"You know, girls are nuts to begin with..." (Hershey's chocolate TV ad)

[Bossy Monkey]

What fresh hell is this?! Who exactly is this going to appeal to? Is there a new ad agency, Clueless Ads for the Clueless? Just wondering.

[China_cat]

1. All part of the push

to put us back in the kitchen and the delivery room.

[Tom Kitten]

2. Fight the power

Just say, no more candy, kids, gotta pay for gas and we ain't making any more money, so something's gotta go!

And let that just be the beginning!

[yvr girl]

3. Hershey's is shit anyway

Way too much wax

[Heidi]

6. If I were boycotting a company's sexist advertising, I'd tell my kids . .

exactly why, in easy-to-understand language.

[derby378]

4. Haven't seen the ad yet

If we don't like what we see, we may be buying more Ghirardelli in the near future. Frisco chocolate!!

[Bossy Monkey]

5. That was actually the mild part

The imbecile goes on to say (paraphrased), "You give a girl chocolate and she goes (special extra imbecilic voice), 'OH! CHOCOLATE! I'M SO HAPPY!' It's a great way to meet women." Utterly, completely beyond belief. I grasp that it's supposed to be funny; I don't get who it is that's going to think it's funny.

Yes, Ghirardelli’s terrific. We weren't terribly likely to buy Hershey's anyway, but I'm pretty sure we're done with them for the forseeable future.

[TrogL]

9. Homophobic

I'm a guy and I go 'OH! CHOCOLATE! I'M SO HAPPY!'

[bloom]

33. One of the aspects of a successful ad

is the level of emotion it produces (according to the ad people). So to them - this is successful - high emotion - you remember it.

Apparently they hope that you will forget you are pissed off - and/or they hope men will like it and buy more chocolate.

The Enzyte (sp?) commercials seem like this. Everyone hates the ads - but people more or less know what Enzyte is.

I try to remember obnoxious "hooks" that ads use. For instance - I will boycott Pizza Hut forever for using Rush Limbaugh in their ads (10 years ago or whenever).

[YellowRubberDuckie]

7. I'm a nut, and I'm a girl...

And I think there are better things in this world to get pissed off about. I'm sure there are kids getting abused right now that no one is giving a shit about. Focus your anger on more worthy causes.
Duckie

[derby378]

8. Saw the commercial

The more I think about it, the guy speaking isn't much of a prize. Maybe the joke's on him.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

14. THAT I believe was the point.

[Ellen Forradalom]

26. It's called sexism

and is well worth fighting. It's a better world when whole classes of humanity aren't slandered by advertising.

[Pithlet]

30. But

As long as other problems exist in the world, we aren't allowed to be outraged by anything else. Don't you get it? :sarcasm:

[YellowRubberDuckie]

32. I only meant that in THIS CASE...

Not in every case. Jeez.
Duckie

[Pithlet]

34. Still doesn't make sense

The two problems are totally unrelated. It seems you were insinuating that because there are starving children, we can't be outraged at sexist marketing. Why? Can't we be upset by both? Does everyone have to be on your page when it comes to topics worthy of upset? If you don't give a fig about it, then that's fine. But don't come into the thread and presume to tell the rest of us not to be.

I didn't mean it to be personal. I just hate it when ANYONE does that. It's presumptuous. I always want to respond by saying something like "Well, fax me your personal list of priorities so we'll know what to discuss in the future".

Edited spelling

[YellowRubberDuckie]

35. Because the guy is kinda a loser...

That's why I thought it was funny and thought getting angry about it was silly. I think they were making fun of him.
Duckie

[Pithlet]

36. That's fine.

I just don't think you can expect a kind response when you tell others how to feel about it.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

40. Some people get offended for getting offended's sake.

[Pithlet]

41. Okay

:shrug:

[Pithlet]

37. And I'm sorry for the sarcasm

It's just a hot button with me. I could have handled that better.

[CTLawGuy]

10. anyone who insinuates

that women are anything less than infallible deities is unambiguously sexist and should be executed forthwith.

[Bossy Monkey]

12. You may be missing the point

What I'm asking is to whom would the ad appeal? I'm not seeing anybody. Regardless, there's miles difference between saying that all women are complete idiots, which the ad does, and "insinuating that women are anything less than infallible deities." Reductio ad absurdum is my favorite thing, but this doesn't measure up.

[CTLawGuy]

19. I haven't seen the ad I admit

but somehow I don't think it goes so far as to say "all women are complete idiots." That doesn't sound like a smart marketing strategy, but you'd be surprised with some people I guess...

[peekaloo]

27. I love that pic in your sig line.

:thumbsup:

[CTLawGuy]

38. thanks :)

that's my premonition for Joe in 2006.

[onager]

11. Our British cousins also do this with choco...

Check out this campaign for the Yorkie bar. I saw these things when I was working in Egypt earlier this year, and went "WTF?"

The wrapper has the international "no" symbol, a red slash thru a circle with a girl standing inside. Also the slogan "Do Not Feed The Birds." Etc.

I bought one just to see what it was like. Nothing special. Just a block of fairly bland milk chocolate. Sort of like a Chunky without the nuts and raisins.

http://www.ananova.com/business/story/sm_553292.html

[Robeson]

13. It brings to mind the diamond commercials....

...where it shows a couple coexisting with each other, then voila, the husband pulls out a diamond ring or necklas, and the his wife loves him all over again. Message: if you want to earn and keep your wife's love, buy her diamonds...

[Bouncy Ball]

15. On just about every sitcom with a family the dad is portrayed

as a bumbling idiot who couldn't find his ass with both hands and a flashlight, much to the comedic de-lite of American audiences!

Which is why we don't watch shows like that. Man bashing goes on, too.

[VelmaD]

16. yes, but dumb dad is also usually pretty hefty...

while his wife is rail thin. Yeah, that's how it happens in real life. :eyes:

[Bouncy Ball]

22. Oh yeah that too.

Why is it ok for the dad to be all paunchy and have about three chins, but the mom is totally cute and thin?

EH?

And why do you NEVER see it the other way around in sitcoms?

[VelmaD]

25. Well that's an easy one...

it's because it's ok for guy's to be chubby...but fat women are hideous gorgons that no man would ever want. :eyes:

[Left Is Write]

23. Er, well...it does, sometimes.

:blush:

[Left Is Write]

18. Precisely why I hate the JC Penney ads for "one day sales."

Invariably, Dad is left with the children while Mom goes shopping at the fabulous JC Penney sale. Dad can't figure out how to feed or dress the child, or the child makes a mess all over the house and/or Dad.

Clueless, Dad sighs, "Where's your mother?"

The voiceover says, "Don't worry, Dad! It's only one day!"

The message that fathers can't be trusted alone with their children, don't know how to care for their children, or would be at sea if left alone with the children is appalling. I brought that subject up for debate at another website once, and I was pooh-pooh'd. Most responses said, "It's only a commercial!"

As if advertising doesn't have any influence on shaping opinions or perpetuating harmful stereotypes.

[Bouncy Ball]

21. EXACTLY.

I HATE that commercial, too. It's ridiculous! My husband saw it before I did and I came in the room and he was snorting and telling me how insulting it was.

No shit. VERY.

[Pithlet]

31. They manage to insult both sexes

Men are incompetent boobs who can't care for their own children, because it is obviously a woman's job. Commercials are the worst for projecting stereotypes.

[peekaloo]

17. I find that commercial creepy.

Like the dude is hanging around schoolyards offering candy bars.

[SOteric]

20. Heck yes. Nothing gets my hormones fired up

like questioning my sanity and then expecting me to make a tart of myself if a dude just waves around some cheap-ass chocolate.

Hubba.

Hold me back.






Valrhona maybe, but not Hershey's. :evilgrin:

[sparky_in_ma]

24. K

I just had to try.:D

[SOteric]

29. *LOL*

:thumbsup:

[texas1928]

28. Well I did not want to say anything.

BUT They are.

Ducks and hides

:hide:

Then puts on flame retardant suit.

[DS1]

39. Just spelling out what hardware store and pizza ads say about men

:shrug:

[sendero]

42. Well..

... I hope anyone who is steamed by this is equally frosted by the plethroa of ads where men are portrayed as clueless dolts taking up space around the house.

Me? I don't get annoyed at such ads because I know I'm nothing like that. If you get mad at an ad be sure it doesn't "strike a chord". :)

[Pithlet]

43. Why?

Why can't a person see an ad and be pissed off by it? Why does it have to be so complicated? Just because a person is pissed off by one thing DOESN'T mean they aren't pissed off by other things as well. Why can't we talk about how women are stereotyped without "Well, it happens to MEN, too!". GAAAAAAAAH!

This thread is pushing all of my buttons. :rant:

[sendero]

44. Because if you are only pissed..

... when women get "dissed", then you are a sexist. Grok?

[Pithlet]

45. Nope

I don't understand how you can determine all that from one post. Sorry.

[sendero]

46. I didn't determine...

.. jack shit. I said "if". The fact that I'll bet you a dollar to a doughnut that the OP doesn't mind when men are portrayed as bumbling fools doens't enter in to it.

[Pithlet]

47. How do you know?

You're making an assumption. Nothing based on fact. I think it is perfectly reasonable to talk about ONE commercial, one that happened to air recently. I think it is sexist to assume that a person ranting about one commercial doesn't care about the opposite sex. Do you just assume that all women who complain about any offenses against them are sexist? It's very typical to be accused of man hating whenever anyone dares assert anything as far as women's issues are concerned.