The “Tsunami” print and video ads created by DDB Brasil for the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)–which triggered controversy not only for their content but also for allegedly being unqualified award show entries–have now resulted in the One Club instituting a stringent “fake ads” policy for the One Show beginning in 2010.
The “Tsunami” print ad garnered a Merit honor from the One Show earlier this year but DDB Brasil has since said its entry of the work into the competition was a mistake. The One Club then stripped DDB Brasil of the Merit kudo.
Reportedly both the print and video ads were also submitted to this year’s Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival, but made no headway with judges.
The ads depict multiple planes approaching the World Trade Center towers in Manhattan. This scene is coupled with the observation that the tsunami (presumably the one that struck southern Asia in Dec. ’04) killed 100 times as many people as those who perished during 9/11.
DDB Brasil issued an apology for the ads on its website from agency president Sergio Valente.
Valente wrote, “While the work was developed by a team of young creatives seeking to make the point that nature is a powerful force, the work should never have been approved at the agency, let alone have run anywhere or been submitted for awards.
“The work, which ran just once locally in print and on cable, and the attention, concern and offense it has caused, has underscored the point that today no ad is truly local,” continued Valente. “I emphasize this work does not reflect our thoughts and our beliefs about 9/11. On behalf of all of DDB Brasil, I offer my most sincere apologies and regrets to those who were offended by this work.”
Definition and implementation
In light of the “Tsunami” ads, the One Club has taken it upon itself to define “fake ads” and initiate punishment for their entry into the One Show.
The One Club defines “fake ads” as: ads created for nonexistent clients or made and run without a client’s approval, or ads created expressly for award shows that are run once to meet the requirements of a tear sheet.
Thus starting in 2010, the One Show will be adopting the following new rules and penalties.
o An agency or regional office of an agency network that enters an ad made for nonexistent clients, or made and run without a client’s approval, will be banned from entering the One Show for five years.
o The entire team credited on the “fake” entries will be banned from entering the One Show for five years.
o And an agency or regional office of an agency network that enters an ad that has run once, on late night TV, or has only run because the agency produced a single ad and paid to run it themselves, will be banned from entering The One Show for three years. (The One Club reserves the right to review “late-night, ran-once” and launch versions, at The One Club’s discretion. If it is determined that the ad was created expressly for award show entry, the penalty will hold.)
“The One Club exists to champion excellence in advertising and design in all its forms,” stated Kevin Swanepoel, president of The One Club. “We will stringently enforce these rules and penalties to ensure that The One Show remains the pinnacle of advertising and design created for marketers and brands. The One Show encourages other international award shows to follow suit with similar policies. In addition, we are in the process of developing an initiative in the agency and creative communities, in which individuals and agencies will be called upon to monitor and eliminate ‘fake’ ads at their source. A detailed guidelines will appear in the 2010 One Show call for entry.”
Disney Pledges $15 million In L.A. Fire Aid As More Celebs Learn They’ve Lost Their Homes
The Pacific Palisades wildfires torched the home of "This Is Us" star Milo Ventimiglia, perhaps most poignantly destroying the father-to-be's newly installed crib.
CBS cameras caught the actor walking through his charred house for the first time, standing in what was once his kitchen and looking at a neighborhood in ruin. "Your heart just breaks."
He and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, evacuated Tuesday with their dog and they watched on security cameras as the flames ripped through the house, destroying everything, including a new crib.
"There's a kind of shock moment where you're going, 'Oh, this is real. This is happening.' What good is it to continue watching?' And then at a certain point we just turned it off, like 'What good is it to continue watching?'"
Firefighters sought to make gains Friday during a respite in the heavy winds that fanned the flames as numerous groups pledged aid to help victims and rebuild, including a $15 million donation pledge from the Walt Disney Co.
More stars learn their homes are gone
While seeing the remains of his home, Ventimiglia was struck by a connection to his "This Is Us" character, Jack Pearson, who died after inhaling smoke in a house fire. "It's not lost on me life imitating art."
Mandy Moore, who played Ventimiglia's wife on "This Is Us," nearly lost her home in the Eaton fire, which scorched large areas of the Altadena neighborhood. She said Thursday that part of her house is standing but is unlivable, and her husband lost his music studio and all his instruments.
Mel Gibson's home is "completely gone," his publicist Alan Nierob confirmed Friday. The Oscar winner revealed the loss of his home earlier Friday while appearing on Joe Rogan's... Read More