Advertising Age published a report titled, “P&G Cuts Agencies 40% in First Wave of Consolidation Drive.” The mega-client’s minority advertising agencies probably didn’t even notice, as consolidating and cutting crumbs is like burglarizing the homeless. Hey, in the advertising industry, it’s not unheard of or uncommon to undercut, underfund and underappreciate the underrepresented—in fact, it’s understood.
Adweek published a fluff piece titled, As the Tech Industry Grows and Diversifies, Digital Agency Dress Codes Now Range ‘From Hobo to GQ’. Um, when did the tech industry diversify? It will probably happen around the same time the advertising industry diversifies—and the technology to predict that date has not yet been invented.
The Campaign campaign includes a crappy commercial with contrived clichés, cultural cluelessness and cocaine.
Campaign just lost its sole non-White (or he appears to be non-White) Thought Leader as Arif Durrani is leaving Haymarket for Bloomberg Media.
Advertising Age published a story titled, “What You Should Know About P&G’s Next CEO, David Taylor.” The trivia includes Taylor toiled as a plant manager before becoming a brand manager; plus, he’s experienced failure and champions risk taking. Well, if he’s familiar with failing and ready to risk, maybe Taylor will use his authority to promote diversity, especially among the White advertising agencies on the P&G roster. After all, it’s been roughly six years since the NAACP asked P&G and other clients to demand their White agencies become more inclusive. The most P&G did involved sending an email asking shops to engage in supplier diversity. In other words, the mega-advertiser pushes supplier diversity, but doesn’t scrutinize the diversity of its suppliers of advertising. Indeed, P&G probably prefers to hand crumbs to minority agencies. Will the risk-taking Taylor display courage, conviction and commitment to conquer industry exclusivity—or carry on the tradition of delegating, deferring and dodging diversity?
Advertising Age published a report titled, “Timeline of Recent MDC Events In Case You’ve Been Sleeping.” If you weren’t sleeping already, you will be after viewing the series of escapades. Then again, perhaps it’s the deliberate intent of MDC PR efforts; that is, fool the industry into believing there’s nothing of great interest brewing at the White holding company in order to avoid closer investigation that would reveal the enterprise is thoroughly corrupt. After all, the average MDC employee probably gets reprimanded for raiding the hotel mini-bar during production trips—versus having to reimburse the company over $10.5 million for non-billable expenses.
The “Thought Leaders” at Campaign don’t appear to offer much diversity of thought.
McKinney seems awfully proud of itself for hiring the industry’s youngest intern, shamelessly maximizing the PR opportunities via Digiday and Durham magazine. However, MultiCultClassics predicted White advertising agencies would eventually recruit embryos to boost diversity figures—so handing an internship to a 12-year-old is no surprise. A peek at the agency website clearly indicates McKinney is struggling mightily to lure adult minorities. The North Carolina-based agency previously displayed cultural cluelessness when appearing on AMC series The Pitch in 2012. But bringing a kid on board for a mere week is, well, weak. That said, Glenn Green deserves an ADCOLOR® Award at least.
Campaign published a sponsored piece from Monster featuring a White person roundtable on diversity—although it was mostly inclusiveness via promoting White women. “It’s not just women,” insisted Lindsey Clay. “Colour, race, gender, social background and age are all under-represented.” Of course, Clay doesn’t give a shit about colour, race, social background and age, except when applied to White women. The story was titled, “Failing the Future,” but anyone who has seriously considered diversity knows our industry is failing the present, and has failed the past since the birth of adland. Most pathetic is the photo above depicting the roundtable participants. Leave it to White folks to hold a discussion on diversity that excluded people of colour.
Failing the Future
The next-gen crisis: are we failing to discover, develop and retain the diversity of talent required to be the next marketing leaders?
So hot is the issue of talent development and diversity that Campaign had no trouble luring business leaders out of the Cannes sunshine and into a private dining room at the Carlton Hotel to chew it over during the recent Lions Festival of Creativity.
“The fear is that we are heading towards a homogenous and dwindling talent pool of people equipped to lead in an increasingly global and digital world,” said Andrew Warner of Monster, Campaign’s partner in the debate.
The digital economy was expected to democratise career structures, but, in fact, he suggested, flatter organisations provide less scaffolding for progression. And a high percentage of women fall out of tech careers in their thirties.
“It’s not just women. Colour, race, gender, social background and age are all under-represented,” added Thinkbox’s Lindsey Clay. “Differences make output strong,” said HMG’s Darren Goldie. “I always recruit for attitude and then develop talent.”
Digitalisation brings challenges to more traditional businesses too. “I have people with marketing degrees who are not equipped,” said HSBC’s Amanda Rendle. Agencies also face a huge challenge, said Maxus’s Richard Stokes. “We bring people in to do specific tech jobs but how are they going to develop into the leaders of tomorrow?”
Some businesses, such as Expedia, aim to transfer skills like search optimisation via lunchtime masterclasses. “It’s OK not to know,” said Andrew Cocker. “And it’s OK to learn.” The skill set required these days is incredibly demanding,” said Stephen Maher. “You’ve got to be good at tech and data, as well as conceptual and creative and also a brilliant leader and presenter.”
If such talent is to be attracted to marketing as a career, “we all have a responsibility for it not to be that small thing sat in the corner,” said Clear Channel’s Sarah Speake.”Marketing has lost some of its sizzle,” admitted Chesters. “It’s cobblers’ children going barefoot. How appalling we are at marketing ourselves. “We need to be more intelligent and flexible and interesting in the people that we recruit and where we find them.”
Helen McRae continued the rise of White women by being named UK CEO of Mindshare. Mindshare Global CEO Nick Emery gushed, “Helen is a rare talent able to lead intellectually and is a demon shit-kicker.” Wow, a woman that can “lead intellectually” is a rare bird indeed. However, “demon shit-kicker” is a not a good term to use in light of the controversy surrounding media kickbacks.
Meanwhile, McRae’s glass-ceiling-busting feat was offset when OMD appointed a White man, Dan Clays, as its UK CEO. No word if Clays is a “demon shit-kicker” as well. The photo above, however, shows he’s a demon crotch-grabber.
Andrew Dimitriou was crowned Y&R President of Europe. Y&R Global CEO David Sable said, “Andrew is a true globalist and a thoughtful integrated marketer, no doubt because he is a creative and entrepreneurial thinker.” If Dimitriou is a “true globalist,” why is he only overseeing one White continent?
Chris Carroll returned to Subway in a marketing leadership role, perhaps replacing former CMO Tony Pace in a typical White man swap. At this point, Carroll’s official title and responsibilities are as guarded as the investigation that Jared Fogle is facing.
Adweek revealed the secret identities of the White advertising agencies battling in the closed competition for the Subway business. According to Adweek:
It turns out Subway has been quietly talking to agencies for a while now, and the chain already has four finalists for its creative account.Longtime incumbent MMB is defending against three other shops, which sources identified as BBDO, The Martin Agency and McCann Erickson. The brand spent more than $530 million in media last year, according to Kantar Media.
The search is being led by former marketing leader Chris Carroll, who returned to the fold more than a month ago in a senior role. Joanne Davis Consulting in New York is managing the process.
Great. Four White advertising agencies are wooing a recycled White man in a pitch being conducted by a White woman’s search firm—all for a (literally and figuratively) White-bread account. Now that’s diversity at work!
Campaign published another pathetic perspective from Lindsey Clay, who is continuing her culturally clueless crusade to promote White women. Clay challenged everyone in adland to “Speak Up” and champion the cause—while remaining deafeningly silent about the true dearth of diversity disabling the industry. Ms. Moron declared, “Remind people to include women on shortlists for any senior jobs, speak up when you hear casual sexism.” Regarding casual racism, stay quiet. Clay also whooped, “And to all the men who are trying hard to address the challenges around diversity and gender, I salute you. Thank you for going out of your way to engage with these important topics.” Yes, kudos to all two or three of you actively working on real diversity—but don’t expect Clay to join you anytime soon, as she’s focused on faux equality.
Memo to Lindsey Clay: Shut the fuck up.
It’s time to speak up: Why adland needs to be more vocal
As she takes on the presidency of Wacl, Lindsey Clay discusses her theme for the year and why adland needs to be more vocal.
I recently had the huge honour and privilege of taking over the presidency of Women in Advertising Communications London, or Wacl.
My theme for the coming year is “speak up”. Thankfully, this isn’t an acronym. I did toy with one – “stop politically egregious arseholiness…” – but I couldn’t hurdle that “K” and the “U” was also daunting. So “speak up” is an imperative.
As I was formulating my theme, I had two starkly contrasting experiences that reinforced my focus.
The first was hearing Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer at Facebook, interviewed by our brilliant outgoing president, Lindsay Pattison of Maxus. She was compelling and inspiring about the challenges facing men and women in achieving equality and the opportunities for our industry in doing so. One of the recurring themes was women’s lack of confidence in stepping up.
Later that same day, I had a conversation with a senior man in the industry. He congratulated me on my upcoming presidency but advised me to be careful as he felt Wacl had “gone too far” – women were now dominating the industry, and he and a lot of his friends were worried about it.
After handing him a hankie to mop his tears and then checking which century we were in, I tried to reassure him that his concern was misplaced. He and his friends were in no immediate danger of being dominated, given that women make up only 25 per cent of the most senior positions in the industry and, in any case, there is no anti-men agenda. Pro-women is not the same as anti-men. But he remained unconvinced and was at pains to warn me against the dangers of being too vocal. Given the choice, I suspect he’d prefer the theme to be “shut up”. I fear I’m going to disappoint him.
So what do I mean by “speak up”? I mean it in three different ways.
Speak up to inspire others
I find it frustrating that, although women are famously brilliant communicators, for some reason, when it comes to the public sphere, they are often eerily silent. Simply not enough women’s voices are heard in public. I want to change this.
This is so important because young women find it very hard to speak up and female leaders are doing them a huge disservice if we don’t lead the way in showing them how. As Cindy Gallop says: “You can’t be it if you can’t see it.” Not every senior woman is confident about speaking in public, but confidence is a product of our experience – so the more you do it, the easier you’ll find it.
Speak up to challenge and change
To adapt a famous quote for our purposes: “All that is required for evil to flourish is for good men and women to remain silent.” Wacl aims to be a critical friend to our industry on issues around gender and diversity, pointing out what needs to change and offering help to make it happen.
Speak up to point out the gender imbalance at the conference you’re attending. If you’re a man, refuse to accept any speaking engagement until you have been reassured that there is some balance among the speakers and you won’t be appearing on yet another “manel”. Challenge your board to investigate the status on equal pay, remind people to include women on shortlists for any senior jobs, speak up when you hear casual sexism, encourage women in your organisation to accept speaking engagements.
Remind people to include women on shortlists for any senior jobs, speak up when you hear casual sexism.
Various studies have shown that women are more likely to be interrupted in a meeting, so speak up when you see it happening. And then, for the brave, speak up about these issues publicly when you have the opportunity.
Speak up to celebrate
Public celebration and praise is a very powerful tool. We should use that tool to celebrate the successes of women as well as those companies and individuals that are leading the way in making positive change happen.
Let’s give praise in the industry where praise is due: Tom Knox for the courageous decision to choose “advertising for good” as the theme of his IPA presidency; conference organisers who make an improvement in their gender balance; the companies that come top of the diversity league tables; Campaign for being a leading voice on the issue of equality.
I know that the man who was worried about Wacl is not representative of men in our industry. And to all the men who are trying hard to address the challenges around diversity and gender, I salute you. Thank you for going out of your way to engage with these important topics.
My Wacl theme for the year is a call to action for everyone who likes the idea of having a more interesting, more creative, more commercially successful industry and a much nicer, balanced working environment.
Within Wacl, we will be developing a diverse programme of activity on the “speak up” theme over the next year or so, from encouraging and inspiring women to celebrating the best of what is happening. If you have a great idea on this topic, speak up – I’d love to hear it.
Lindsey Clay is the chief executive of Thinkbox
Advertising Age published a story titled, “Apple on Agency Hunt to Support New And Existing Retail Initiatives.” This poses a perfect opportunity for Apple to do something breakthrough in the tech world—as well as make good on its commitment to diversity and demonstrate the spirit of The Crazy Ones—by hiring a minority advertising agency. Think different indeed.
Adweek spotlighted the latest Honey Maid commercial that is offensive on so many covert levels. The Adweek story stated, “Honey Maid has become one of the most famous brands embracing such diversity in its ads…” Plus, Mondelēz International Portfolio Lead for Biscuits Gary Osifchin declared, “The ‘This Is Wholesome’ campaign launched in March of 2014 and has been committed to featuring a cross-section of the American family. From a same-sex couple and single dad, to a mixed-race military family, a blended and an immigrant family, the sweet moments between a disabled aunt and her niece are just another example of Honey Maid’s commitment to feature real American families and the wholesome connections they share.” Talk about bullshit on a biscuit. Mondelēz International is allegedly devoted to diversity, with a manifesto on inclusiveness that reads like a Hallmark poem. Yet the company conspires with a White advertising agency—Droga5—where exclusivity reigns. How many same-sex couples, mixed-race military families, immigrants (beside David Droga) and disabled people are members of the Droga5 clan? Hell, how many ordinary minorities are in the fold? Mondelēz International’s hypocrisy is shameful. And for Droga5 to position itself as a progressive, humanitarian enterprise is despicable.
If this bullshit from Brazil isn’t a scam ad, it should be. Promoting a dental office by hyping free Wi-Fi shows the creative team has huge cavities—in their skulls.
Adweek reported women—probably White women—now hold half of the top roles at Havas Worldwide Chicago. Not sure if there should be an asterisk marking the accomplishment, as Havas Worldwide Chicago is barely a legitimate advertising agency. It’s also safe to bet Blacks hold a lot of the bottom roles there, such as receptionist and mailroom attendant. Yes, Havas—whose highest levels are fueled by nepotism—is leading the way with faux diversity.
Women Now Hold Half of the Top Jobs at Havas Worldwide Chicago
Tatia Torrey named chief client officer
By Andrew McMains
Decades after the Mad Men era, men still largely run ad agencies. But even if agencies can still feel like boys’ clubs, recently women have been gaining a number of top jobs.
Between October 2014 and April 2015, six agencies placed women in the role of creative chief. And now, with the rise of Tatia Torrey to chief client officer at Havas Worldwide in Chicago, half of that agency’s leadership team is female.
In her newly created position, Torrey will work across the ad agency and subsidiaries Havas Helia (customer relationship management marketing), Havas Impact (events) and Havas Latino (Hispanic market advertising). Since May 2014, she’d been managing director.
The other Chicago leaders are chief creative officer Jason Peterson, chief growth officer Laura Maness, chief talent officer Julieann Vukovich and chief financial officer Angelo Kritikos.
Chicago CEO Paul Marobella said that while he’s happy to have three women among his six top guns, Torrey’s skills triggered her rise to the top. “For us, it’s who’s the right person for the job and hire those people,” he said.
But Marobella also doesn’t understand why more women don’t hold top jobs in advertising and why a separate effort to diversify boardrooms in the corporate world has set its goal at just 30 percent. “That’s low,” he said.
“Having women in the boardroom and in the executive committee has always been important to me as a leader,” Marobella said. “My personal philosophy—and this might be a sweeping generalization—is that women generally have better intuition than men. And intuitive nature and instincts to me are a critical part of what it means to have emotional intelligence in the boardroom.”
In Torrey’s new role, she’ll oversee about 75 staffers in account and project management and focus on existing clients, including Citi, Dish, R.J. Reynolds, Cracker Barrel and AutoZone. The total Havas head count in Chicago exceeds 400.
“I’ve been very fortunate through my career to be evaluated based on my performance and not really felt that [female] lens as much. I do now as I’ve gotten into more senior leadership positions and actually recognized the opportunities,” said Torrey, who previously was an md at the Chicago digital shop Wire Stone.
Torrey added she has seen first hand “how the door should be open for women and how women should be encouraged and mentored. I definitely want to do whatever I can to pave the way.”
Adweek’s “10 Chief Creative Officers Who Are Inspiring Breakthrough Work at U.S. Agencies” are chiefly White men and White women.
Campaign asked a bunch of White executives, “Are the worlds of advertising and PR getting closer?” Um, in terms of the utter lack of diversity, the answer is a resounding yes.
Advertising Age reported Subway launched a review for a fresh White advertising agency, and the sandwich chain is keeping the competitors’ identities secret. “Subway confirms that it is conducting a closed review of its creative advertising,” said a spokesperson. “Based on confidentiality agreements, we are not disclosing participating agencies.” Wow, that takes exclusivity to a whole new level. Subway is open to disclosing the ingredients in its awful products, yet unwilling to reveal which White advertising agencies will vie for the account. Didn’t they learn the dangers of covert activities from Jared Fogle?
More Upheaval As Subway Reviews Creative Account
Move Comes After CMO Leaves, Chain Suspends Relationship With Jared
By Maureen Morrison
As if there isn’t enough upheaval at Subway—yesterday global Chief Marketing Officer Tony Pace said he was leaving, two weeks after the chain suspended its relationship with spokesman Jared Fogle—now the fast-feeder is throwing its creative account into a mystery review.
“Subway confirms that it is conducting a closed review of its creative advertising,” said a spokeswoman in a statement. “Based on confidentiality agreements, we are not disclosing participating agencies.”
Subway’s creative work, as well as Hispanic and digital, is currently handled by Boston-based MMB, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It’s not clear whether MMB, the agency of record for the chain since 2005, is participating in the review. Other agencies on the roster, such as WPP’s MediaCom and Dentsu Aegis’ 360i, are not affected, the spokeswoman confirmed.
It’s been a tumultuous couple of weeks for the chain. Subway suspended its relationship with longtime spokesman Mr. Fogle on July 7, the same day after federal authorities investigated his home. Authorities did not say why they investigated the home, and Mr. Fogle was not charged with a crime, but Russell Taylor, executive director of the Fogle Foundation, a group that is dedicated to helping teach kids healthy lifestyle habits, was arrested on child pornography charges back in May.
Mr. Pace’s departure to form a consultancy called Cerebral Graffiti followed not long after, though Mr. Pace said publicly yesterday that he move was unrelated to the Jared issue.
The agency review comes as the chain is seeking to reverse a sales slide. Subway last year had its first decline in U.S. systemwide sales in years, with a 3% drop, according to Technomic. Though sales were down, store count was up almost 3% in the U.S. in 2014, though, to 27,205.
Much of Subway’s broadcast advertising has over the years has focused on a mix of Mr. Fogle, value advertising and more recently, promotion of premium-priced products. Though Mr. Fogle has appeared in recent ads, he hasn’t been featured as prominently as he once was, as the chain diversified its marketing and incorporated its Famous Fans. The promotion of more premium sandwiches that include ingredients like avocado came sometimes at the expense of the marketing for its $5 footlongs, a product that brought in cost-conscious customers.
Subway in 2014 spent about $533.2 million on U.S. measured media, according to Kantar Media, up 3.5% from $515.2 million.
The 2015 PRNewser 30 Under 30 goes overboard with underrepresentation. The PR field might be less diverse than the advertising industry—but don’t expect to see PR confirming it anytime soon.
The Los Angeles Times commented on the underrepresentation of Black women artists in local art museums. Surely the 3% Conference can solve the problem.
Black women artists in L.A. museums: Good news at Hammer, but representation remains weak
By Carolina A. Miranda
This year has seen a spate of solo museum exhibitions of work by black artists in Los Angeles: Mark Bradford and Charles Gaines at the Hammer, Noah Purifoy at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and William Pope.L and Kahlil Joseph at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Last week, I spoke with African and African American art historian Steven Nelson about these exhibitions and what shifts they might represent at the institutional level.
One thing we both noted: a glaring lack of major museum solo exhibitions featuring the work of black women artists.
There is, however, some hope on the horizon. In October, the Hammer Museum will be displaying an exhibition of work by Nigerian-born artist Njideka Akunyili Crosby, organized by Hammer assistant curator Jamillah James. Crosby is known for intensive collages — employing photographs, photo transfers and bits of African lifestyle magazines — that depict intimate domestic scenes.
This is a big deal. I poked around online exhibition archives to see the frequency with which black female artists have gotten shows at Los Angeles’ big three museums (Hammer, MOCA, LACMA — the city’s three biggest museums regularly showing work by contemporary artists) over the last several years. The numbers leave something to be desired.
The last time a black female artist had a solo museum show at one of the big three was in 2013 when Shinique Smith had an exhibition at LACMA. Smith’s show wasn’t at the museum’s main campus, but rather LACMA’s satellite exhibition space at Charles White Elementary School in the MacArthur Park/Westlake area. The install combined works by Smith with pieces from LACMA’s permanent collection — and Smith did some super cool projects with Charles White students — but certainly, the artist’s visibility was muted by the remote location.
All of this means that, including Crosby’s upcoming show at the Hammer, there will have been a whopping two solo shows by black female artists at L.A.’s big three over a six-year period. The last time a black female artist headlined a major exhibition in Los Angeles was when Kara Walker had her solo at the Hammer in 2008 … seven years ago.
Prior to that, there was a project installation by Brenna Youngblood, also at the Hammer, in 2007, and an exhibition of work by Lorna Simpson at MOCA in 2006. And that’s pretty much it for the last nine years.
So here’s hoping some L.A. curator somewhere has Betye Saar on the speed dial. As Nelson mentioned in our conversation, Saar has been working in L.A. for half a century. Seems like she, along with so many others, might be due for a show.
“Hammer Projects: Njideka Akunyili Crosby” opens Oct. 3. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, Los Angeles, hammer.ucla.edu.
Adweek’s “30 Creatives Whose Smart, Funny and Innovative Work Keeps Advertising Interesting”—as part of “The Adweek Creative 100”—ultimately show what keeps advertising exclusively White.
Advertising Age reported MDC CEO-White Man Miles Nadal is “retiring”—amid an SEC investigation that includes targeting his shady expenses—and will be replaced by CEO-White Man Scott Kauffman. The outgoing Nadal is not eligible for any compensation payments or severance. After all, it would have been pretty obscene if he received loot to offset the $10.58 million he must repay to the company. Hell, given Nadal’s greedy money moves, MDC stands for Million Dollar Crook.
Miles Nadal Stepping Down as CEO of MDC
By Alexandra Bruell
Miles Nadal is stepping down as CEO of MDC Partners and as chairman of the Board of Directors, the agency company announced Monday evening.
Scott Kauffman, who has served as presiding director on the company’s board of directors, will succeed Mr. Nadal as chairman and CEO. Irwin Simon, a current member of the board, has been appointed as presiding director.
Mr. Nadal’s retirement comes amid an SEC investigation, beginning in October, into MDC’s accounting practices, trading information and Mr. Nadal’s expenses. In May, the company said Mr. Nadal would pay back his employer $8.6 million, and that the investigation would be ongoing.
The company Monday evening also announced additional repayment by Mr. Nadal.
“Mr. Nadal has agreed to repay to MDC Partners all expenses that were requested to be repaid by the Special Committee of the Board of Directors, including an additional $1.88 million that was recently identified,” the company said in its statement. “In connection with his retirement, Mr. Nadal is required under the Company’s Incentive/Retention agreements to repay $10.58 million in retention amounts received between 2012 and 2015. In addition, Mr. Nadal is not eligible for any compensation payments or severance.”
Additionally, Michael Sabatino, formerly chief accounting officer of MDC Partners, has resigned and agreed to repay the company $208,535 in cash bonus payments received between 2012 and 2014, the company said.
Mr. Nadal is credited with building MDC into a mid-sized holding company and an investor darling known for its investments and ownership stakes in hot shops like 72andSunny, CP&B and KBS+. He’s known for fostering a culture that offers both support and independence to his shops and their leaders.
An MDC spokeswoman said Monday night that Mr. Kauffman would build on MDC’s success so far. “Under his leadership, we remain wholly committed to the values of innovation and partnership that drive us to attract the best talent in the industry, creating gains for our clients, and ultimately, performance for our shareholders,” she said in an email.
Stock in MDC hit a 52-week low Monday, but it may not be all bad.
In a note to investors, Evercore’s Tracy Young wrote: “We view this evening’s announcement of Miles Nadal’s retirement as largely positive and see his replacement, Scott Kauffman, who has served on MDCA’s Board for the past nine years, as providing a seamless transition near term as the company continues its growth momentum. We view today’s 6% stock decline to a 52 week low as unwarranted and expect some relief in the stock tomorrow although we would note that the SEC investigation remains ongoing, and are keeping our Hold rating.
Advertising Age posted a culturally clueless, clichéd and contrived British Red Cross commercial featuring rapping babies, created by FullSIX Group. Based on the firm’s equally lame Who We Are video, the place is not full of diversity—but they do appear to be full of shit.
Campaign published a story titled, “Adland’s hottest imports”—which essentially showed how diversity is a joke in the London advertising agency community. That is, there appears to be greater enthusiasm for recruiting creatives of color from Argentina and Brazil versus looking locally. It’s also quite probable that more “diversity hires” are coming via international imports, excluding the numerous White women being liberated from their oh-so-terrible woes of underrepresentation. Plus, the faux progress might be completely offset by the White men lured from countries like Germany. London bridges are falling down in regards to building bridges with non-White cultures.
Does this campaign for Campaign put the advertising industry in a positive light? It seems to show adfolks as a self-absorbed bunch concerned with stuff that no one else gives a shit about. And despite the fact that Campaign serves a global audience, all the characters are White.
Campaign reported the Advertising Association pledged to support Prime Minster David Cameron’s crusade to address childhood obesity. AA CEO Tim Lefroy stated in a letter:
“We must turn on the persuasive capability in our creativity and utilise the reach and influence of our brands and media.
“We must work with the government to find effective remedies because that is the proven recipe for positive social change.”
Once again, an advertising wonk believes the industry is capable of affecting social change, despite its abject failure at tackling a simple issue like diversity. Oh, and now you may add obesity to the long list of items that trump diversity. Somebody alert the PM that he’s dealing with big, fat liars.“We must look at regulation, and in partnership with policy makers, seek out the best available evidence and make changes where needed.
AA pledges support to PM tackle obesity
By Gurjit Degun
The Advertising Association has pledged to support David Cameron’s mission to tackle childhood obesity.
In a letter to the prime minister, the AA chief executive, Tim Lefroy, said the issue would “require renewed attention from our industries”.
It follows reports that the prime minister may take personal responsibility for the Conservative party’s commitment to tackle obesity.
The AA said: “We must look at regulation, and in partnership with policy makers, seek out the best available evidence and make changes where needed.
“We must turn on the persuasive capability in our creativity and utilise the reach and influence of our brands and media.
“We must work with the government to find effective remedies because that is the proven recipe for positive social change.” The AA explained to the prime minister that it is the “gateway” to adland’s independent self-regulatory system, which is operated by the Advertising Standards Authority, in conjunction with Ofcom.
Scientific advisors to Public Health England said today that added sugars, or those naturally present in honey, syrups and unsweetened fruit juices, should make up no more than 5 per cent of a person’s daily intake.
Recovering Artist/Writer/Adman Lowell Thompson is working on a sequel to his 1996 book, White Folks: Seeing America Through Black Eyes. The next book is titled Good White Folks—and its work-in-progress content may be previewed at Thompson’s associated blog now.
Energy BBDO Chief Creative Officer Mark Taylor resigned for personal reasons (are there really any other reasons to resign?), and the White advertising agency has no plans to replace him. Such a wasted opportunity to promote diversity by doing something groundbreaking and hiring a White woman for the role.
New MillerCoors Chief Marketing Officer David Kroll said the following about his company’s campaigns: “I think we have been just a bit too scattered across our messaging over the past several years. In any given year we have shifted campaigns three, four, five times. And I think over time that really starts eroding the meaning of our brands. And you will see me very focused on bringing that consistency back.” If he’s like most new CMOs, Kroll will accomplish his goal by replacing all of his shitty White advertising agencies with fresh White advertising agencies. And then resuscitate the Miller Lite Catfight girls.
Hershey Company opted for White chocolate when hiring Peter Horst as its new Chief Marketing Officer. Look forward to Horst planting Hershey’s Kisses on new White advertising agencies.
Former Havas CEO David Jones believes the traditional White advertising agency network could be dead in 10 years. Um, it’s been flatlining for over a decade already—and Jones had a bird’s eye view of the death spiral as a leader of the perpetually impotent Havas.
