April 17, 2009
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Sprout Spots
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This is one of the ones I banged out before delivering. Note the large belly and peek-a-boo bra. Why does Sprout have commercials? Isn't PBS? This vid talks about the ones we saw on there.
I don't like my daughter to see commercials in general. I TiVo and fast-forward through most of them, but sometimes they creep in… what do these ones tell her about the world we live in?
You are so funny. I love it. I hate those commercials, too, brings on way too many questions from my little guy. I can count on you to not be serious ALL THE TIME, sometimes I get a headache from how serious every one is. Yes, hard times, Yes, things are changing, Yes, tragedies do occur. But without a little bit of irreverence and laughter, all the bleakness can get you down. I don't know about other kids, but mine are happier when mommy's laughing at daphne.(sorry sorry sorry, laughing WITH daphne…)
that's sweet! thank you so much. it's fun how cheap most of the most commercials are. the low production value commercials for kids and their deadbeat parents.
So the three levels of class, Daphne, are:
1. Unemployed "losers"
2. Middle class
3. Affluent
??
What about the working poor who, despite working two jobs to make ends meet, are struggling with debt? What about the middle class who have debt? Losers, too? Deadbeat parents?
I'm with Natasha. I was offended by your view of the working-class and people who've been laid off. A little empathy wouldn't hurt.
get a grip ladies! the bit is about the commercials and who they perceive their viewers to be. In the middle of "noddy" there is a low production value commercials about "buy direct". It's a juxtaposition. It's funny. What you think the products that prey on on financially strapped people should be lauded?
i'm with you on this one daphne - though I KNEW this vlog would yield comments like these. don't worry about it. it was funny and right on, from my little corner on the planet. touche'.
Maybe it's too 'belly of the beast' ie: not everyone understands the inner workings of media and Madison Ave but when you do understand how much money is spent on understanding the demo in order to target YOUR very needs and wants… you might see her point is very well-taken. And why on children's programming? That's where we go for happy-chirpy, not that awful ad for drug rehab where the dad is yelling at the kids….
Daphne, I think you need to get a grip on a thesaurus. Your point was not well articulated and ended up being overshadowed by you saying that people who need help with debt or who want to pay as little as necessary for services are "losers" with a big capital L stuck to your forehead. In fact, I'd have to make assumptions about what you REALLY meant to even get to a point that is not offensive. You said, "Do they think we're all unemployed?" as if "unemployed" were a dirty word. And then your image of an unemployed person is someone who just sits their kid in front of the tv (in the morning) and throws back "a brewski"?
Heather, I was going to make the very same point that you've made, that gee– maybe they did some market research and they discovered that the parents who let their kids watch mind-numbing shows like NODDY are generally the same parents who are struggling to make ends meet. And really not everyone who wants to save money or who has some credit card debt is someone who's "struggling to make ends meet". Companies wouldn't spend hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars on advertising that doesn't reach its target market AT ALL.
So, really, Daphne's vlog sounded like a stuck-up, completely oblivious, "Aren't most people like ME?" message.
I am a part of the upper middle class in Canada. My husband is a D.A. (though we have a different title for the position here), I'm a stay-at-home-mom of four, we have a very nice house and very little debt which we'll pay off shortly. I wasn't offended by this post because I felt like I was one of the people being made fun of (because I'm not); I was offended because it was offensive, especially in light of these tough, tough financial times! The last statistic I heard was that half a million people are laid off in the US every month. Maybe THAT is what PBS has in mind when featuring such commercials.
People who are well-off should be humble about it. There are people who make far more than my husband does who work far less and, there are people who work just as hard as my husband, with almost as much education, and make a pittance; the amount of debt one has and the family struggles one may have because of the stress of having little disposable income, does not define one's Loser Status. In fact, the only people for whom those commercials could not benefit are those with money to waste… like maybe on a $20 cup of coffee.
I'm sure it's hard to find something new to talk about everyday and to try and turn it into a humorous bit. I have an idea of how difficult it might be because I purposely don't stick to only funny blog posts when I blog almost everyday– it's tough. I just think it shows true talent when jokes are not at the expense of anyone else (even celebrities who dress strangely). When people can be funny and positive, that really impresses me. A recent Momversation video asked if the Internet is too negative. A lot of people said it was and said they were tired of it. This vlog post didn't really help the cause for less snark and more sun on the Internet.
okay, I get it, I didn't hit the bullseye. I have been VERY affected by the recent downturn, will probably do more about that in the future. In stand up when you do a joke and it doesn't land, you go back up another night and try it a little different till you get it right. In this medium I don't have that luxury. I still stand by my premise.
why do they think people watching sprout want these commercials? should they be selling some plastic junk to our kids?
another thought… sometimes i'm going to offend some people and that's okay. Cause when I started this I didn't want it to be babycenter. A generic, no edge site. I really admire entertainers who aren't afraid of offending or changing things up. I don't really have that kind of guts.
Er, I'm pretty sure Daphne wasn't saying needing a loan = being a loser.
i think she was saying these commercials are DEPICTING needing a loan = being a loser. Which is ridiculous.
Maybe they don't have these super-low-budget, commercials in your neck of the woods, Natasha? They are way over-the-top and you can't help but giggle - no matter what your situation. (And I'm unemployed, so I could get all sensi if I chose to.)
I can guarantee you these companies are not spending big bucks on market research. Because nobody, but nobody, would identify with these spots.
Placing them in a kid's show time slot makes zero sense, but I guess my point is they shouldn't be placed ANYwhere - they're poorly made and offensive.
I hear ya, Daphne. Whenever I'm watching some innocuous daytime show for old people like "Matlock" and one of these crazy commercials comes on I go REALLY??
bluejeanamy– if that was the point Daphne was making, I would have been very interested. As I said, I didn't think it was well articulated that it was a comment on a company's interpretation of a class of America rather than a comment on Daphne's interpretation on that same class. There was much, much room for misinterpretation because, no, not everyone, even Americans, would have seen those exact commercials. I see commercials all the time for Buy Direct, cheap cable, credit card consolidation, etc. and I've never found any of them offensive nor would I judge anyone depicted in the commercial to be a loser. Ya, maybe I am not watching the same ones you are.
When I do a video and what I'm trying to say doesn't come out right, I do it over. It's not live vlogging, right?
ah, Natasha, I got what I was saying and some did and others, like you didn't. I'm done with the whole subject now! I've told it to grab it's stuff, get out of here and don't let the door hit you on the way out.
Perhaps the only products selling and with an ad budget these days are those for a down economy.
My son watches Nick sometimes and it used to be a lot more 'kid product' ads (of which I am also no fan!) but now it is infomercials for the upside down tomato plant and the toothpaste dispenser. Again, are kids gonna buy these? Or ask Mom too? I just think they are only ones buying the ad space.