# Most tone-deaf/out of touch commercials? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** commercials-ads\ **Created:** [July 30, 2026, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017 "2026-07-30T11:04:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/41 "2026-07-30T23:03:52Z")
> [@whitetho](#): > > Youtube keeps running commercials for Kroger and Food City supermarkets. Neither of which are in this area. That’s just bad media buying; those grocers are buying ad space on Youtube based on YT’s algorithms about who is watching certain ads/videos, and on what they do and don’t know about your location. It’s not Kroger saying, “hey, let’s run ads in that town even though we don’t have a store within 200 miles of there!”, it’s ineffective targeting algorithms. ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/42 "2026-07-30T23:05:15Z")
the commercials that were disturbing to me were from Burger King–one where giant King figure looking through window at woman I think was underdressed; the other was when guy woke up to find Burger King in bed with him ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/43 "2026-07-30T23:17:21Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > Those radio ads for PureTalk cellular service. Mentioning how most Americans want a cellular company that “stands for something”. They do? I don’t think that was ever a considering factor when I chose a carrier. Is it for anyone? Anyone? They run TV ads, too, with similar messaging; Mike Rowe (of _Dirty Jobs_ fame) is their spokesperson. And, while clearly you are not their target audience, I am pretty sure that their target audience – mostly conservatives, skewing blue-collar and a bit older, who want to buy American – are probably motivated by that messaging. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/44 "2026-07-30T23:19:28Z")
A local politician is running an ad saying that she’ll stop sex change operations on young children. Yeah, there’s already a law prohibiting that, and you should know that because YOU’RE ALREADY IN OFFICE. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/45 "2026-07-30T23:29:41Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > > [@hajario](#): > > > > It’s to keep the company in your mind. Can you name the company with the Gecko? The next time you’re looking to change carriers, you’ll give them a shot. If it didn’t work, they wouldn’t keep it airing for decades. This is basic marketing. > > Speaking as an ad guy: exactly this. One thing that a lot of people – including on this board – don’t understand is that not every ad is specifically intended to get you to **buy something this very minute** , and that ads which are not just a rational statement of facts can and do work. Well I learned that from you so it’s had at least a little bit of an effect. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/46 "2026-07-30T23:37:54Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Well I learned that from you so it’s had at least a little bit of an effect. My work is done here. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/47 "2026-07-30T23:54:43Z")
That Jedi mind control shit is _potent_. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/48 "2026-07-31T00:27:50Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > Was he able to afford polo ponies before or after Adam was murdered? That’s what I was wondering. John Walsh’s son was abducted from a shopping mall in 1981, and it became something of a _cause celebre_. There was a TV movie about the case, Walsh became something of an anti-crime advocate, and then hosted _America’s Most Wanted_ for a couple decades. I don’t know if he has another source of his wealth, but if he did rise to fame and fortune from something that started with the death of this son, that would be pretty damn ghoulish. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/49 "2026-07-31T00:32:25Z")
Wiki suggests John Walsh was a reasonably successful hotel executive when Adam was abducted. So probably well off but not rich, but also good at identifying and capitalizing on opportunity when one presented itself. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/50 "2026-07-31T00:39:50Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I don’t know if he has another source of his wealth, but if he did rise to fame and fortune from something that started with the death of this son, that would be pretty damn ghoulish. According to Wikipedia, Walsh was involved in developing luxury hotels prior to his son’s death, which would suggest that he had at least a reasonably good income prior to becoming an activist and television host. That said, that hotel career was now four decades ago, and Wikipedia also notes that Walsh’s home went into foreclosure after Adam’s murder, I presume during the early-mid '80s, due to Walsh spending his time (and, I imagine, money) searching for his son, and the murderer. Given that, I would suspect that most of his current wealth stems from his TV career and other activities related to his activism. ---
**Author:** ![Xocomil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xocomil/32/14927_2.png) [@Xocomil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xocomil)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/51 "2026-07-31T00:52:20Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > No actual incest Obviously you haven’t seen the extended cut. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/fhfcWTZeP1k/maxresdefault.jpg "Folgers Incest Commercial - Extended Cut") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhfcWTZeP1k) Based on how the executive producer at the ad agency described the ad, it never stood a chance. He describes the idea of the ad as “an older brother coming home from West Africa who was working in the Peace Corps and whose sister was a certain age that _she grew up quite a bit while he was away_,” and that she was “just becoming a teenager so she’s changed quite a bit since the time he’s been away at the Peace Corps.” Really emphasizing the fact that she’s become a woman since he left there. That’s pretty unintentionally funny. I mean, I get the idea but there’s an unfortunate and hilarious undertone. The biggest problem is that baby sister looks about the same age as big brother when she’s supposed to be no older than maybe fourteen. Just so there’s no misunderstanding, nobody actually thought the commercial displayed any actual incest. It’s just a bit of fun. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/52 "2026-07-31T00:56:14Z")
That was the first thing I thought of when reading the OP- Norton’s misreading of that line to Kramden’s consternation. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/53 "2026-07-31T01:08:51Z")
> [@Jaycat.again](#): > > Jeep is running ads saying they are the “most patriotic car company.” I guess those of us who don’t drive Jeeps are traitors. There are nine cars that can say “Made in the USA” (mostly that is, assembled anyway), 2 of them are Jeeps- Jeep Gladiator & Grand Cherokee. Big Deal. And they are the \* > [@Jaycat.again](#): > > As it turns out, they are not as good at paying claims as those other carriers who don’t have a cute animal in their ads. One of the worst Customer Service. > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I can always use a private jet as a backup plan; I’m sure the cost is comparable. If you freeze frame the ad- you can see some prices - if a member-$11,132 or $12,894. Plus a one time $15000 initiation fee. > [@Chefguy](#): > > A local politician is running an ad saying that she’ll stop sex change operations on young children. Yeah, there’s already a law prohibiting that, and you should know that because YOU’RE ALREADY IN OFFICE. Well, like petting the Lions in front of the Library - it worked! > [@Xocomil](#): > > Obviously you haven’t seen the extended cut. Which is a parody vid, not made by Folgers. But it was funny- once. > [@Xocomil](#): > > Just so there’s no misunderstanding, nobody actually thought the commercial displayed any actual incest. It’s just a bit of fun. Yep. But to me, this song by the Carpenters- Close to you- gives incest vibes- [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6inwzOooXRU/hqdefault.jpg "Carpenters Close To You") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6inwzOooXRU) ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/54 "2026-07-31T01:11:54Z")
The exact same AAA car insurance commercial has been playing for the past 25 years where somebody is interviewed saying “In this economy every savings counts!”. Literally they were still airing that commercial no matter how the economy was doing. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/55 "2026-07-31T01:23:33Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > Literally they were still airing that commercial no matter how the economy was doing. I suppose that, no matter how good or bad the economy is overall, for a subset of people, the economy – from their personal POV – is rotten. Other possibilities: - The ad reliably generates calls/clicks – even in good economic conditions – and AAA sees no reason to change it. - AAA doesn’t have the budget to make a new ad. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/56 "2026-07-31T01:58:13Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > - AAA doesn’t have the budget to make a new ad. Well, sure, not in this economy. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/57 "2026-07-31T02:38:16Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > There’s the infamous folgers incest commercial, but I’m not sure that counts as tone deaf or out of touch. Then there’s this Nature Made vitamin commercial which gives out some pretty major Oedipal vibes. Sure, there’s lots of girls at ‘State University’, but none can compare to dear old Mom, apparently… [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/yudYdnCWuZg/maxresdefault.jpg "Nature Made takes care of you, so you can focus on what matters most") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yudYdnCWuZg) ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/58 "2026-07-31T03:00:28Z")
When the domestic violence hashtag #whyIstayed was trending to discuss domestic violence and why people didn’t leave abusive relationships, so DiGiornos used it to promote pizzas w/o understanding what the hashtag was about. ‘#WhyIStayed You had pizza’ > **[DiGiorno's Tweet Using #WhyIStayed Hashtag Backfires](https://time.com/3308861/digiorno-social-media-pizza/)** > > Unintentionally, it says Not really a commercial but still funny. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/59 "2026-07-31T03:13:52Z")
Those Nature Made vitamin commercials are a little weird. “Have you taken your vitamins today?” “That’s my job.” ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/60 "2026-07-31T03:30:38Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > It’s amazing how many Americans consider that they too deserve fatcat status, and even more, _will have it pretty soon_. It’s more delusional than that. The principle of “Selling Up” is that most people will IDENTIFY with the rich person in the ad. They don’t just emulate them, they honestly think “Hey, that guy with the lap pool in his kitchen is just like me!” (Ask me why I quit the world of advertising…) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017.md?page=4)