Sex does not always sell. Neither does violence, says a new study in the journal Psychological Bulletin. Professor of Communications at Ohio State University Brad Bushmen did a meta-analysis of 53 recent studies on advertising to see if violence and sex in an ad, or the television show in which the advert was flighted, improved brand awareness."In general, we found violent and sexual programmes, and ads with violent or sexual content, decreased advertising effectiveness," said Bushmen. He said he found almost no evidence to show they sold products.Adverts shown during violent television shows or movies were less remembered than brands advertised in non-violent media, said the study."It's not that people aren't attracted to sex and violence," said fellow researcher Robert Lull. "On the contrary, people have been attracted to sex and violence since evolutionary times."He said that, though violence and sex caught the interest, it was at the expense of surrounding content. People paid more attention to sex in the programme than to the advert in the break.Lull said if the advert included sex and violence, consumers focused on this rather than on the product advertised.Strategy director at Labstore, Sarah Britten, said South African media buyers usually did not target sex or violence."Media buyers purchase spots based on viewing figures. Sunday night movies get big audiences whether it's a romantic comedy or an action thriller."She said: "The creative ideas that have an impact are the ideas that connect with audiences on a deep emotional level and change the way we look at the world."But violence could work if it was "relevant". She said Dumb Ways to Die, an Australian rail-safety campaign, was full of extreme cartoonish violence. "The campaign targeted young, risk-taking males, and it worked."..