# Are some companies targeting a-hole s in their commercials? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 17, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967 "2011-01-17T18:14:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/1 "2011-01-17T18:14:16Z")
OK, there seems to be a trend where the “protagonist”, if you will, in the commercial is a complete douche. The most blatant example of this is the ads for Sprint Mobile, the football trainer and the Christmas neighbor. Both of these commercials feature guys using and extolling the virtues of their cell phone plans to be complete passive-aggressive assholes. Sprint, the phone for your inner asshat. Then there is the commercial with women waitresses being jerks to their customers, “stop being a mama’s boy”, “If you weren’t wearing sunglasses inside…” etc. Of course these commercials also feature the commercial staple of unbelievably stupid male…“Would you like one with less taste or more”, “Less”…really? There was another one that I cannot remember that featured a total asshole as “protagonist”, but unfortunately I can’t remember it. Anyway, just venting, probably should be in the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/2 "2011-01-17T18:27:08Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > Then there is the commercial with women waitresses being jerks to their customers, “stop being a mama’s boy”, “If you weren’t wearing sunglasses inside…” etc. Of course these commercials also feature the commercial staple of unbelievably stupid male…“Would you like one with less taste or more”, “Less”…really? I thought the first one they showed was fairly amusing, but I can’t remember what happened in it in particular. I think we’re getting diminished returns with theses ads – moderately amusing premise with less and less funny payoffs available. ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/3 "2011-01-17T18:28:22Z")
Yeah, I’m surprised they still run that Sprint ad with the football doctor. He is a grade A asshole. And what’s with that ATT ad with the guy watching a video on his phone while driving? Cell phone company ads have the worst protagonists. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/4 "2011-01-17T18:31:56Z")
> [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](#): > > Yeah, I’m surprised they still run that Sprint ad with the football doctor. He is a grade A asshole. And what’s with that ATT ad with the guy watching a video on his phone while driving? Cell phone company ads have the worst protagonists. He’s not driving, he’s in the back seat while car pooling. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/5 "2011-01-17T18:36:34Z")
And then there’s the asshole kid whose mother, thank GAWD, has the cool minivan, not the dreadful social suicide cars of some of his less fortunate classmates. God, I want to punch that kid in the mouth. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/6 "2011-01-17T18:47:24Z")
> [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](#): > > Yeah, I’m surprised they still run that Sprint ad with the football doctor. He is a grade A asshole. And what’s with that ATT ad with the guy watching a video on his phone while driving? Cell phone company ads have the worst protagonists. That’s the other one I was thinking about, yeah the guy isn’t driving, but man does he come off as a smug asshole. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/7 "2011-01-17T18:50:51Z")
I’m going to get in the first mention of the Toyoto Highlander kid. Whatta douche. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/8 "2011-01-17T18:53:02Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > I’m going to get in the first mention of the Toyoto Highlander kid. Whatta douche. Missed it by 14 minutes. But at least you remembered the name of the product. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/9 "2011-01-17T18:58:48Z")
Let’s form a lynch mob for that kid! ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/10 "2011-01-17T19:07:07Z")
Shave his head and make him wear boy jeans. Hate the little entitled snot. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/11 "2011-01-17T19:21:45Z")
There’s the car commercial with the guy who smashes out the window of the donut shop and then drives like an asshole so he can get the donuts to the staff meeting on time. “This tiny, boxy car is faster than it looks, so you too can be a dangerous menace on the roads!”\* \*Professional driver on closed course. Do not attempt. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/12 "2011-01-17T19:45:56Z")
McDonalds has been selling anti-jerk coffee for over a year now 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/13 "2011-01-17T19:50:19Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > God, I want to punch that kid in the mouth. Get in line. That kid makes my smackin’ hand tingle. ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/14 "2011-01-17T20:03:50Z")
Though I don’t like to do this, I’m going to quote myself from another thread because I don’t feel like typing it all again. > [@](#): > > I agree completely with the earlier statements about the “perfect mom/useless family” dynamic in commercials. One specific commercial makes me want to burn things. It’s for the Windows Cloud, and features a woman complaining about her family pictures not coming out right. So she uses the computer to “swap in some smiles” and make a picture she can “share without ridicule,” because apparently that’s of huge importance. Her ending line is “Windows gives me the family nature never could” as her now-castrated husband hangs his head in shame. Apparently Windows is marketing directly to the lucrative “total douchebag female” demographic. > > Sharing the area of “ritual humiliation” are the Bud Light commercials featuring a guy, who is not quite as manly and attractive as his buddies, asking the INHUMANLY HOT woman working the bar for a light beer. He, because he is not nearly enough of a massive studbucket, doesn’t care whether he’s getting more taste or less taste. The INHUMANLY HOT bargirl then launches a withering verbal attack on his clothing, and asserts that when he grows a pair of testicles he should come back and get a REAL MANLY BEER which probably is made from the semen of purebred stallions, while the SLIGHTLY LESS HOT girl drinking at the bar sneers at him. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/15 "2011-01-17T20:07:46Z")
> [@GoodOmens](#): > > Though I don’t like to do this, I’m going to quote myself from another thread because I don’t feel like typing it all again. > > > [@](#): > > > > I agree completely with the earlier statements about the “perfect mom/useless family” dynamic in commercials. One specific commercial makes me want to burn things. It’s for the Windows Cloud, and features a woman complaining about her family pictures not coming out right. So she uses the computer to “swap in some smiles” and make a picture she can “share without ridicule,” because apparently that’s of huge importance. Her ending line is “Windows gives me the family nature never could” as her now-castrated husband hangs his head in shame. Apparently Windows is marketing directly to the lucrative “total douchebag female” demographic. Not to mention that the matching plaid shirts will do little to save the family from ridicule. ---
**Author:** ![YamatoTwinkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/cc9497/32.png) [@YamatoTwinkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YamatoTwinkie)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/16 "2011-01-17T20:09:41Z")
There’s the “need a moment” commercial from Twix where the protagonist lies to his girlfriend about his infidelity when she catches him with an incriminating text message. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/17 "2011-01-17T20:23:01Z")
> [@YamatoTwinkie](#): > > There’s the “need a moment” commercial from Twix where the protagonist lies to his girlfriend about his infidelity when she catches him with an incriminating text message. You know, I never took that commercial as him lying. I took it as him going “Holy crap, there’s a girl named Terri texting me. Oh right, that’s my boss.” The girlfriends reaction sounds like she knows Terri too. ---
**Author:** ![Lucky\_13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucky_13/32/13209_2.png) [@Lucky\_13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_13)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/18 "2011-01-17T20:43:30Z")
There’s a local commercial for a family restaurant in which the douchebag guy tells his slightly overweight friend that there’s a breakfast plate from the restaurant for him if he gets to the top of the hill first. The chubby guy motivates himself with visions of said breakfast, and gets to the top only to find himself alone. Meanwhile, douchebag has ditched him and is at the restaurant eating breakfast with another friend, saying “He falls for it every time.” :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/19 "2011-01-17T21:29:32Z")
Isn’t that Axe’s entire demographic? Pubescent aspiring assholes/douchebags? Ed Hardy, too, but I don’t think he advertises. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967/20 "2011-01-17T21:44:55Z")
I don’t get it either. Continental Airlines has one where their service is so good, you’ll expect more from everything else - and there’s Mr. Douchebag, telling a kid at a lemonade stand that he’d like a nice Bordeaux. I try to engage my kids in the message of marketing - so we watch ads and say “okay, sex sells” or “okay, this is a typical $19.95 kid’s product that can’t really do those things as advertised unless you are Picasso” - and then we come to this Douchebag category. Now what? …so when we see the Sprint Mobile ads or this Continental ad, we say “you must really be a weenie if you use our product” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-some-companies-targeting-a-hole-s-in-their-commercials/567967.md?page=2)