Kindle ad gives a shout-out to equal marriage

Worth watching:



Nice work. A little forced, but it's progress.

A feather in the cap for Amazon. But Google managed to screw it up.

According to Queerty:

...a Queerty reader tipped us off this morning that YouTube has removed the ad for Amazon’s e-reader because of a “violation of YouTube’s policy against spam, scams and commercially deceptive content.” 

He wrote, “I checked the link, and confirmed that was what happened: no video, but a notice that it had been removed.”...
Fortunately, by this afternoon the ad was back on the site.

Apparently, YouTube reacted to user complaints against the ad as "inappropriate", while allowing several homophobic comments to stand (in a violation of their own policy). Boo.

Tip via Buzzfeed

Rebrand of Green Gables

Via Amazon

Canada is a-Twitter over this new release of the national classic Anne of Green Gables series. For some reason the publisher, Amazon's CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, decided to present the iconic Edwardian redhead as a buxom blonde modern cowgirl.

I guess the designer (and whoever approved the cover) didn't read much of the series.

From the beginning Chapter Two:

Matthew was not looking at her and would not have seen what she was really like if he had been, but an ordinary observer would have seen this: A child of about eleven, garbed in a very short, very tight, very ugly dress of yellowish-gray wincey. She wore a faded brown sailor hat and beneath the hat, extending down her back, were two braids of very thick, decidedly red hair. Her face was small, white and thin, also much freckled; her mouth was large and so were her eyes, which looked green in some lights and moods and gray in others.

Apparently the designer had never been to PEI, or seen another Anne book cover, or doll, or TV show, or movie...

But hey! Why let classic children's literature get in the way of "sex sells"?

Dress your tween daughter as a "sassy squaw" this Halloween

My sister-in-law, Laura L., shared this picture from a Facebook. I'm used to Halloween being a celebration of awkward and/or offensive stereotypes, but "squaw"? Seriously?

The term was once common for indigenous North American women, entering English as a loan word from the Algonquian languages, but is now usually considered a derogatory (by some, even obscene) term.

This costume is marketed by inCharacter. Here it is in their catalogue:

The company also makes "adult" versions, but omits the "s" word:

The "Sassy Squaw" costume is also for sale at Amazon.com, Sears.com, ebay's Shopping.com and Buy.com (where it was renamed "Sassy Indian Maiden Costume") along with a number of other stereotyped native costumes for girls.

To my First Nations nieces, and all Aboriginal women: I am sorry this shit is still happening.

Bic Cristal for Her Ball Pens now has a TV ad

"Finally! A pen for girls!"

What the hell is going on with Bic pens? I posted earlier this week about the Canadian ad they pulled of its Asian stereotypes and insensitivity towards condemned prisoners.

But the bigger story, which I skipped since others had it well-covered, was its disastrous launch of a pretty line of Bic Cristal for Her Ball Pens.

Yeah, products that target gender stereotypes are nothing new, but mocking this particular one became a kind of sport for amateur feminist wits on Amazon, which caused the hilarious fail to go viral.

Here's an example:

Someone has answered my gentle prayers and FINALLY designed a pen that I can use all month long! I use it when I'm swimming, riding a horse, walking on the beach and doing yoga. It's comfortable, leak-proof, non-slip and it makes me feel so feminine and pretty! Since I've begun using these pens, men have found me more attractive and approchable. It has given me soft skin and manageable hair and it has really given me the self-esteem I needed to start a book club and flirt with the bag-boy at my local market. My drawings of kittens and ponies have improved, and now that I'm writing my last name hyphenated with the Robert Pattinson's last name, I really believe he may some day marry me! I'm positively giddy. Those smart men in marketing have come up with a pen that my lady parts can really identify with. 

Where has this pen been all my life???

Now, to add fuel to the fire, they've released a TV campaign:



Hey, at least people are talking about these issues now.

Used... WHAT?!? #FdAdFriday

Note that the "used" ones cost almost twice as much as the new. Is this some weird new fetish I am somehow unaware of?

Via The Consumerist

Talking dolls have some choice words for Christmas shoppers

The ridiculously overpriced "You & Me Interactive Triplet Dolls" set, sold at Toys R Us this Christmas season, created by LearnRight Toys, have something to say to American shoppers who are a little too obsessed with the mad rush for deals this "Black Friday":



Listen to the baby. Stop the craziness.

Via The Stir

F'd Ad Fridays: Painfully effing obvious product placement

Flavorwire shared this.



No, it is not an ad. At least not in the traditional sense. It's apparently from series 5, episode 3, but I can't be bothered to slog through online transcripts.

I haven't seen that kind of in-episode shilling since Fred and Barney took a smoke break.

F'd Ad Fridays: American stereotypes, cast in polyresin for your enjoyment

I was doing my usual rounds for content, and decided to see if I could find any tacky Jesus Christ toys on Amazon. (There were many.)

And then I stumbled upon this:

Jesus is part of the "American Diorama" series of die cast metal miniatures. You can also buy his girlfriend Erika, complete with acid wash jeans and slutty top:

Am I reading too much into the choice of a Latino name for this guy?

BTW, he also has a twin brother, Jose, who for some reason costs $2 more.

Ah, wait... here's the problem. They screwed up the product shot. According to the manufacturer's site, Jesus is actually this car thief:

His half-dressed girlfriend is Monica.

And he likes to steal police cars.

Man, Sheriff Dave is going to be pissed.

Once he finishes writing up these very strange looking rednecks for open liquor at their tailgate party.

And runs the Hell's Angels out of town...

And don't even ask what he's going to do to Sailor Moon (...?)

Ah, America...

Check out Monica's Arschgeweih...

The race to the middle

This comic by The Joy of Tech is painful to read because it's so damned true. As technology moguls and social media platform nabobs keep stealing each other's best ideas in a rush of "me too", we're left with a choice between vanilla and vanilla.

Convergence isn't always a good thing. I especially hate it when people post the same update on Twitter, Linkedin and Facebook. Every time I see a hashtag on my Facebook wall, I feel broadcast at. And Amazon, a place where I occasionally buy CDs and books, keeps trying to be Wall-Mart. (Or even worse, to be my friend.)

I like my brands specialized, focussed on doing one or two things better than everyone else. When they all have similar offerings, I don't know who I'm supposed to connect with where. The whole thing loses intimacy in the noise of too many channels and offerings. But perhaps I'm part of a dying breed.