Ads left a LOT to be desired

[CinnaMunMun]

Reading about the little science experiment to see what parts of the brain were affected by each commercial and the scientist said something about the economy, I can tell you why they were uneasy:

THEY DIDN'T WANT THE ROBOT TO DIE! I was friggin like: NOOOO!!! Don't die you little not so cute robotic arm! Then it commited suicide! Yea, cute things dying will give negative responses you quacks!

[NameUsedBefore]

Loved the Snickers one and the CareerBuilders (I always love their commercials).

[mdawg2009]

I didnt like that robot one that was pretty stupid. I liked the one with the beard come over, the rock paper scissors one, the blockbuster one, the go daddy one, and the snickers one.

[Kapaibro]

Super Bowl ads draw more fire for insensitivity

Television advertising standards came under fire again this week after several groups called some Super Bowl commercials offensive and demanded they never be aired again.

Advertising experts also gave poor reviews to many of Sunday's Super Bowl commercials, which cost as much as $2.6 million for a 30-second spot, saying they fell short in terms of creativity and sophistication.

Complaints from community groups have gone further, with several demanding spots run for General Motors Corp.'s Chevrolet and Masterfoods USA's Snickers be withdrawn.

GM became the subject of sharp criticism when The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention complained about the insensitivity of a commercial by the automaker that showed a factory robot leaping from a bridge after it was fired for a making a mistake.

The group said in a statement the commercial "is offensive to the tens of millions of survivors of suicide loss nationwide. In its carelessness, it portrays suicide as a viable option when someone fails or loses their job."

GM said the spot was not intended to offend anyone.

"Advertising during the Super Bowl brings instant critiques, both positive and negative," it said in a statement. "We have no plans to change the spot."

Super Bowl spots have been under closer scrutiny since the 2004 National Football League championship game, when an outcry over Janet Jackson's exposed breast during a half-time show led to criticism of crude ads during the game and ignited a debate over indecency standards.

This year's advertisement by Masterfoods, a unit of privately-held Mars, showed two auto mechanics locked in an accidental kiss while eating a Snickers candy bar, then ripping out chest hair to prove they are "manly."

"The makers of Snickers and its parent company at Mars should know better," the Human Rights Campaign said in a statement. "If they have any questions about why the ad isn't funny, we can help put them in touch with any number of Americans who have suffered hate crimes."

Masterfoods said that while feedback from its key customers had been positive, it would nonetheless pull the commercial.

"We know that humor is highly subjective and understand that some people may have found the ad offensive," the company said in a statement.

Kelly O'Keefe, executive education director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Adcenter, said he wanted to see more marketers take creative, sophisticated risks.

"But I think a lot of people have mixed up taking risks creatively and taking risks that offend people," he said.

"This was a year where a lot of things didn't hit the mark," said O'Keefe. "A few laughs and a whole lot of groans."

Even before the Super Bowl aired on February 4 on CBS, drawing the third largest U.S. television audience ever, the National Restaurant Association called an ad featuring Kevin Federline as a fast-food worker demeaning to the industry.

The commercial by Nationwide Financial Services had not even aired when the group called for it to be dumped.

O'Keefe said sensitivity to the ads can be taken too far, and noted that given the size of the audience for the broadcast "there is probably very little we could do that wouldn't create offense by some group."

CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves told a conference this week the network turned away millions of dollars worth of ads it deemed unfit for this year's game.

In one case, he said, the network discussed changing the wording of a film critic's endorsement of the feature film "Hannibal Rising" to remove the word "terrifying."