Do these weird SPCA ads send the wrong message?

These Malaysian SPCA ads by M&C Saatchi are easy enough to understand: Pets are more fun than toys.

But should the SPCA be pushing pet adoption in this way? Dogs and cats are not at all like the toys in these ads; they're a long-term commitment that can't be tossed aside like a gumball machine trinket.

Tip via Ads of The World.

HP: The Official Brown Sauce of Yobs?

Lucy Clark, senior brand manager at HP, told The Drum:

"As this is the first HP TV advert in five years, we wanted to implement a high-impact multimedia campaign around it that’s packed full of attitude and grabs the attention of younger male consumers, reminding them that the big, bold flavour of HP Sauce is the ultimate sauce of manliness for a bacon sandwich.”

Ultimate sauce of manliness? Oh.



Carrie Hindmarsh, CEO at M&C Saatchi, said of their work:

“At last, after a five year absence, HP is back with a brand new campaign – to reveal the simple, unvarnished truth about modern men. This ad neatly sums up what modern manliness means – a love of sport, mastering DIY and of course, HP Sauce.”

The campaign is aimed at men between the ages of 25 and 44, who buy into the "we're just a bunch of stupid little boys who are not responsible for our actions" trope.

I know, I know. It's humour. It's also an example of what Sociological Images' Lisa Wade has called "an anti-intellectualism that is specifically male."

It looks fairly harmless, and it probably is. And advertising does not create social trends, it reflects and reinforces them. I'm just saying that it is a tired and annoying one. Even if it ends up selling more "sauce of manliness" to those who like to be categorized this way.

Also, "Manwich"? Taken:

Really taken:

I wonder how the "ultimate sauce of manliness" works into that one?

Fighting brutality with brutality

The following PSA was banned from British TV for disturbing imagery:



Created by Beatbullying, a UK charity that works with kids and professionals to try to reduce bullying and give victims a voice.

Produced by M&C Saatchi, the campaign is dedicated to the memory of bullied student Megan Gillan — a 15-year-old who fatally overdosed in her bedroom early in 2009 after an organized campaign of bullying by peers on Bebo.



According to Charities Aid Foundation, the ad was refused permission to air on TV in the UK by Clearcast after it was deemed "too brutal" for younger viewers. Instead, it will air in cinemas during films that only allow unaccompanied kids of 12 and over.

The following is Clearcast's rationale for the broadcast ban, but if you don't have time to view it all, it can be summed up in these words "people don't like to see upsetting images".



Personally, I don't think it's over the line. It's jarring and disturbing, but it makes an important point. And I think it's quite respectful to the victims.

The ironic part is that it is also all over YouTube anyway, a medium young kids are much more likely to be browsing.