Friday, September 30, 2011

9348: Exposing One’s Meat.


Adweek hack Robert Klara’s latest excrement exposition highlights lunch meat advertising—an appropriate subject from a meathead.

9347: Coke Zero Zucks.


This Coke Zero video has zero concept and less than zero production values. Rating: Zero Stars.

9346: Just Tsu It.


The New York Daily News spotlighted an innovator who will likely become the subject matter for an upcoming BHM Black inventors ad.

Aaron Henry of Harlem invents TsuRag, a traditional 'do-rag made with Velcro to avoid forehead marks

By Michael J. Feeney, Daily News Staff Writer

Harlem’s Aaron Henry was tired of wearing a ‘do-rag that left him with headaches and marks on his forehead, commonly created by tying the strings too tightly.

So Henry, 34, created the “stringless ‘do-rag,” which now uses snag-free Velcro to secure it.

He calls his creation the TsuRag.

“My goal with the TsuRag was to come up with a new way to maintain your hair,” Henry told the Daily News of the rag.

But besides maintaining the hair, he wants to improve the way ‘do-rag users feel.

“I want them to feel a sense of relief,” he said, recalling how the traditional ‘do-rag will leave the identations across the forehead.

His new rag, he says, leaves no marks and can be worn right up until the moment before a big meeting or interview.

It also, for the first time, gives a function to the tail that hangs from the back of a traditional ‘do-rag. That tail, which has Velcro on it, adds extra support to keep the TsuRag on.

“I want them to put it on and know that it’s doing its job without compromising their appearance,” said Henry, who grew up on W. 141st St. near Lenox Ave. “It’s truly designed to maintain your ‘do.”

The TsuRag officially launches Friday and will be sold online at TsuRag.com. Henry has already developed a following among kids and motorcylists, who he says have flocked to his new creation.

‘Do-rags, or wave caps, have long been popular in the black community. Many wear them for fashion, often under a baseball cap, and others wear it to keep their hair down to create a wavy look.

Henry said he came up with the name TsuRag because he wanted to design a ‘do-rag that could create “tsunami waves.”

Henry said he first started playing around with the idea of his creation in December after reading online comments from fellow “wavers” about their gripes with the traditional ‘do-rag.

It wasn’t until three months ago that he finally had a product.

“I knew I was on to something,” said Henry of the TsuRag, which is made with four-way stretch Spandex. “I envision my rag being the rag of choice.”

But perhaps Henry’s biggest goal with the TsuRag is to “eliminate all the [negative] stereotypes associated with the ‘do-rag.”

And he even hopes the TsuRag, which he describes as durable and high-end, will be accepted headgear in nightclubs.

“It’s a rag that can be worn with any hairstyle,” he said, adding he will be creating a women’s line of rags called Tsu-She. He even has a ‘do-rag for those who wear their hair in dreadlocks.

In midtown, Henry, who works as an administrator for a media company, showed off his new $10 rag and it got rave reviews - except for its price.

“I like it,” said Lester Vasquez, 27, of Inwood. “But it has to be affordable. Nobody is going to pay more than $4 for it.”

A traditional ‘do-rag will run only $2.

His pal Dre Hutch, 26, of Connecticut agreed the price tag was an issue for him, but both were thrilled with the new ‘do-rag option.

“A ‘do-rag with no string is a good idea. It’s convenient. It’s like putting on socks,” Hutch said. “I’d get it.”

Thursday, September 29, 2011

9345: Michael Wolff = Condé Nast Cafeteria.


Gawker ran a headline that reads: The Michael Wolff Era at Adweek Is Over. If Adweek continues its timely coverage of advertising-related news and events, expect to see the announcement of Wolff’s departure in an issue in 2012.

9344: Kidding Around On Madison Avenue.


Adweek presented a Readers’ Poll on marketing to kids aged newborn to 3 years old, and the overwhelming majority of respondents said youngsters should not be targeted. Yet how many dissenters would refuse to work for a client engaging in such practices? And why should we just say no to kiddie advertising for 3-year-olds, but approve it for all other children? Remember, our industry staunchly defends the rights of Big Tobacco. Madison Avenue is not about to censure or censor Ronald McDonald.

9343: Brainwashed & Bamboozled.


From The New York Daily News…

Herman Cain, 2012 GOP presidential hopeful: Black voters ‘brainwashed’ into supporting liberals

By Aliyah Shahid, Daily News Staff Writer

Herman Cain has a theory on why black Americans reliably vote Democratic: They’ve been brainwashed.

“African-Americans have been brainwashed into not being open-minded, not even considering a conservative point of view,” the Republican presidential candidate told CNN on Wednesday.

“I have received some of that same vitriol simply because I am running for the Republican nomination as a conservative. So it’s just brainwashing and people not being open minded, pure and simple,” Cain added.

The latest remarks come on the heels of several other eyebrow-raising comments the businessman has made about race this week.

He told Fox News on Tuesday that Americans are “over this first African-American president thing.” And in his upcoming memoir, obtained by U.S. News & World Report, the former Godfather’s Pizza CEO, claims President Obama supporters play the race card to cover up the commander in chief’s failures.

Still, Cain’s campaigning has been picking up steam since he won Florida’s straw poll over the weekend. And in a surprising Rasmussen poll released Wednesday, Cain trails Obama by just five points in a head-to-head matchup.

The most recent black Republican to run for President was Alan Keyes, a former diplomat who campaigned in 1996, 2000 and 2008.

Democratic candidates at the presidential level have traditionally won the majority of black votes. In 2004, John Kerry won 88% of the vote compared to George W. Bush’s 11%. In 2008, 95% of black voters went to the ballot for Barack Obama, compared to 4% for Sen. John McCain.

In the latest interview, Cain told CNN that he believes at least a third to half of black Americans are open-minded. “I meet them every day,” he said. “They stop me in the airport. And so this whole notion that all black Americans are necessarily going to stay and vote Democrat, vote for Obama, that’s simply not true. More and more black Americans are thinking for themselves. And that’s a good thing.”

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

9342: Berkeley Bake Sale Buffoons’ Banter.


From The Los Angeles Times…

Frosted by Berkeley ‘diversity’ bake sale

Students crowd Sproul Plaza to protest GOP club’s satire on admissions bill. Prop. 209 author Ward Connerly is among the bake sale’s supporters. Some find a positive message in agreeing to disagree.

By Lee Romney, Los Angeles Times

Hundreds of students packed UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza on Tuesday to express their views on the use of race and gender in university admissions decisions — and to weigh in on the tone of the debate.



The dialogue in this bastion of the free-speech movement was triggered by a bake sale, sponsored by the Berkeley College Republicans, that promised goods priced according to the buyer’s race, ethnicity and gender.



The event, met with anger by many students, was timed to counteract a phone bank in support of a bill on Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk that would allow the UC and Cal State University systems to consider such factors, as long as no preference was given, in admissions.



Proposition 209, passed by voters in 1996, banned affirmative action in public university admissions. The current bill would not violate that ban. Instead it would permit schools to consider things such as ethnicity, much as they do extracurricular activities, when weighing candidates.



Under the bake sale’s satirical pricing structure, whites were supposed to pay $2 for the same pastry that would cost Native Americans 25 cents. (The Republican club, however, accepted whatever people chose to pay.) Supporters formed a protective barrier around the group’s table on Tuesday; Proposition 209 author and former UC Regent Ward Connerly, who is black, showed up to help the students sell frosted cupcakes.



Republican campus clubs have held such sales over the years to challenge racial preference policies. But this time social media spread the news worldwide, prompting outrage and praise for the organizers. The event spawned a secondary debate about civility and respect.



“It’s kind of ugly,” said 21-year-old gender and women’s studies major Tatianna Peck, who held a sign in mock protest of the exclusion of “queer people” from the pricing structure. “It’s … forcing people into a defensive position instead of an honest place of listening.”



On Sunday, the Associated Students of the University of California Senate passed a resolution condemning “the use of discrimination whether it is in satire or in seriousness.” In a message Monday, UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau and two vice chancellors endorsed that position and said that the strong reactions to the bake sale provided “a vivid lesson that issues of race, ethnicity and gender are far from resolved.”



Anthropology major Damaris Olaechea, 24, and her roommate did their part Tuesday to create “an environment where people can come have dialogue with respect and sensitivity,” giving out hundreds of pink home-baked “conscious cupcakes.”



But that didn’t boost business for the Asian American Assn., which happened to be holding its bake sale fundraiser. Vi Tran, 18, who did her best to hawk the group’s “non-racist cupcakes,” said she agreed with the Republican students’ stance. “I think acceptance should be based on merit,” she said, lamenting that the cause had been so clouded by anger.



That anger led a group calling itself the Coalition to stage a silent protest, with hundreds of students — many of them African American or Latino — lying down in the heart of Sproul Plaza.



“UC Us Now,” their signs read, in a play on words to remind the campus of their presence. “The university has chronically failed to address the appalling lack of diversity,” said organizers, who called on Brown to sign the admissions legislation.



Despite the strong emotions, many saw something positive in the debate.



“This has created the dialogue we wanted,” said Shawn Lewis, president of the Berkeley College Republicans. “Berkeley is the home of the free-speech movement. We want to be sure it doesn’t become the capital of political correctness.”

9341: “Here Are All The White Liars People.”


Well, that didn’t take long. After The Big Tent reported on The One Club’s plan to stage another “Where Are All The Black People?” event, and Rev. Al Sharpton showed support for the effort, the post received an immediate culturally clueless comment. Brian Morris of New York remarked, “ask al where tawana brawley is.” In hindsight, it was pretty odd for The One Club to recruit Sharpton as a backer of the initiative. Heaven forbid the clique clubbers might have videotaped endorsements from, say, actual industry leaders. Hell, the list of sponsors and partners labeled key contributors as Creative Advocates and Talent Scouts. Morris probably views Sharpton as an opportunistic con artist. Yet when it comes to diversity in the advertising field, the charlatans, liars and bona fide bigots posing as champions of inclusion make Sharpton look like an amateur.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

9340: The One Club To Rerun Diversity Event.


The Big Tent reported on an event to be held October 4, 2011, during Advertising Week. “Where Are All The Black People?” is a sequel to a soiree assembled by The One Club last May. The organization’s hype machine had the audacity to label the inaugural fiasco as a “successful panel”—while failing to note a single accomplishment attached to the occasion. Again, MultiCultClassics contends that The One Club asking, “Where Are All The Black People?” is like the Minuteman Project wondering, “Where Are All The Mexicans?” The semi-annual display of affection for colored people is more than a little hypocritical coming from a predominately and historically White awards clique. Rev. Al Sharpton has voiced his support for the initiative, although it’s not clear if he’ll attend. Meanwhile, the list of sponsors and partners is a Who’s Who of the Culturally Clueless on Madison Avenue. As always, it’s easy for these agencies to drop a charitable contribution in the mail—and it’s ironic that the check is likely handled by the shops’ Black employees in the mailroom.

Al Sharpton, One Club Want to Know: Where Are All the Black People?

Career Fair to Be Held During Advertising Week

By Ken Wheaton

“Where Are All the Black People?” is a one-day career fair being held on Oct. 4 in New York. According to wherearealltheblackpeople.com, the event “is a follow up to a successful panel held during the 2011 Creative Week in New York and moderated by Jeff Goodby and Jimmy Smith.” Al Sharpton is on board.

More from the website: “This one-day event will include speakers, testimonials from creatives of African American backgrounds, portfolio reviews for students and professionals and sessions with agency recruiters. … Our goal is to have as many participants as possible walk away with a job offer, a confirmed second interview, or a paid internship.”

A list of sponsors and partners can be found here.

9339: Half-Baked Diversity Bake Sale.


From The New York Times…

A ‘Diversity Bake Sale’ Backfires on Campus

By Malia Wollan

BERKELEY, Calif. — A bake sale sponsored by a Republican student group at the University of California, Berkeley, has incited anger and renewed the debate over affirmative action by asking students to pay different prices for pastry, depending on their race and sex.

Last week, the Berkeley College Republicans announced its “Increase Diversity Bake Sale,” scheduled for Tuesday. On Facebook, the group listed the price for a pastry at $2 for white students, $1.50 for Asian students, $1 for Latinos, 75 cents for African-Americans and 25 cents for Native Americans. Women of all races were promised a 25-cent discount.

“Hope to see you all there! If you don’t come, you’re a racist!” the Facebook event page said. (It has since been taken down and replaced with milder text.)

“We expected people to be upset,” the group’s president, Shawn Lewis, 20, a third-year political science major, said Monday in a telephone interview. “Treating people differently based on the color of their skin is wrong, and we wanted people to be upset about that.”

The bake sale was scheduled to protest a phone bank organized by the Associated Students of the University of California, the campus student government group, where students planned to call Gov. Jerry Brown and urge him to sign a Senate bill that would allow public universities to consider race, gender and ethnicity in admissions decisions. In 1996, voters in the state passed a ballot initiative, known as Proposition 209, prohibiting affirmative action in admissions.

“The bake sale is a misguided attempt by the Berkeley College Republicans to make a political point about their opposition to a particular bill,” said Gibor Basri, the university’s vice chancellor for equity and inclusion and a professor of astronomy. “A lot of students, especially students of color, read it as placing a higher value on white students.”

In response to the bake sale, the Associated Students, which provides money to the Berkeley College Republicans and other political groups for events on campus, called an emergency meeting on Sunday, leaders said. It passed a resolution condemning discriminatory events on campus whether or not they are meant to be satirical.

Not long after the bake sale page went up on Facebook, hundreds of people posted comments expressing outrage over or support for the sale and affirmative action in general.

“Perhaps you should be charging women and Latinas double to better reflect the fact that we’re being paid 78 cents and 59 cents to the white man’s dollar,” wrote Ally Wong.

Others worried more about the pastries. “The educational value of this exercise will be lost when Pocahontas walks away with a truckload of free cupcakes,” wrote Mike Creamer.

The bake sale idea is not original, said Mr. Lewis, the Republican group’s president, noting that the same tactic had been used on other college campuses in the last decade to protest affirmative action.

Event organizers received numerous threats on Facebook, and some of the group’s members changed their names and profile pictures. “This event was not organized by a bunch of white guys,” Mr. Lewis said. “We’re not racists.” The group’s 10-member board of directors includes several Asians and a Latino, he said, and more than half the board members are women.

Student leaders worried that the bake sale would make students uncomfortable and aggravate tensions on campus.

“A number of students have come to me very concerned,” said the student body president, Vishalli Loomba, 20, a fourth-year molecular and cell biology major. “Many feel the differential pricing is offensive and that it makes them feel unwelcome.”

Despite the outcry, organizers said the sale would go forward unless they were threatened with physical violence. Mr. Lewis said Republican groups from nearby colleges — including the University of California, Davis; California State University, Sacramento; and Saint Mary’s College of California — had called to say they were sending carloads of supporters to the bake sale.

The race-based prices will be posted on signs, but organizers said they would not enforce them and would instead allow students to pay whatever they wanted.

One group of students decided to protest pastries with more pastries.

As of Monday afternoon, more than 600 people had R.S.V.P.’d on Facebook to attend the “Conscious Cupcakes Giveaway,” scheduled for the same time and place as the Berkeley College Republicans’ bake sale and the student government’s phone bank.

“Join us in celebrating and representing U.C. Berkeley’s diverse community!” read the event announcement. “We recognize we still have a long way to go in bridging the gaps in understanding the complexities of race, gender and sexuality, but we take the first steps by taking our first bite of free Conscious Cupcakes in solidarity!”

One Berkeley student wrote on the event’s page: “conscious cupcakes > discriminatory cupcakes.”

Monday, September 26, 2011

9338: Black Commercial Actor Of The Hour.


The commercial actor who flew through onion rings for Sonic and partied with Santa for Pepsi is now grilling for Kingsford. This guy is going to give the hardest-working man in Black advertising a run for his money.


9337: McCafé Mocha Frappé Crappé.


Does Mickey D’s believe all minorities break into song and dance over its menu items?


9336: Wing Bling.


Nicki Minaj posed on the red carpet in Las Vegas sporting a fried chicken necklace created by Onch Movement. Look for her to appear in an upcoming Popeyes commercial opposite Annie the Chicken Queen.

9335: Walmart Has A Heart.


This Walmart Hispanic Heritage Month commercial was probably approved by Texas Governor Rick Perry.

9334: The Pause That Refreshes GOP.


From Nationwide News Sources…

Coke lobbyists favor Republicans

Pepsi and Coca-Cola are neck-and-neck in the “cola war” in Washington when it comes to spending on lobbying and campaign contributions.

An analysis of that spending by the watchdog Center for Responsive Politics found that Pepsi last year spent about $6.8 million on lobbying compared with about $5.8 million by Coke.

But this year, Coca-Cola is blowing past Pepsi, shelling out $3.4 million through June compared with Pepsi’s $1.9 million.

In political donations so far this year, Coke has the edge with $206,000 contributed, with Democrats getting 41 percent and Republicans 59 percent. Pepsi has poured just $189,000 into coffers this year and has divided it 54 percent to Democrats and 46 percent to Republicans, according to the analysis.

Scripps Howard News Service

9333: Stuff Betty White People Like.


No comment.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

9332: Are You Ready For Some Fútbol?


From NFL.com…

NFL, Hispanic Heritage Foundation and Bud Light partner to launch the NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Awards Presented by Bud Light. Teams designate home game in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.

The National Football League and its teams will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 – October 15) with a series of special events. Bud Light is the presenting sponsor of the NFL’s celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

For the 2011 celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the NFL, Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) and Bud Light have partnered to launch the NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Awards Presented by Bud Light. The awards recognize the contributions of Hispanic leaders in each NFL market. Each award recipient will be recognized in-stadium at a Hispanic Heritage game in their local market. With support from Bud Light, each award recipient will select an organization of their choice that serves the local Hispanic community to receive a $2,000 donation.

In addition, 15 NFL teams – Buffalo, Carolina, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Indianapolis, Minnesota, New Orleans, Oakland, St. Louis, San Diego, Seattle, Tampa Bay and Tennessee – will celebrate this week when they host Hispanic Heritage Month games at their stadiums to coincide with the NFL’s national celebration on Sunday Night Football and Monday Night Football.

All NFL teams will enhance the celebration with local efforts throughout the month including designated home games in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month and local community outreach.

9331: Sly Stone In Hard Times.


From The New York Post…

Funk legend Sly Stone now homeless and living out of a van in LA

By Willem Alkema and Reed Tucker

In his heyday, he lived at 783 Bel Air Road, a four-bedroom, 5,432-square-foot Beverly Hills mansion that once belonged to John Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas.

The Tudor-style house was tricked out in his signature funky black, white and red color scheme. Shag carpet. Tiffany lamps in every room. A round water bed in the master bedroom. There were parties where Stevie Wonder, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Miles Davis would drop by, where Etta James would break into “At Last” by the bar.

Just four years ago, he resided in a Napa Valley house so large it could only be described as a “compound,” with a vineyard out back and multiple cars in the driveway.

But those days are gone.

Today, Sly Stone — one of the greatest figures in soul-music history — is homeless, his fortune stolen by a lethal combination of excess, substance abuse and financial mismanagement. He lays his head inside a white camper van ironically stamped with the words “Pleasure Way” on the side. The van is parked on a residential street in Crenshaw, the rough Los Angeles neighborhood where “Boyz n the Hood” was set. A retired couple makes sure he eats once a day, and Stone showers at their house. The couple’s son serves as his assistant and driver.

Inside the van, the former mastermind of Sly & the Family Stone, now 68, continues to record music with the help of a laptop computer.

“I like my small camper,” he says, his voice raspy with age and years of hard living. “I just do not want to return to a fixed home. I cannot stand being in one place. I must keep moving.”

Stone has been difficult to pin down for years. In the last two decades, he’s become one of music’s most enigmatic figures, bordering on reclusive. You’d be forgiven for assuming he’s dead. He rarely appears in public, and just getting him in a room requires hours or years of detective work, middlemen and, of course, making peace with the likelihood that he just won’t show up.

There was a time when Sly was difficult to escape. Stone, whose real name is Sylvester Stewart, was one of the most visible, flamboyant figures of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The multiracial, multi-gender band that Stone assembled fused funk, soul and psychedelic rock and became one of the most influential acts ever. The San Fran-based group released a string of hits beginning with the 1968 album “Dance to the Music,” followed by “Everyday People,” “Family Affair,” “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” and “Stand!”

The group’s costumes and showmanship were just as memorable. The members favored giant afros, flashy capes, Beatle boots, neon vests and leopard-print jumpsuits.

Read the full story here.

9330: Change From GOP…?


From The New York Daily News…

Herman Cain is stunning Florida GOP straw poll winner

By The Associated Press

If Florida Gov. Rick Scott is right, then Herman Cain will be the next President of the United States.

Scott boldly predicted Saturday before votes were counted that the winner of the Republican Party of Florida straw poll would win that state’s primary, the primary winner would be the party’s nominee and that nominee would beat President Obama in November 2012.

Cain, the former Godfather’s Pizza chief executive from Georgia, pulled an upset in the test vote, capturing the support of 986 delegates, more than double the 410 votes for Texas Gov. Rick Perry, the closest runner-up.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney was a close third with 372 votes, followed by former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.

“He can win. He can beat Obama,” said Cynthia Henderson, president of the Tallahassee Republican Women’s Club Federated, who said she cast her vote for Cain.

“Now he has the motivation to raise money. He went toe-to-toe with everybody and made a difference. It will have to help him. It’s fun.”

While all declared candidates were on the ballot, the first-tier candidates did not compete.

Scott repeatedly said the straw poll would propel a candidate to the nomination.

“Winning the straw poll is important, and I think it is very, very significant,” Cain said.

9329: Kmart Kross-Kultural Krap.


Is this Kmart commercial an example of Draftfcb’s cross-cultural con artistry? There are multiple versions of the spot, presumably targeting segmented audiences. Why is the Black woman the “curviest”—i.e., full-figured—of the bunch?

9328: GSD&Mexican Mess.


MultiCultClassics had almost forgotten the news last April that Jarritos, a Mexican soft drink popular with Latinos in the U.S., would be marketed to non-Latinos via advertising by GSD&M. Even crosscultural cult leader Ken Muench wondered about the decision to pass over a Latino shop in favor of the Austin-based White agency. How would the brand be handled by those wonderful folks who gave you Annie the Chicken Queen?

Well, nearly six months later, the answer has arrived (and during National Hispanic Heritage Month!). The campaign features multiple components across lots of media, with a tagline that reads, “We’re Not From Here”—which pretty much summarizes the cultural cluelessness of GSD&M. For example, the website homepage (above) looks like a junior art director spent an afternoon doing Google searches of Mexican art.

Jarrito’s new TV commercials are worth examining—especially the spot titled, “Boomerang.” The main character is a stereotypical Mexican who is one burro shy of being the original Juan Valdez. He shows up in various settings, offering samples of Jarritos to people passing by. When folks opt against accepting the free taste, odd individuals stage “involuntary trials,” forcing the beverage on the rejecters. In “Boomerang,” someone appearing to be an Indigenous Australian delivers the drink with a boomerang. Oh, there must have been lots of knee-slapping giggles happening on the production set of this mess.

Looking forward to the inevitable showdown between the Mexican guy with his Jarritos and Annie the Chicken Queen with her Fresh Brewed Cane Sweeeet Tea.


9327: Kmart Trying Cool Crowdsourcing. Fail.


Kmart is trying too hard. Pathetic.


Saturday, September 24, 2011

9326: Bud Light Loves Hip Hop.


Advertising Age reported that Bud Light and Latinworks are launching a campaign with recording artist Pitbull, demonstrating that Latino adpeople love hip hop too. In fact, Pitbull has already been hawking products for the Latino market, including Dr. Pepper. While the Bud Light spot has not yet aired, there’s a behind-the-scenes video that makes it look like, well, the Dr. Pepper spot. Whatever.

Bud Light Senior Director Mike Sundet gushed, “[Pitbull] epitomizes everything that our brand is about. He’s fun. He’s outgoing. He’s social. Obviously he has huge appeal within the Latino segment, but like Bud Light, he is broadly appealing [with] huge crossover appeal to the general market as well. … We’re not even looking at this as a Latino campaign. We’re looking at this as a multicultural campaign that is going to reach all of our core drinkers.”

Does that mean Bud Light will stop looking at Latinworks as a Latino agency? Will the shop be invited to pitch for AOR status on the brand? The clients—and officials at parent network Omnicom—would probably have to consume quite a bit of Bud Light before that would happen.

9325: National Hispanic Heritage Month 2011.


Unlike Black History Month, National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 through October 15) doesn’t feature a lot of patronizing advertisements. So as a public service—as well as a display of reverence for the occasion—MultiCultClassics presents a collection of Latina ads.









Friday, September 23, 2011

9324: Big Budgets Show Big Divides.


Jim Edwards at BNET posted a report titled, “What Recession? 10 Sumptuous New Ads Show Madison Avenue Is in a Golden Age.” The story blurb read, “The country may be in recession but the ad business is not, and agencies are making commercials that are as elaborate, big-budget and sumptuous to look at as possible.” Of course, zero spots in Edwards’ collection were created by minority advertising agencies, as “big-budget” is never an adjective attached to anything associated with non-White marketing efforts (and MultiCultClassics isn’t counting the Docomo commercial from Japan). On the flipside, Wieden + Kennedy was responsible for four of the ten spotlighted ads. Wonder what ADCOLOR® Award Winner Dan Wieden would have to say about that.

9323: AAF Checks And Balances.


The American Advertising Federation has scheduled its annual Diversity Achievement and Mosaic Awards & Forum for October 6, 2011. On November 2, 2011, the AAF will induct a predominately White group into the Advertising Hall of Achievement.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

9322: Hairport Security.


National news sources reported on an incident no one ever covered at Black Atlas.

Woman: Airport search of my Afro was humiliating

DALLAS — A Dallas hairstylist says security officers at Atlanta’s airport humiliated her when they subjected her large Afro hairstyle to a search in open view of other arriving passengers.

Isis Brantley says she was headed down an escalator at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, after she was screened at the initial security checkpoint, when two TSA agents came after her asking to check her hair for explosives, according to the website of CBS station KTVT-TV in Dallas.

Brantley says the agents began patting down her large Afro in public as she waited on a train platform.

She claims she was embarrassed and couldn’t understand why they checked her again after her initial security screening. Brantley says she couldn’t believe it was happening to her.

She says she wouldn’t have minded if the TSA did the hair pat-down at the security checkpoint. It was the public display that upset her.

Brantley tells The Dallas Morning News the search in full public view brought her to tears.

In a statement to the newspaper, the Transportation Security Administration said Brantley left a checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport before security could complete her screening. That prompted a security officer to refer her for further screening.

TSA says a private screening was offered and refused, but Brantley denies that. She says she doesn’t mind being searched, as long as it’s done respectfully.

She adds nothing like that has ever happened to her in the 20 years she’s had the natural hairstyle.

9321: Banal Boss Lady Breakfast.


There’s so much to hate about this Mickey D’s Breakfast spot. The overacting. The annoying music track. The White chick rooting for the Black chick to fail. Characters expressing excitement over breakfast from McDonald’s.