Sadly, we have arrived at a place in our culture where there is no longer a place for a pun or a joke. The latest demonstration of this cultural shift is the uproar which arose as a result of a t-shirt JCPenney is selling which reads, "I'm too pretty to do homework so my brother has to do it." Oh sure, buried in that statement is the not too subtle jab that pretty girls are stupid or, conversely, they are so hot they can get away with whatever they choose. But, seriously. what girl hasn't uttered that in jest at one point or another?
The trouble is when a brand says it, the entire world is watching. And while the statement may, on it's own and said one to one, be rather innocuous, when it has the heft of a brand like JCPenney behind it, it's bound to draw fire from the naysayers.
Currently, the brand is putting out fires on Twitter and Facebook. For once, we'd love to see a brand simply stand up and say, "Can't anyone take a joke any more?" Alas, given the current reactionary state of current culture, that would be akin to brand suicide. So sucking it up and apologizing is really the only way to go.
- A woman's boobs are too big for a Jersey Shore poster. The bus shelter poster has been deemed in breach of standards by the Advertising Standards Bureau.
- If this is Burger King's new version of selling hamburgers, we want the King back! Oh wait, it's just Brazil.
- In case you missed the episodic The Inside Experience from Intel and Toshiba featuring Emmy Rossum, you can view all the episodes in their entirety at 8PM September 6 here.
- Domino's Pizza goes to the moon.
- Check out an interview with Steve Hall in this new book from Jim Kukral.
Wait, what? He just left! And now he's back? What the hell are we talking about? Sony's fictional VP Kevin Butler who recently left to take a job at Economy Flooring. Well, now he's back and ready to take part in the brand's new Long Live Play campaign.
The campaign reiterates a new, lower price for the PS3 as well as sets up the brand for a new position on gaming: full-on, no holds barred, unadulterated play.
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We guess one must feel at least a little bit nostalgic for a time when things were simpler, purer and not so...processed when viewing this new work from Chipotle which rails against industrial farming's treatment of pigs. The work is accompanied by a Willie Nelson cover of Coldplay's The Scientist.
In the two minute video which will be shown in 5,700 movie theaters, the story of a pig farmer is told. After having second thoughts over his farming practices, he returns to his roots and unboxes, as it were, his pigs and, one assumes, kills them in a more humane manner.
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Want a run down on dancing styles for the last 100 years? Look no further than this promotional video for the opening of Westfield Stratford City, a new mall in East London. Shot over four days with hundreds of costume changes, the work, from The Viral Factory, was directed by Jake Lunt and is supported by music arranged by Oscar nominated Tristin Norwell.
Give it a look. We're sure you'll spot your favorite dance move in there somewhere.
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Well here's an interesting way to promote a dating event. Singapore blogger Peggy Heng, a model and celebrity blogger of sorts in the city, created a four minute video about the trials and tribulations of dating. The video progresses to a scene in which Heng in about to give a face painted man a blow job but just before she begins, she stops, turns to the camera and says, "But that is not the way to solve relationship problems."
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Now this is funny! It's always a crap shoot when a brand selects a celebrity to represent it in an ad campaign. Mostly because it's never believable the celebrity would actually purchase the product or service they're representing. Not that that's any different with Kohl's and Jennifer Lopez but they way these new McCann Erickson-created Kohl's commercials link Lopez and the brand, it's mostly irrelevant.
The campaign, promoting new clothing lines from Lopez and Marc Anthony was conceived prior to the couple's split. In one commercial, Lopez is blocked by a security guard from entering Kohl's headquarters because he doesn't know who she is. Thankfully Lopez doesn't throw the predictable celebrity hissy fit, rather subtly tries to remind the guard of her fame. It doesn't work. But the low key humor does.
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