The second entry in this week’s "The Best Work You May Never See" gallery—Auburn University’s "Rock-A-Bye," directed by Karsten of Green Dot Films, Santa Monica, for Birmingham, Ala.-based agency Lewis Communications (see p. 17)—is breakthrough work for the usually deadly dull ad category promoting institutions of higher learning.
The spot depicts a one-car traffic accident in which a blown-out tire causes the vehicle to careen out of control. Thanks to an Auburn University research team-designed microchip that causes airbags to deploy faster and more reliably, the life of the automobile driver is saved. The underlying message is that you don’t have to attend Auburn University in order for it to positively affect your life.
"Rock-A-Bye" is airing in various Alabama markets and has been well received, but typically, university advertising gets its greatest exposure during halftime of network-televised college football or basketball games. ESPN and ESPN2 have aired the spot during halftime breaks. But last month, CBS rejected the commercial, contending that it was too violent.
At first, said Carlton Wood, Lewis Communications’ account supervisor on the Auburn University business, he and his agency colleagues were tempted to take their case public, citing the longtime double standard that has existed between network programming and commercials. While displays of violence (i.e. car chases, crashes and explosions) and content of questionable taste pervade network dayparts, ads don’t come close to enjoying the same creative flexibility—even when the violence isn’t gratuitous and is instead employed to convey an intelligent, positive message.
Rather than rattle sabers over this inequity, Lewis Communications and Auburn University decided to press the issue by working behind the scenes. After getting the initial turndown from CBS Sports, according to Wood, the agency and client decided to appeal to the network’s programming department. Wood related that executives at CBS programming didn’t object to "Rock-A-Bye," and communicated that to their CBS Sports counterparts, still deferring the final decision to the sports department. Wood said that last week the network rescinded its earlier decision, and approved the spot for air during halftime of the scheduled telecast of the basketball game between Auburn and the University of Arkansas on March 5.
"It’s not often that you fight for something like this and win," related Wood, who added that he’s grateful that CBS was open-minded enough to reconsider. "But it’s something that was worth fighting for.
"The whole point," continued Wood, "is that we wanted to gain exposure for breakthrough advertising. Sure, our spot is different from what you’re used to seeing on halftime—but that’s the point. Why do another campus, rah-rah fight song commercial with shots of cheerleaders? In today’s market, it’s incumbent upon universities to approach their advertising differently. Thankfully, we had a client in Auburn that was willing to fight on behalf of the work."
During a month’s worth of researching industry advertising practices vis-à-vis the major networks, Lewis Communications was surprised over what it found. Wood noted that the norm for some leading ad players was to show scripts, storyboards and rough cuts of spots to the network well ahead of time. "It’s hard enough to get breakthrough work done without involving the networks," he observed. "Adding another layer makes no sense. It’s like asking the networks, ‘Could you jump in and muck up our spot a little more?’ We weren’t submitting some way-out idea. Yes, it was somewhat violent—but the violence had a purpose."
