right?

Not so. After Magnet Networks slagged off that "blonde girl from a travel show" for promoting what it claimed was an inferior product, Thomas sent a solicitor's letter to the ASAI, which upheld her complaint. No living person, it seems, can be referenced in marketing communications without their permission.

So if you've ever been spoofed by Gift Grub without permission and the parody was used to market Today FM or the CDs, sue away, apparently.

FAERY TALE

THE bodymodified elf thing. It's not cute. It's just creepy.

ADS LOVE YOUTUBE

EAGLE-EYED colleague Una spotted a very cool ad for a Norwegian utility that is a pretty darned good YouTubeish spoof: http: //unarocks. blogspot. com/2007/ 07/advertising-made-in-form-ofyoutube. html

YOUTUBE LOVES ADS

SUMMER wish list: Irish ad agencies to regularly post their work to YouTube. What's the harm?

PUBLIUS is taking the rest of the summer off, but will have a special guest ranter for the month of August.

Have a good summer, kids.

TIPS, BRIBES & ABUSE welcome. . . for September. . . at rdelevan@tribune. ie