Thai newspapers are not for the faint-hearted – gross front pages showing accident victims torn apart and blood all over are the order of the day. The reason being there’s a market appreciating violence.

But what about the essentially more subtle handling of violence per se? That’s why this ad below (click to enlarge) can probably only appear in Thailand: “If your boy is getting anally raped by his teacher, we’ll uncover the truth.”

Let’s play “Where’s Waldo being violated?” commented advertising copywriter, Copyranter. “Bangkok daily newspaper Prachachat says that they “see through the truth”. Pretty disturbing visual, although it is Thailand.

Says Copyranter: “That’s one way to advertise your journalistic chops. But I want a full investigation! Is the boy doing it for a better grade? Is safe sex taught in this school’s health class? And why is the playground slide so damn rusty?”

Adds Gawker: “So, here is how a Thai newspaper promotes itself, with an ad showing – and I’m no expert, but – a teacher sodomizing some kid, it looks like? Tagline: See Through the Truth. Ummm … sure, whatever you guys want.”

Or as a commenter on Gawker writes: “A pretty accurate representation of the reporter-editor relationship.”

Can’t show a nipple in Thailand. But sodomising a schoolboy, hey it’s paedophiles’ haven.

This post was originally published on Absolutely Bangkok in July 2010.