Ad Council Launches Creative eNewsletter

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The Ad Council just hopped aboard the online clue train and started its own e-newsletter, the Ad Council Creative.

It's pretty neat, actually. What it will do is showcase creative from ad agencies that donated time and effort to building campaigns for the Ad Council. The first three on the list include an eco campaign by DraftFCB, a child abuse campaign by Ogilvy & Mather, and a domestic violence series by McCann Erickson.

We'll probably be subscribing to keep ourselves updated on the wacky hijinks of cause advertising (there are many!).

by Angela Natividad    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Cause, Good, Online



Jarvik Pulled, HBO Subverts, Obay Continues, L'Oreal Does Second Life

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- Pfizer has pulled its long-ish running commercial featuring Jarvik heart inventor Robert Jarvik because he was portrayed as a doctor when, in fact, he's not.

- HBO is at it again with quirky videos promoting their shows. These new BBDO-created videos show two stories twice with second ending the more daring one, representative of stories you might see on HBO.

more »

by Steve Hall    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Cable, Online, Policy, Social



If Anyone Can Compel You to Go Satellite, It's Annie Wilkes

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"Watching anything but DIRECTV? Now, that would be painful," croons the Misery antagonist with a trademark psychotic expression.

Brrr. Oddly though, we'd pick an Annie revival over a sad dancing Colonel or a necromanced Orville Redenbacher.

The ad was put together by Deutsch, LA.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Celebrity, Commercials, Strange, Television



It's Holocaust Awareness Week, and Anne Frank is Not Fiction

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This is one of those well-tempered print ads that forces you to really look before you know what's going on. Most people will probably miss the point while rushing by on the subway, but those that catch it might go, "Hrm" and bring it up in random bar conversation. (That's totally okay though, because MTV will probably catch the speed racers with this.)

Put together by TDA Advertising & Design out of Boulder for Hillel Colorado, the ad promotes Holocaust Awareness Week (which is NOW!). It features a copy of The Diary of Anne Frank, marked "Fiction" with a library label. The copy: "Millions of Americans don't believe there was a Holocaust."

Alternatively, maybe a few library aids just never read Anne Frank. (In which case, they can't have grown up in the western public school system. Anne's plight -- in print and as a Fox 20th Century Studio Classic -- was resolutely hammered into our 10-year-old minds and souls).

by Angela Natividad    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Cause, Events, Good, Magazine, Poster



Got 7 Minutes to Blow on a Cigar Ad?

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Neither do we. But this one -- for CAO Cigars -- has subtitles and guys that could be samurais in down season. That is, if you go by the clothes and otherwise fail to observe that they bitch about smoking all day and sleep sitting up.

The spot has something to do with CAO guys fighting a smoking ban so they can attend Chicago's Big Smoke in April.

Whenever you're finished trying to laugh at that, see Hitler Gets Banned for some quality subtitled commercial appropriation.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Bad, Events, Online, Video



'Moment of Truth' Hits Moment of Idiotic Ridiculousness

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Has anyone watched FOX's The Moment of Truth? Well, of course you have. You and 20 million others. It's a good show for sure but is anyone else getting sick of the continued over hype and warnings from host Mark Walberg that, OMFG, some of these truths might be, OMFG, too hard for people to take? WTF? It's the entire point of the show! To continually hype it as if no one's smart enough to know exactly what's going on is degrading to people's intelligence.

more »

by Steve Hall    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Bad, Good, Opinion, Television



Renault Espace Ad Spawns More WTFness

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Oh. OK. Now we get it. The Renault Espace is soooooooooooooooo spacious it takes 70 years to to climb into it and enjoy all it has to offer before exiting. WTF? So, in 70 years we are to believe the car hasn't changed at all from exposure to the elements? The trees haven't grown at all? The condition of the road hasn't changed?

Please. Tell us we are completely misunderstanding this commercial and there's a joke we aren't getting because if we have it right, it's one of the lamest ads we've ever seen. Unless, of course, it's local Italian (where the ad cam from) humor escapes our admittedly lame, very unworldly American sensibilities.

by Steve Hall    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Bad, Commercials, Strange



Facebook Traffic Declines, Time Spent Increases

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Perhaps it's application fatigue. Perhaps it's incessant friend request. Perhaps it's social media overload but according to Hitwise, traffic to Facebook is down 27 percent for the week ending February 23 from a high during the holidays.

Hitwise acknowledges this could be a seasonal trend citing traffic increases during both the Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks due to a significant portion of Facebook's users (40 percent 18-24) being out of school and having more time to use the site.

more »

by Steve Hall    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Online, Opinion, Research, Social



Big Ass McDonald's Coffee Ad Makes Smart Use of White Space

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We're a big fan of white space. We hate ads that cram so much shit into available space under the misguided belief people will actually read the shit. Car dealers ads immediately come to mind as do many billboards whose creators seem to believe every one is a speed reader and blessed with binoculars for eyes.

So whenever we see an ad that gleefully makes use of white space, we can't help but love it. Especially when it actually serves the intended message as does this Swedish McDonald's ad which promotes the chains ginormous coffee. Thank you, DDB Stockholm for giving us our fix.

by Steve Hall    Feb-26-08    
Topic: Brands, Good, Magazine



No Nice!: Genuine Guerrilla.

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To a fault, even. More here and here.

We've got no idea what No Nice! is. But based on the occasional martini accompanying the brand, we figure -- hope, at least -- it can get you drunk.

The, uh, campaign went down in Rome, Milan and Turin, Italy. The brand: No Nice. The "branded" vehicles: dirty cars parked on the streets.

Weeeeak.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-25-08    
Topic: Bad, Brands, Guerilla, Strange