‘Out here in Rang-ee-ora’ creates complaint

A Canterbury car dealership’s radio advertisement has been pulled due to the mispronunciation of a te reo Ma¯ ori place name.

It followed a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about Rangiora Toyota’s long-running radio advertisement.

A summary of the ASA Complaints Board’s decision said the mispronunciation of ‘‘Rangiora’’ – pronounced ‘‘Rang–ee-ora’’ in the radio jingle – was disrespectful and showed a lack of knowledge of Ma¯ ori language. Rangiora should be pronounced ‘‘Ra-ngi-o-ra’’.

The radio ad, which had been played on air for five years, included a jingle with the incorrect pronunciation at the beginning and end. The word Rangiora was said twice more in the body of the ad, but pronounced correctly.

The advertiser defended the complaint, saying it was difficult to change the jingle and consistency was extremely important.

An agency on behalf of the advertiser said: ‘‘[The] jingle is an integral part of their marketing, in the form it is in now, and as far as the pronunciation of Rangiora and how it resonates with the listener. To change the commercial would be a nightmare.’’

It said the most people in the area pronounced Rangiora as ‘‘Rang–ee-ora’’ . The correct pronunciation in the voiceover was ‘‘a nice compromise’’.

The ASA Complaints Board unanimously agreed the mispronunciation of a Ma¯ori place name caused harm to the language and was likely to offend consumers.

‘‘Te reo Ma¯ ori is an official language of New Zealand and should be pronounced correctly in a broadcast environment.’’