Day 025 - 16 Sep 94 - Page 22
1 Q. Nine milligrams of cholesterol and 4.6 grams of saturated
2 fat. Do you use the same equivalence as we do, that one
3 gramme of fat gives you nine calories?
4 A. Yes.
5
6 Q. Roughly speaking. If I have understood what you were
7 telling us yesterday, your criticism of this advertisement
8 is a specific one, namely, that it is in some sense
9 deceptive to give the saturated fat content of the french
10 fries but not that of the regular hamburger. Have I got
11 that right?
12 A. On this page of this advertisement?
13
14 Q. Yes, it is the second page.
15
16 MR. MORRIS: You are looking at a different page.
17
18 MR. RAMPTON: It is a two page advertisement, Mr. Morris. (To
19 the witness): We can go back to your letter -- I think
20 it is the best way of doing it -- of 24th April 1987.
21 I will read you out what it says. There is no need for
22 you to look it up. You can be confident I shall not
23 misread it:
24
25 "The cholesterol ad emphasizes the relatively low (29
26 milligram) cholesterol content of the regular hamburger,
27 but doesn't even mention the saturated fat content, much
28 more relevant to those with cause for concern about heart
29 disease." That is what either you or Mr. Mattox wrote on
30 24th April 1987?
31 A. Yes, sir.
32
33 Q. You maintain the validity of that criticism?
34 A. Yes, sir.
35
36 Q. Is it necessary -- you are no longer doing it, I know --
37 when you are a guardian of the public interest in the
38 Attorney General's office concerned to protect the public
39 against misleading advertisements, is it necessary to
40 retain a degree of balance and objectivity about your
41 work?
42 A. What do you mean by "balance and objectivity"?
43
44 Q. Do you recognise that people who advertise also have an
45 interest in not being beset by frivolous complaints?
46 A. Yes.
47
48 Q. Tell me then, please, Mr. Gardner, where is the emphasis
49 given to the cholesterol content of the regular hamburger?
50 A. In the same sense as earlier this morning you were
51 asking me about, or you were pointing out to me in the
52 other ad, the sodium ad, talking about one point that I
53 had to go and search for, the emphasis is in the visual,
54 the illustration, in this sense the chart, which is other
55 than text, other than the body copy; it is included in the
56 advertisement and, therefore, emphasised by McDonald's.
57 I believe I said that yesterday. Where it is is in the
58 upper right of the second page of this advertisement,
59 nutrition information. I cannot recall the text and
60 I believe Mr. Horwitz had testified that it was not, the
