Banned commercial...WTF???

The BBQ Pit
1

Okay, I actually got to watch the news because I didn’t go to work the other night.

NBC has pulled the Nike commercial that has the “chainsaw killer” and the distance runner in it.

Several agencies and individuals have complained, stating that it “promotes violence against women” or some other such bullshit.

What the fuck is this all about? What the hell is the world coming to?
And how in the hell can anyone possibly be ignorant enough to think that the commercial propagates violence at all, let alone against women?

Did these people even see the commercial at all?

She got away! The guy came after her with a chainsaw, and she was smart enough to run the fuck away. She ran, shut the door, and after tripping a couple of times turned on the after burners and beep!beep! straight smoked that fool in the mike myer’s look-alike outfit.

So what the hell’s the deal? I mean, I can grant these people their ignorance of genre typical horror flics, but come on! It was a great commercial.

And the idiocy of the whole premise that a commercial can “encourage violence against women”.

Even if a commercial came out that blatantly encouraged men to kill women ran during the super-bowl, I would not think of beating my girlfriend. I can’t imagine anyone sitting and watching TV, when a commercial comes on, depicting a man beating a woman to death with a remote, and then thinking to themselves “Hmmm. I wasn’t going to kill my wife, but now, what the hell?”

The whole idea is so idiotic, it makes me sick. I am so glad that I have this commercial on tape so I can keep it because it rocks. I hope Nike doesn’t puss out and continues to produce great commercials that this one.

Damn!

2

Erm, I meant “…like this one…”

3

Here’s the story.

4

I pay little attention to TV commercials (and not a hell of a lot more the the rest of it), but I found nothing threatening in that one. Indeed, now that my attention has been called to it, I think it made it’s point pretty well.

It further makes the point that a small group of rabid people can easily influence a vast majority simply by the ear-ringing volume of their obnoxious voices. It matters not at all what these single-minded, shitheads are snivveling about, they too often get their way due to a lack of spine in their targets and the apathy of the rest of us, myself included.

As the saying goes, the shriking wheel gets the grease.

Of course, occasionlly they’re on the right track, but for the most part, they need to SHUT THE FUCK UP, it’s none of their GODDAMNED BUSINESS!

My thoughts.

5

I’m glad they pulled the ad.

It was a good joke in the end, and the “promotes violence against women” thing is bogus, but I thought the ad was downright scary.

I don’t watch horror movies. I find them scary and disturbing. I don’t like gory movies for the same reason. So I choose not to go see them.

I had no choice here. The commercial cought me unawares. And not to sound like Dr. Laura or anything, but the ad was not appropriate for young children. I know images like chainsaw-wielding psychos would stick in my mind when I was a kid and give me nightmares. The fact that the woman got away would be irrelevant–just the “fact” that there was a chainsaw-weilding maniac out there would be enough to really bug me out.

Maybe the commercial would have been okay to show during some late-night adult-oriented show, but during the Olympics? No way.

6

I think this has been blown out of proportion, but I can see the complaint that the ad trivializes violence against women (rather than encouraging it), because it makes a joke out of an attempted murder. However, considering all the movies and TV shows that use violence against just about anyone as entertainment, I hardly think Nike stands out as a big offender.

7

From what I’ve read, the major objections are that the ad is too scary. My initial reaction to that was “get a life”. Then I read some comments ad the Adcritic MB where people were watching with kids, and the ad scred the shit out of the kids. It made me rethink my condescension. I’m not sue what time the ad ran, but if it was before 10, I could see kids young enough to be pretty scared by it being up. If I were a parent, I’d feel pretty safe about the programming content of the Olympics, and wouldn’t figure I’d have to have my finger on the remote or even be viewing it with my kids.

Here’s how NBC should have handled it:

“We apologize to any viewers who had young children scared by our running this parody ad. We should have been more sensitive to this potential reaction. We will no longer run the commercial before 10 in any time zones. We applaud parents and caretakers who are concerned about what their childern see on television, we share your concerns, and we strive to be your partners in providing appropriate viewing material for children. We ask for your forgiveness regarding our oversight and insensitivity.
Any adults who are too scared by the ad should get a grip, get a life, or seek counseling. Anyone who thinks the ad is objectionable for trivializing violence against women is a knee-jerk reaqctionary badly in need of a sense of humor. What next - those Coke ads encourage rude behavior? The FedEx ad trivializes the tragedy of fatal snakebites? Elaine on “Seinfeld” trivialized violence toward men with her “get OUT”/big slam bit? Have we become that humorless as a society?
Sincerely,
NBC”

well, ok, maybe not that last part.
Shaky Jake

8

Here’s the ad…

Chainsaw

I loved it although it could be disturbing to some viewers.

9

I agree that the ad may have been too scary for children, but pulling it altogether was just silly. But what really chafes me is that they pulled the only ad on TV featuring Suzy Favor Hamilton. That’s just plain criminal.

10

What is it with banned Nike ads with chainsaws?

Last year in New Zealand a Nike advert featuring Shane Warne (Australian cricketer) was banned. It showed him bowling a leg-spinner, and as the ball got closer to the batsman, it turned into a chainsaw. NZ authorities banned this advert as “too violent.” Say what? The advert was just trying to say that the delivery was “ripping” (spinners’ jargon for “turning really hard when it hits the ground”).

Actually, I’m surprised Nike was prepared to have its fingers burnt again in this way, but their foreign advertising agencies probably don’t talk to each other.

11

Actually, I had never heard of her until the controversy. That commercial is probably being viewed with attention in it’s cult status now more than it ever would have been as a regular commercial. Tremendous for Nike. It’s not like these offended people are going to boycott the brand to which they’ve always been so loyal. The kids might be scared, but they still need those shoes to be cool.

12

Bottle of Smoke - Something to ease your pain - Suzy

13

My thoughts EXACTLY. At first I did have a beef with it, thinking it was advertising the Nike Sports Bra, which I didn’t see how a good sports bra can help you get away from a maniacal killer. But then someone said it was for Nike shoes, in which case I thought it was pretty good. It’s gotta be the shoes!

But now, on second look (I just watched at adcritic.com) I realize that it is promoting athleticism and sport in general. Not as good as if it were for the shoes, but still pretty funny.

PapaSunshine said that with her screaming her lungs out and the chainsaw buzzing at a billion decibles, he turned the channel and never saw it again, so he is of the opinion that we are better off without it. I personally think commercials should be more entertaining, much like this one.

On a slightly different note, some local DJ’s were discussing this and wondered how Nike feels about this type of “bad” publicity. Then they cited a recent news story in which a disembodied leg washed ashore somewhere.

The big focus of the story was that the leg was still WEARING a Nike shoe.

Now, is Nike happy about this? Look! Nikes can stand up to anything! You can get mostly eaten by a shark, but your Nikes will be okay!

Or is this bad press for them? Ooh. That’s gotta hurt. The Nikes couldn’t save him this time.

14

I’m confused…first there’s 20 threads about how there are too many commercials and too much advertising, and now you’re complaining because one of the ads was taken away? :confused:

15

If they remade that same commerical, shot for shot, except with George W. Bush instead of the girl, running in his underwear and eluding a masked chainsaw-weilding assailant, then and only then would I vote Republican(unless the Dems also remake the 1970’s “You’re a chocolate mess!” ad with Al Gore as the smeared-face kid). Aw, to hell with it - I’ll vote for Nader, since the mastercard parody was the only campaign ad that I could believe.

16

Well, I didn’t complain about the commercials in any of the other threads.
I don’t care how many commercials are on during the stupid Olympics. I tend to enjoy the parts that I can, and channel surf during the stupid parts.
But that was a really cool commercial, and I liked it.

Anyone who bitches about the programming is just being fuckin’ whiny. Really, you can’t change the programming, so just change the channel when something comes on that you don’t like. Really, don’t just sit there and bitch about how you don’t like what’s on the screen, just change the fuckin’ channel. Or get off your ass and do something else. But don’t whine and cry about the shitty programming.

17

I tried to see the commercial on the link, but all I got was a big Microsoft logo.

From the clip of the commercial that I saw, it looked dark and Suzy looked genuinely frightened. If it was realistic looking, with the catch line being the only sign that Nike was joking, then I’d object to the ad being shown during the Olympics at a time when young kids could be watching. My 6 year old can’t read that well yet to begin with, and even if she could, I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t get it. I am very particular about what I let my kids see on t.v. and I get my ire up when stations show things like commercials for slasher flicks during “family” shows.

A lot of people claim that it is the parent’s job to monitor the kids’ t.v. viewing and I agree. But, I’d like a little help from the television industry. And I shouldn’t have to worry about what my kids will be exposed to while watching the freakin’ Olympics.

18

oooookaaaayyyy…
But there is only one place that we can watch the Olympics. So how will changing the “fuckin’ channel” help?

It’s not a matter of “Oh, shall I watch the Olympics or a rerun of Married with Children tonite?” We want to watch the Olympics. (hopefully you understand why) Our only access is through a particular news organization. If that news organization is not showing us enough of the Olympics, then we have full justification to complain.

19

Only one place you can watch the Olympics?
Are you high?

Only if you are restricted to network programming is there only one place to watch the Olympics.

And besides that, my dear green lady bean, my point was that you could change the channel when a commercial came on, or some other such shit you didn’t want to see (such as an athlete profile) and then change it back to catch the events.

The idea is that if you’re (just you in general, not you specifically, so don’t get your panties in a bunch) sitting there watching TV, relaxing after a hard day, and the strain of moving your thumb one inch to change the channel is too much for you, and you’d rather sit there and bitch about the network instead of simply changing the “fuckin’ channel”, then you’re an idiot.

That’s all I was trying to say. It all goes back to one simple truth:
Whiny people suck.

If you (once again, in general) lack the conviction to do something constructive to alter the events that are affecting you adversely, then you aren’t worth the time it takes to flip you the bird.
I understand it’s all subjective. Some people would rather take up arms against the network, trying to change things that way and that’s fine. As long as you do something, anything to alleviate things instead of just puling about them.

And that’s all I meant.

Don’t like what’s on your TV screen? Do something about it or shut the fuck up.

It’s not like the situation is hopeless, terrible and catastrophic.
There are several options available to you.
If you care enough to complain, you should care enough to rectify the situation on your own.

20

Not too surprising. Middle distance runners don’t get Tiger Woods sized publicity, but she is quite the celebrity here in Madison, WI. She ran track in high school at Stevens Point, and was the star of the UW Badgers track team. We don’t get too many Nike commercial stars coming from this area, so she’s big news.

Lamar – Good heavens, how am supposed to get any work done now?