It has become evident that the idea of tongue in cheek has eluded some special interest groups in Washington.
The D.C.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) recently held its 14th Annual Harlan Page Hubbard Lemon Awards, doling out gold lemons for the 10 most misleading, unfair or irresponsible advertisements of the year. Apparently, 19th century ad impresario Hubbard spearheaded the use of deceptive advertising when he claimed that Lydia Pinkhams Vegetable Compound cured disorders ranging from cancer to low sex drive.
Among spot advertisers on the dreaded roster were MCIs 10-10-321, Quaker Oatmeal, Saturn, Miller Brewing, American General Financial Group and Ginsana. (Four print ads were also singled out.) Although the majority of the advertisers arguably misled consumers, some felt the lemons represented a lack of humor and poor judgment.
One debatable lemon was awarded by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, which contended that Mans Other Best Friend, a Miller Lite ad created by Fallon McElligott, Minneapolis, appealed to heavy drinkers. The spot shows a groovy young hipster being followed around by a can of Miller Lite that rolls along the sidewalk behind him. The setting is surreal in color and the music is playful. When he passes by a gaggle of leggy babes cooing over a puppy, the girls drop the furry mutt and swarm around the can of beer.
Bruce Silverglade, CSPI legal director and organizer of the Lemon Awards, said, Some alcoholics really feel that the bottle is their best friend. Its a play on words that is used irresponsibly. Agency creatives at Fallon McElligott declined to comment, but Miller spokesman Scott Bussen simply said, Its unfortunate that the organizations choosing these awards are unable to recognize clearly tongue-in-cheek, light-hearted humor in advertising.
A CSPI claim, that Quaker Oatmeals Smart Heart Challenge campaign manipulated test results, caused a small uproar at Quaker. Quaker had asked 100 people from Lafayette, Colo., to eat one bowl of oatmeal every day for 30 days, an attempt to demonstrate oatmeals ability to lower cholesterol. The resultant spot, created by Foote, Cone & Belding, Chicago, chronicles the success of 98 of the Lafayette participants without
mentioning that the test group got so excited about being part of the challenge that they also quit smoking and started exercising regularly.
Margaret Kirch Cohen, a spokeswoman for Quaker in Chicago, said the participants were asked to do only one thing: Eat the oatmeal. They were not asked to make any other changes to their diet or exercise habits, said Cohen. The results of the Smart Heart Challenge in Lafayette were consistent with nearly 40 years of scientific studies that have demonstrated the cholesterol-lowering benefits of oatmeal.
CSPI feels the lifestyle changes skewed the results, making the Quaker ads claim inaccurate. Quaker, however, believes that because it promoted healthy living, the results, however arrived at, are positive, so why complain. Its unfortunate that they have chosen to turn a very positive program into something like this, lamented Cohen.
Its just as easy for Miller to say, Duh, its a joke, as it is for a political watchdog to say, But think of the alcoholics! Either way, it opens advertising up to debate-the Lemon Awards ultimate goal. We want to alert the public to the prevalence of this kind of advertising, said Silverglade, and we also hope to prod the Federal Trade Commission to do its job a little more effectively and urge advertisers to hold themselves to a higher standard of advertising.
