Current TV Begs For Content With Times Square Board

When you launch a business that depends on consumer contributed content, you'd better hope consumers contribute. Al Gore's Current TV is on the hunt for content and is doing so with a robot character called ViC and a big Times Square billboard that says AwaitingInput.com.

Domino's Introduces New Pizza With Dude Ranch And Julie Roberts

Country Singer in New York's Herald Square today appeared in a dude ranch set up, complete with bull riding and lasso lessons, to introduce Domino's Pizza's new Steak Fanatic Pizza. The event also introduced a special promotion between Domino's and MasterCard which gives customers a chance to win their own week at a dude ranch. Check out the mechanical bull here.

Escalator Hand Rail Ads Grab Attention

Not much to say about this other than it's a pretty cool choice of ad medium. There's not much to do while riding an escalator so you might as well look at ads on the handrail.

Condo Complex Encourages Loud Sex in Ad

As a selling point, Herald Towers condominiums is promoting its units by touting the very thick walls between dwellings and encouraging residents to "be as loud as you want." Now there's honesty in advertising.

Jack Klues Predicts Future of Advertising

In a keynote at MediaPost's Forecast event, MediaPost reports Starcom MediaVest CEO Jack Klues told attendees "People will change; their desires and demands will change. Their options will change. Channels will change. Clients will change. Our model will change." And on how the industry should position itself to clients, Klues said, "stop counting obsolete things, and gain a better understanding of context. We have to compete and get paid on the power of our people and ideas, not on bargain-basement prices that prohibit us from delivering our promises." If anyone can master these changing waters, it's Jack Klues and Starcom.

Forecast Panelists Bitch Slap Each Other

In a rousing discussion at MediaPosts's Forecast conference, Ephron, Papazian & Ephron partner Erwin Ephron and Viacom Cable Networks VP Betsy Frank took opposite sides regarding the future of advertising. Ephron told attendees, "clutter, inattention, commercial avoidance in the old media, and a manic fascination with the new media ignores the most fundamental change in our business...Advertising doesn't work as well anymore." Frank says that all a bunch of hooey and "absolutely nothing will change" and "cable was supposed to kill broadcast TV, the remote control was going to kill advertising, and the Internet and video games would be the end of TV. So far, they've been adopted, they all co-exist, and people are consuming more of everything." Advertising panels are so much fun, aren't they?

Advertising Week Captured on Flickr

Never underestimate the power of a person with digital camera and a Flickr account. Yaniv Yaakubovich, who lives in Israel, traveled to New York for this week's Advertising Week and has, so far, snapped 105 images of the week's activities. There's sure to be more from Yaakubovich and others during the week.

Half of Americans Distrust Mass Media News

As if something to be excited about, a Gallup poll shows half of Americans trust mass media news organizations to report fully, accurately and fairly. And that's up from previous years. Back in 1976 when news was news rather than entertainment, 72 percent trusted news organizations. Today, it's just a circus of talking heads spewing nonsense, sensationalizing things or relentless teasing for the most minuscule of stories that run during the last minute of the broadcast. Where's Walter when you need him?

Sony Turns to Public For Campaign Advice

As marketers increasingly realize the importance of people's input when it comes to the creation of marketing campaigns, Sony U.K., which turned to Neil McFarland and Jon Burgerman to create art for the Sony PSP Wipeout Pure game, is asking people to vote of which design will be used in the launch campaign.

Wal-Mart Eyes Tommy Hilfiger Acquisition

Although the embattled apparel marketer is operating in the red, to Wal-Mart it represents a chance to draw more upscale shoppers and better compete against Target Stores, which features fashion lines by well-known designers such as Mossimo Giannulli and Isaac Mizrahi.

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Jeep Pimps Out Commander

To launch its new 2006 Jeep Commander, Jeep enlisted Missy Elliot and MAkinE Studios to create a pimped out, hip-hop spot which merges vehicle with music video in a very cool manner. It's certainly much better than most other lame-ass car commercials out there today. Originally designed as a teaser, which aired during MTV’s VMAs, the spots were selected by Jeep to be the primary on-air promotional spot for audiences nationwide. View the commercial here.

Reverse-Challenged Lizzie Grubman to Promote Range Rover Sport

Lizzie Grubman Public Relations, headed by the PR queen who, in reverse, ran over 16 people with her Mercedes SUV a while back, has, believe it or not, been hired by Range Rover to promote its new Sport SUV. How quickly people forget. The New York Post reports Grubman's company is hosting an event at Hamilton Horse Farms in New Jersey where celebu-fluentials have been invited to check out the new vehicle. One invitee was a bit shocked at the brand's choice of representation saying, "It's almost as if O.J. Simpson was doing ads for knives."

Jennifer Lopez to Launch Baby Head Smelling Perfume

Jennifer Lopez, whose fragrance company has already created three scents, Glow, Still and Live, has asked her smell experts to create a new fragrance that smells like the top of a baby's head. Lopez explained, "They were like, 'Let's get specific, what smells intrigue you right now?' and I was like, 'Well, babies. The smell of a baby’s head, you know, the way the top of their heads smell.' As freaky as that may sound, Lopez was also very clear that no babies' heads would be used in the manufacturing process, "None! None, please, please, I don't need those kinds of accusations about babies. No babies went into that bottle!"