Sean Lennon defends car advertisement

LONDON, March 6 (UPI) -- Sean Lennon, son of the late British singer John Lennon, says money was not the reason footage of his father was used in a car advertisement.

Lennon, 34, said via the social networking service Twitter, the decision to allow footage of the Beatles star to be used in an ad for the French firm Citroen was meant to keep his father "out there in the world," the BBC reported Friday.

"Having just seen (the) ad I realize why people are mad," Lennon said on Twitter. "But (the) intention was not financial."

Yoko One, widow of John Lennon, allowed the interview footage to be used in the TV advertisement.

Sean Lennon, whose father died in 1980, said the advertisement for the Citroen DS3 helped expose younger viewers to his famous father.

"Not many things as effective as TV," he said on Twitter.

The BBC said the Citroen advertisement first aired on Feb. 14.