Maxim changes policy after running 'offensive' San Antonio law firm ad

Maxim's June 2014 edition that included the controversial ad from a San Antonio law firm. Maxim's June 2014 edition that included the controversial ad from a San Antonio law firm. Image 1 of / 17 Caption Close Maxim changes policy after running 'offensive' San Antonio law firm ad 1 / 17 Back to Gallery

SAN ANTONIO - A San Antonio law firm apologized for an ad that ran in the June edition of Maxim magazine portraying truck drivers as 'serial killers' after backlash from the trucking industry.

Maxim, a men's magazine with a readership of more than 2 million, called the advertisement bought by Villarreal and Begum Law Firm "offensive" and said that "new procedures are being implemented so that no such negative advertisements or editorial content will ever run in Maxim magazine," in a statement to The Trucker.

The full-page ad shows an 18-wheeler with the words "serial killer" in large red font at the top of the page. Text below the truck reads: "33,561 people died on America's highways last year. Another 2.36 million were injured. You need a law firm you can Trust. You need Experience. You need Strength. You need Villarreal & Begum..."

Villarreal and Begum Law Firm, which is based in San Antonio and has branches in McAllen and Laredo, was slammed its Facebook page and in online reviews and subsequently issued a statement on its website.

"The ad was in-artfully created and we could see how it may have caused our message to be misconstrued," read the statement. "We apologize that the wording of our ad has offended you and your family. In response to your and others' objections, we have instructed our marketing department not to use that ad in the future."

A request for comment on whether the law firm has used the ad in other publications was not immediately returned.

"Maxim is taking aggressive action to remove the aforesaid advertisement. To illustrate, the ad has been removed from its digital copy and is being replaced with facts about truckers and the trucking industry," the magazine's statement to The Trucker continues. "Maxim will show steadfast support for the very industry that carries our magazine to newsstands and readers around the world."

Alexander Begum, one of the partners in the law firm, graduated from Trinity University, according to his bio.

kparker@express-news.net

Twitter: @KoltenParker