In the disgusting department, a group called In Defense of Animals is placing a Korean language ad September edition of Korean Journal urging Koreans and Korean Americans to rise up and speak out against the illegal practice or killing cats and dogs for food in Korea.
Featuring a picture of a caged dog taken in the Moran Market in Seoul, the ad asks the Korean government to enforce its laws which prohibit the sale and slaughter of dogs for food. Apparently, the Korean government ignores the alleged beating, boiling, hanging and electrocution of dogs and cats. Butchers say this last minute torture creates an adrenaline rush which enhances the quality of the meat.
IDA says the vast majority if Koreans do not eat dog meat but notes that official figures show there are 6,000 stores in Korea that deal in the bludgeoned dog meat selling trade.
In a new ad campaign for its cell phones, LG is either praying on the actual vanity of tweens, teens and 20-somethings or spoofing the whole idea that anyone would actually consider a phone a fashion accessory.
Either way, it's fun to watch. Also from this week's Ad Age TV Spots of the Week are spots from the American Legacy Foundation's Truth campaign, Campbell Soup's Pace Salsa, GE Medical Technology, Nike's Art of Speed/Gawker promotion, Toyota Scion, EA's Madden Sports 2005 and Footlocker.
 Stuffed Animals or Me? Like that Doublemint commercial that used to say "Double Your Pleasure," a new study conducted by RAND and funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development finds teens who watch a lot of sex-themed TV are twice as likely to have sex. Additionally, it was found that 12 year olds who view lots of sexually charged content act like 14 or 15 year olds who view the least amount. That explains the proliferation of Thirteen-like teenagers strutting around the mall looking like 18 year old hookers.
The study fuels the age old argument of whether media causes changes in societal behavior or whether it simply mirrors it. Kids will imitate what they perceive to be cool. Much of what we see in media does make sex cool. Everyone wants to be attractive and to be desired and that yearning for desire usually manifests itself in the form of clothing and actions designed to get that attention. It's not always that a teen wants physical attention but simply any form of attention and media has instructed kids that looking hot is cool and helps them get what they want. Oh yes, this is blatant generalization but it's a game of one-upmanship - what can one do that will get one noticed more? It's like the Guinness Book of World Records. To "win," the skirts get shorter, the pants get lower, the thongs get higher, the boobs get uncovered and pretty soon everyone's fucking instead off studying.
It's impossible to go back but perhaps we are on the cusp of a generational climax in which we collectively reach a peak celebu-media fueled societal climax, retreat in the afterglow, take a few years off to recover, then re-angage thrusting ourselves urgently, helplessly and uncontrollably towards another inevitable, even more intense, cultural climax.
- Playboy's Hugh Hefner and Pow Entertainment's Stan Lee have joined forces to create the animated jiggle-fest Superbunnies.
- Saturday Night Live Alumna Cheri Oteri has teamed with Alias' J.J. Abrams to created a comedy project for ABC.
- Celebrity fashion brands grow in number. Now, you can even wear John Malkovick on your back.
- Looks like Janet's boob is going to cost CBS-owned stations $550,000 if the FCC has their way.
- Audi launches streaming video ads supporting the launch of its A6. Unlike the BMW films, these will just be long form ads.
In the U.K., Quaker has booted Olympic runner Paula Radcliffe from an upcoming ad campaign for its Oatso Simple following her poor Olympic performance and claiming she no longer lives up to the company's tagline, "It helps you go the distance." Radcliffe had said the product was a favorite pre-race staple and her agent, Sian Masterson, tries to deflect the issue by saying the deal broke not because of her Olympic record but because Quaker could not get script approval from the Broadcast Advertising Clearance Center.
 I'm Richer Than You Bitch Who knew that former Seinfeld star Julie Louis-Dreyfus is heiress to a $2.9 billion dynasty? Compare that to our favorite celebutante of the minute, Paris Hilton, who is heiress to a "paltry" $550 Million dynasty. That's right, Louis-Dreyfus is the daughter of Gerard Louis-Dreyfus who runs Louis-Dreyfus Group, a mega-corp in shipping, energy, real estate, manufacturing and communications.
Noting Louis-Dreyfus actually works and makes money on her own as compared to Hilton's "famous for nothing" lifestyle, Gorillamask's Ryan Perry has examined the two women and published a comparison of their childhoods, lifestyles, work ethics, accomplishments, television careers and achievements. Perry finishes the comparison with a summary of the two.
For Louis-Dreyfus, it's "Responsible, tireless actress who worked her way to the top of the entertainment industry, independently earning a lifetime of financial freedom for her and her family.
For Hilton, it's "Dipshit socialite who wrecklessly rode her family's wealth and ex-boyfriend's dick to the top of the American disgrace that is the reality television food chain." Draw your own conclusions.
From barcodes embedded in songs to product links in DVD's to holographic commercial projections, G-Man Music & Radical Radio President Scott G tells artists who try to fend off advertising encroaching upon their creations to stop complaining. Everything is about promotion. The hit songs on the radio are just promotions (paid in many cases) for album sale as are the lyrics within the songs themselves promotion for other products.
It's all heading toward what we'll call blended advertising.
Advertising that will no longer stand alone but become an integrated portion of content itself. In many cases, we already have that with product integration and adver-movies to name just two, but the ad and the content are, for the most part, still separate entities. We are moving towards a possible future where advertising is no longer a stand-alone effort but a seamlessly integrated component of content. In essence, there will be no more ad agencies but rather, content agencies.
UPDATE: And here's a New York Times piece confirming this notion of "brand wrangler."
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