The advertisement didn't generate any calls. But Newbold feared an anti-fishing billboard would.

"I just knew we'd have a lot of sportsmen calling. I just didn't want to deal with it," he said, adding that the delivery of the message is a little harsh. "I like to fish. I'm a sportsman. But I don't waste it. We use them and filet them."

New York-based Viacom Outdoors also rejected the design. Calls to their offices were not returned. The company had previously approved and posted the design in August in the coastal city of Galveston, Texas. But after a week, the company pulled it down because of complaints from local drivers.

Viacom Outdoors spokesman Jeremy Murphy told Reuters that the billboard was taken down as part of the company's policy to conform with local community standards.

Billboard companies Young Electric Sign Co. and Saunders Outdoor Advertising said they had to reject PETA because all their billboard spots were occupied, while RTM Media told PETA it no longer accepts billboards in Utah. Reagan Outdoor Advertising did not return calls from the Deseret Morning News.

Robertson said most people are shocked and even horrified when they first see the billboard, but he hopes it would make them think about it again when they see a fish with a hook through its mouth.

"This billboard does not show anything different than anglers have seen," she said. "If people wouldn't hook the family dog through the lip, they shouldn't hook a fish either."

Randy Radant, aquatic section chief for Utah Division of Wildlife Services, said fishing is a tradition to many Utahns and they would not have taken the billboard lightly. He disagreed that the angling is inhumane.

"We're not convinced that the fish are necessarily in a painful experience," he said, adding there is not enough scientific material to support the claim.

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E-mail: astowell@desnews.com