Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!mms From: mms@utgpu.UUCP Newsgroups: alt.flame Subject: television commercials Message-ID: <1987Sep22.001557.16318@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu> Date: Tue, 22-Sep-87 00:15:57 EDT Article-I.D.: gpu.1987Sep22.001557.16318 Posted: Tue Sep 22 00:15:57 1987 Date-Received: Wed, 23-Sep-87 04:35:32 EDT Reply-To: mms@gpu.utcs.UUCP (John J. Chew III) Organization: The Poslfit Committee Lines: 74 Checksum: 53124 One night a few weeks ago, I came home from a hard day's indolence to the numbing comfort of my sofa and The World's Most Important Network (CNN) [why-o-why did the CRTC ever let it across our poor defenseless border?] and for once my intelligence was insulted more by the commercial content than the so-called news coverage. Don't get me wrong - it would be a toss-up except that for some reason it still amuses me to watch the news. I'd rather remote- flip to the TV Listings channel than watch commercials. It's just that that particular night, the battery on my WonderBox (if you're outside of Rogers Cable coverage area, just _don't_ ask about this marvel of technology - the decoder that runs for three or fours on end without overheating) remote control was nearly dead, and rather than face getting up from the womb, I let the commercials flow past my eyes. Commercial #1: An orange-juice commercial for calcium-enriched orange juice. Fine. I understand that some people have problems ingesting calcium in milk because of genetic differences in lactase metabolism. This is therefore a specialty product for what in North America is a minority ailment, right? No. Well, then it's for the middle-to- elderly who are worried about their teeth and bones going brittle, right? No. The main character of the commercial was a mother of a nuclear family, all of whom happily chug the stuff back, from which I presume the message is that no matter what age, if you and your loved ones are not drinking Our Product (I don't even LIKE OJ all that much, especially when it's been reconstituted) then you are Endangering Your and Their Health. They were all eating standard breakfast cereals with milk, for x's sake! How how how is this possible? now. this wasn't too bad. I just thought: "Relax - that was just one commercial that was worse than the norm. Any minute now, there'll be that nice one telling you that you want to join the American Association for Retired Persons, though you're not American and not even 30 yet, or perhaps a nice dinner-time ad for feminine hygiene products or adult diapers or hemorrhoid medication." Commercial #2: An ad for the only major breakfast cereal that has the RDA of dietary calcium in a standard serving. Wait! My mind is not completely mush yet! OJ without cereal I understand. But what percentage of the population eats dry breakfast cereal as is on a regular basis? Certainly not the adorable typical family depicted in this ad. You can get the RDA of Ca in the milk you pour on your kid's cereal: WHY SHOULD YOU FEEL GUILTED OUT FOR NOT GETTING IT TWICE IN THE CEREAL ITSELF? Isn't there a law against this sort of misrepresentation? compared to these, #3 was almost tolerable: Commercial #3: An ad for a hearing-aid for those who have trouble hearing when they go to the movies or in social situations (why just these? don't know.) The problem: the content of the ad was entirely delivered orally, with no text displayed on the screen. No product identification, no 800 number, nothing. If I am hearing-impaired, what good is the ad to me? flame off. ah, that felt better. up until now, I'd send these to /dev/null, but it's nice to have a proper newsgroup for them. -- -- john j. chew (v3.0) poslfit@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu +1 416 463 5403 (300/1200 bps) poslfit@utorgpu.bitnet {cbosgd,decvax,mnetor,utai,utcsri,{allegra,linus}!utzoo}!utgpu!poslfit "Script-G for open, sub-delta for durchschnitt"