Next stop, controversy for the Long Island Rail Road. The commuter line has taken heat for bold advertising on trains highlighting Kegel exercises.
The ad, which promotes wellness TV network Veria Living, says: “Ladies, admit it. You’re doing kegels right now.”
Veria Living said that the ads were intended to start meaningful conversations.
“As part of our Random Acts Of Wellness campaign, we created a series of six ads with the goal of getting people engaged in thinking and talking about a number of health and wellness topics in new ways," said Michael Snyder, Chief Marketing Officer for Veria Living. "We chose placement on the LIRR as a way to catch commuters on their way to and from work, grab their attention and start meaningful conversations in the workplace and at home.”
While some commuters have expressed concern and outrage, Twitter was filled with mixed responses.
“I've seen the ad and went "Hauh?” @jan_dembowski Tweeted.
“Why the outrage over LIRR ad featuring ref to Kegels?” @KaisaAjaye Tweeted. “Its a pelvic floor exercise. Men do them; we all do them so we don't wet our pants.”
MTA spokesperson Aaron Donovan said the ads will come down next week after a four-week run.
"As a public agency, we’re not at liberty to pick and choose what ads we carry based on content,” Donovan said. “Provided that an ad adheres to our basic advertising standards, it must be posted."
The MTA said it has an ad standard that prohibits an ad that “depicts or describes in a patently offensive manner sexual or execretory activities so as to satisfy the definition of obscene material” contained in NY Penal Law 235.00. This ad doesn’t “describe” a “sexual activity.”
"Even assuming that a kegel exercise is a 'sexual activity,' the ad doesn’t describe kegel exercises at all, let alone in a 'patently offensive way,'" the MTA said.
Come Monday, those ads will be gone.
