TV NETWORK CRITICISED OVER 'THREATENING' CSI:NY ADS

British TV network CHANNEL FIVE has been forced to withdraw "offensive" and "threatening" advertising for American crime drama CSI:NY.

The London-based channel mailed thousands of fake dossiers including images of murder victims and weapons and an email suggesting the recipient was being stalked by a serial killer to promote the launch of the GARY SINISE-starring show.

After a flurry of complaints, the ADVERTISING STANDARDS AUTHORITY (ASA) demanded Five cease promotion of CSI:NY.

Five admitted they had received over 100 complaints, saying, "In light of the efforts we have made to make the nature of the contents so transparent we are surprised a very small minority of recipients have mistaken it as anything else.

"Everyone who was sent this promotion has expressed an interest in receiving details about this particular genre of programming on various websites. We have also received emails and calls from recipients praising the originality and imagination of the campaign."