Campaign Urges Connecticut Healthcare Cost Discussion

Adams Knight has created a television campaign for universal healthcare advocacy group healthcare4every1 which illustrates the apparent power some individuals and groups are using to stifle the conversation about improving healthcare in the state. There are three spots in the campaign and in each spot when an individual is about to reveal the address of the healthcare4every1 website, they are stunted by various methods.

Mischa Barton in Bebe Ad Campaign

Jenny over at Wiregirl features some of the images of Mischa Barton in here new role as bebe spokesmodel. Perhaps Marisa should become a bit more like Barton is portrayed here. See the rest of the images here.

Perlorian Brothers Direct Wacky Lottery Spots

The Perlorian Brothers, otherwise known as Ian Letts and Michael Gelfand but who actually like to be called Laszlo & Lucky Perlorian, have directed a Publicis Seattle-created spot for the Washington State Lottery. In the spot two character demonstrate, through various pratfalls, there are much easier ways to win millions of dollars. See all three spots here.

Of note, in the second spot, the crash on the bicycle was actually an on-set accident. The bmx bike was rigged to disintegrate in the air, however the performer inadvertently triggered the destruction on his high speed run-up
resulting in the accidental wipe out into the wooden ramp which became the actual spot.

Napster Offers Free, Ad-Supported Music

One would suppose the chance to listen to any music of one's choice for free might be a good thing. It certainly was (and still is) in the world of file sharing but the granddaddy of it all, Napster, is now offering free, ad-supported music. Yup. On the music service's site, 15 second video ads will be shown before listeners hear their selected tune. Up to five plays of 2 million songs can be heard for free. Then, the song can either be purchased for 99 cents of the visitor can subscribe to Napster's subscription service.

Ford Falls Prey to Brand Blather Disease

Ford, which is sponsoring the singer's summer tour, has aligned itself with Kelly Clarkson and is using her new song, Go, in a JWT Detroit-created :60. The campaign marks the switch from the company's old tagline. "Built for the road ahead" to the new and relatively meaningless tagline, "Bold moves."

There ought to be a rule for taglines. They ought to actually mean something and not be so bland they can be slapped on any brand interchangeably. "Bold moves"? I mean WTF? Are we talking about Bold detergent moving stains out of a shirt? OK, maybe Ford is makming some bold moves here but this tagline is about as descriptive as Intel's lame switch to "Leap Ahead" which sounds like some descriptor for a kangaroo daylight savings time convention. Seems Ford and JWT caught the boardroom brand blather disease.

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Art Director Offers Book to Aspiring Creatives on ebay

In what would surely be called plagiarism in any other kind of book, an art director is selling his spec book to any aspiring creative to use in getting a job. Midwest creative Craig Ferrence has placed his book up on eBay and is offering it to anyone outside the U.S. Ferrence has posted a bit of the work on the eBay site which might cause anyone who happened to see it and then see it again while interviewing a potential candidate to wonder what's up. So if you're hiring in the near future and didn't happen to see the eBay auction, we have all the work here for you to check if you think you are looking at a suspect book while interviewing someone.

Aside from that and with no need for the work, Ferrence is just out to make a buck or two from some lazy ass creative who can't muster enough creativity to build their own body of work. Of course, the whole thing could just be some weird stunt.

Newsflash: Marketer Calls Marketer A Dick

In really important news today, WOMMA's Andy Sernovitz has, reportedly, called BzzAgent CEO Dave Balter a dick. Read all about it here. It seems Sernovitz is miffed by all the publicity BzzAgent gets but Balter says that is no fault of his. It's just lazy journalists who hold BzzAgent up as the only practitioner in the space which, of course, is not true and Balter acknowledges that.. Ever since buzz marketing and word of mouth marketing started and back to the days of Justin Kirby (who seems to have disappeared off the face of the planet) there have been these in explicable tiffs among people in this space. I don't know if it's a young industry trying to define itself or the personalities of the people involved but I do know it's dumb and unproductive.

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Brokeback Mountain Parody Promotes Art Exhibit. Please Stop

Aren't we tired of Brokeback Mountain parodies and rip offs yet? Apparently, the folks at McCann Lisbon aren't and have created this Brokeback Mountain-themed commercial to promote the Lisbon appearance of CowParade, an art tour that features fiberglass cows painted by artist, designers, advertising creatives, students and the public.

Philips Bodygroom Adds An Inch to Manhood

Philips/Norelco is marketing its new Bodygroom razor by focusing on what all men want: a bigger dick. Yes, following what the porn industry has known for years, the company is promoting the razor's ability to add an "optical inch" to one's manhood by making the trimming of that area simple, painless and rewarding size-wise. Forget five bladed razors. Gillette's beat that one to death. Now, it's all about removing body hair from hard to reach places and catering to men's obsession with size. Hey, woman want cleavage enhancing bras. Men ought to have a similar weapon at their disposal as well.

New Apple Campaign Craps On PC. Yawn

Apple has just launched a new ad campaign that, once again, pits the Mac against the PC. This time, it does it with human characters who take on the mythical qualities of the PC versus Mac argument - PCs always crash, macs never do. PCs freeze all the time. PCs get viruses, Macs don't. PCs have terrible software, Macs don't. Macs are all about plug and play, PCs aren't. It's a nice campaign but if you've used both a PC and a Mac, you know full well, this is all bullshit. Each platform has its benefits and its downfalls. The campaign, though, does continue Apple's brand goal of positioning itself as the hipper alternative to the PC's staid, mass image. Apple will always be the cooler choice. It just might not always be the more popular one.