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Sunday, September 18, 2011

On the Commercialization of Hate
-- Pardon My Rant --





All right, pretty cool commercial. 
Clean design, smart graphics, brief, edgy.
And for those of us who can't stand the buffering wait, bang on.

But is anybody else outraged by this flippant commercialization of hate? --An emotional force responsible for mundane violence at best. At its worst, it's the seed of racism, murder, war, and genocide.

Obviously, this marketing team has brilliantly captured my attention; thus the commercial is doing its job--making me think of Verizon. But I wonder if it's in the company's best interest for its audience to associate a morally reprehensible marketing campaign like this with its own name and branding: Hate equals Verizon Wireless.

In this age, "going viral" means "being edgy." And success is a matter of viewer numbers. But using "hate" as your catchword crosses a line.

Can't we do without the hate?
Know of any other campaigns with similar strategies?
What's your opinion on the issue?

7 comments:

  1. unikorna9/19/2011 10:21:00 AM

    I agree with you, I think this is a very wrong message. Mother Theresa said something once that followed me all my life: " I am not anti war I am pro peace".

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  2. Alleged Author9/19/2011 06:22:00 PM

    It was so flippant that I said WTF aloud while watching. Still trying to puzzle the dang commercial together. What does "hate" have to do with it?

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  3. Unknown9/20/2011 10:14:00 AM

    To be fair, I think they're playing on "hate the buffering wait," you know... on smart phones while the videos, etc, load. But good golly!

    I'm writing a letter to corporate. Ha! I feel like one of those crazy people, but somehow, that's okay with me :)

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  4. Unknown9/20/2011 10:14:00 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  5. Lorena9/20/2011 07:28:00 PM

    I'm with Alleged Author here, I couldn't even understand the concept. I just know it bugged me! Lora, I'll sign your letter if you need support!

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  6. Nancy Thompson9/22/2011 05:40:00 PM

    Yeah, all they want is your attention and since the attention span of most Americans is like 10 seconds, they have to kick you in the teeth with whatever is edgy at the moment. I DVR everything I watch so I don;t even see the commercials anymore.

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  7. Unknown9/22/2011 09:25:00 PM

    @Lorena I sent the letter out today! Hopefully, it'll sway someone who makes decisions, and if not, I'm coming back with signatures. I'll gladly have yours!

    @Nancy I know. It is the way the world works.... Maybe I'm being old-fashioned, but I just think a few things should be off-limits.

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