TikTok star Danielle Walsh has alcohol video banned by watchdog
- Published
Danielle Walsh from Belfast has more than 400,000 followers on TikTok
A Belfast influencer who drank four VK cocktails in under 90 seconds in a TikTok has had her video banned by an advertising watchdog.
Danielle Walsh has more than 400,000 followers on the platform.
A complaint made to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) called the video irresponsible as it encouraged excessive drinking and featured alcohol being served irresponsibly.
The BBC has attempted to contact Ms Walsh for comment.
The ASA said there were also questions over whether the post was identifiable as an advert.
In their ruling, they said the TikToker should ensure future videos do not encourage excessive alcohol consumption.
Ms Walsh has gone viral online for videos showing her consuming alcoholic drinks, at home before going out- or pre-drinking. She has accumulated more than 10.4m likes on TikTok.
The videos often show Ms Walsh free pouring spirits and other alcoholic drinks into a glass before she quickly drinks them.
Last year, she went to Liverpool to interview Eurovision acts over non-alcoholic cocktails.
What was the complained video about?
The ASA said a video posted to Ms Walsh's account in October 2023 showed her standing behind a bar with a row of glasses in front while music played.
Beginning the video, she said: "So for pres [sic] tonight, let me show you what we're drinking. We're going to do four in one, because we're getting lit tonight."
She then poured different flavours of the VK alcopop into glasses before adding spirits such as vodka, peach schnapps, Amaretto and a whiskey liqueur, which were free poured.
Before quickly drinking each of the four cocktails, she said: "Let's try it."
Danielle Walsh swapped the cocktails for mocktails while speaking to Serbia's Eurovision entry Luke Black last year
The recipes for each cocktail were featured on screen as they were made, including the cocktail names, ingredients and the VK logo.
The video caption featured a number of hashtags, including #forprestonight, #vk and #letsgetlit - but there was no disclosure the video was an advertisement.
What did VK, Danielle Walsh and TikTok say?
In response to the ASA, Global Brands Ltd and VK said they provided Ms Walsh with the drinks in return for promotion on her TikTok.
It asked Ms Walsh to create a series of videos creating and consuming the cocktails, rather than one video.
It had also asked the products to be promoted in a responsible way and stated the videos be pre-approved.
However, it said, Ms Walsh published the videos without final approval and it later asked Ms Walsh's agent to remove the video several times but this did not happen.
The complained video was posted on Ms Walsh's TikTok video last year
Ms Walsh said VK did not pay her for the post, but she said she would remove the video while it was being investigated.
A response from TikTok stated the promotion of alcohol was banned on their platform and the video had been deleted by the creator.
What was the ASA's response?
Two complaints were made to the ASA over the videos - one regarding the excessive consumption of alcohol, and one about whether the video was easily identified as an advertisement.
With regards to the first, the ASA found Ms Walsh's video had encouraged excessive drinking by using the phrase "let's get lit" and that all four cocktails had been consumed in under 90 seconds.
It also found alcohol was handled and served irresponsibly due to the lack of mixer - non-alcoholic drink - in each cocktail and so the complaint was upheld.
The ASA also said while it noted Ms Walsh said she had not been paid to create the video, the fact VK provided the products was considered "constituted payment".
It said the images of the recipes and the small VK hashtag in the caption did not clearly show the video was an advertisement. The second complaint was also upheld.
Alcopops, like VK, are sweetened alcoholic drinks designed to taste like soft drinks
In its ruling, the ASA said the video must not appear again in its current form, and that future advertisements should be clearly marked.
It also told both VK and Ms Walsh their future ads should not "encourage excessive consumption of alcohol, or feature alcohol being served irresponsibly."
- Published9 January
- Published22 September 2023
