Obesity Is Not Marketers' Fault

Dan Jaffe over at the ANA's Regulatory Rumblings blog makes a concise argument, as we have before but with far fewer facts, that lays blame for obesity not on the action of marketers and advertisers b ut squarely on the shoulders of lazy-ass kids, their parents that let them sit on their ass all day long playing video games and schools which have drastically cut back on physical education.

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Eighteen Wheeler Atop Billboard Gets Attention

Not your average outdoor board, this one is sure to attract attention. It's for a Texas truck frame and alignment company.

Crispin Cutie Katie Kicks Podcast Butt

While we think we had already heard Crispin Porter + Bogusky VP of Agency Communications cutie Katie Kempner had launched a weekly podcast called The Hook back in December, It's All Advertising mentioned it to us today so we checked it out for a bit. We like. Each week Katie interviews various advertising luminaries from fellow CP+B people to advertising journalists to brand marketing directors to ad agency professionals. She does a nice job pulling together a cohesive broadcast/podcast, speaks from experience and interacts well with guests but, while it might be easier from a production perspective, we wonder why she's doing it with web broadcaster Web Master Radio which has hideous promos and awful commercial rather than just pumping out a nice podcast directly from Miami. Oh well. We still like it.

Credit Card Offer Increases Breast Size

If a girl signed up for this Plastic Assets credit card, we wonder if a Paris Hilton spending level would cause her breasts to explode or, perhaps, hang to her knees. Yes, The Plastic Assets credit card offers FeelGood Points for each dollar spent which can be redeemed for various surgeries such as tummy tucks, lips injections and breast implants. Applicants can sign up for various card programs ranging from the B card to the DD card. Yes, of course this site is fake and was created solely for the purpose of climbing to the top, which it did, of The Huffington Post's Contagious Festival. It also appears to be created by or at least sponsored by AOL as their banners are plastered all over the site. AdFeak links.

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Insurance Company Says It's No Fun If You're Dead

Vancouver agency Wasserman and Partners has created a series of don't drink and drive commercials for the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia which illustrate just how un-fun it can be trying to do something when you're dead. While the scenarios are ridiculous, the message is fairly clear: there just ain't much to do if you're dead.

'People' Tops Adweek Hot List

Adweek Magazines today released its magazine "Hot List," honoring the inustry's best publications and the people behind them. People magazine is the top winner, ranking No. 1 on the list, with Managing Editor Martha Nelson named Adweek's Editor of the Year. Rounding out the list are O, Real Simple, US, More, Lucky, In Syle, Cooking Light, Glamour and Teen Vogue.

Selection to Adweek Magazine's annual "Hot List" is based on several factors, including ad page and revenue gains, performance within a magazine's competitive category, circulation gains, interviews with media buyers and consultants, and Adweek's own editorial judgment. Magazines must have at least $50 million in advertising revenues and publish ten issues or more annually. The entire report can be viewed here (pdf).

Blank Banners Celebrate Clean Up Australia Day, Online Clean Up Needed

We wish FastClick/ValueClick, Casale Media and all other ad networks and their advertisers would take note of a recent ad campaign by Australian agency NetX for Virgin's sponsorship of Clean Up Australia Day which placed blank ad banners all over Australia's Yahoo home page this past Saturday. The ads remained blank unless the mouse was rolled over them which then revealed the messaging you can view here.

Please. PLEASE ad networks and cheesy advertisers, is there really any need at all to place vibrating banners and pop unders which defy blockers? Do you care about consumer sentiment? Your brand? Have you no pride in the industry you represent? Or is it that you don't give a shit and you'll take money from anyone who has it? I thought so.

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Bus Side Promotes Sopranos Without Mentioning It

Bucky Turco snapped this image of a Sopranos bus side in New York City promoting the re-emergence of the series on HBO. Turco notes he poster doesn't mention Sporanos anywhere on the board. While this certainly isn't earth shattering, it is a sign of a confident brand.

CBS to Offer March Madness Online On Demand

CBS SportsLine in partnership with CBS Sports, CSTV and the NCAA today launched NCAA March Madness on Demand, an online video player that will stream the first 56 games of the 2006 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship as they are broadcast by CBS Sports beginning on March 16th. The broadcasts will be available on NCAASports.com for free. Users can also access MMOD via links on CBS SportsLine and CSTV.com.

CBS thinks MMOD will attract one of the largest audiences in the history of live streaming events on the Internet. Capacity will be available to provide millions of video streams over the course of the Tournament but to manage the anticipated demand during Thursday and Friday, March 16th and 17th, access to the MMOD video player will be managed using a "virtual waiting room." When demand exceeds peak capacity virtual lines will form. Viewers need to apply for a VIP status to insure quicker access.

Umm...wouldn't it be a hell of a lot easier to just turn on the TV?

Christina Aguilera Signs Mobile Music Deal With Orange

The deliciously delectable WireGirl points out Christina Aguilera has signed a marketing deal with mobile service provider Orange, cell phone maker Sony Ericcson and record label SonyBMG. The nine month deal calls for Aguilera to promote the Orange Music service and Sony's new Walkman phones by Ericcson. The last time we saw Christina, she was having a fake orgasms in an office chair for Virgin Atlantic and dressing in hottie nurse, schoolgirl and police woman outfits for Skechers.

Beyond this latest deal, we'll be seeing a lot of Christina in the coming months and years as she has applied to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to have her name attached to 450 yet to be introduced products from crayons to deodorant to badminton.

Oscar Ads Not So Bad, 'Crash' Wins

I didn't watch the entire broadcast of The Oscars but I will tell you this: many of the ads during the broadcast were, far and away, superior to those that aired during the Super Bowl. Miller ran an ad that actually treated beer drinkers as intelligent people. American Express (say what you will about celebrity selling out to that campaign) created an amazing and very quirky commercial featuring M. Night Shamalan. It was brilliant. The ad is currently viewable on the My Life My Card site.

Aside from the ads, the presentation of the honorary Oscar to Robert Altman by Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin was one of the best presentations in Oscar history. The performance put teleprompters and most other actors to shame.

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