I don’t believe there is a stereotype of “Jews secretly rule the world and have all the money.” I am pretty sure the stereotype of Jews is that they are cheap. Ruling the world and having all the money is more like a crazy conspiracy theory.
I found the commercial much more sexually offensive than racially offensive. A man’s only worthy if he’s rich? Riiiiight.
Of course, the level of offensiveness of any kind in the commercial wasn’t exceptional. It’s just a dumb commercial.
I hate all the MSN commercials.
First there’s the beguiling user tourist chick who spills beverages on stranger guys so she can steal their internet access while they wash up; she of course slips away before they return.
Then there was the obnoxious grounded teenage girl who did an end-run around her clueless mother who had taken away her phone priveleges, but not her internet hookup.
Now the sexist (maybe racist too, but I agree with BlackNight more) piece of crap.
Who the hell is their ad agency? They should be bounced pronto.
The look of excitement on the father’s face upon the realization that the potential suitor has money is disgusting.
If anyone thinks this isn’t offensive, try plugging in a Native American family and use the stereotypical “whoop-whoop-whoop-whoop!!” cry that Hollywood used to love employing in old westerns…
My wife, who’s Black, first pointed this gem out to me and thought it was pretty tasteless. I’m Japanese and I merely resigned myself to the fact that this is how Hollywood tends to portray Asians. In my opinion, if this ad offended anybody, then there’s a problem. If it doesn’t bother you in particular, fine. I wasn’t personally offended, for example, by the recently broadcast episode of “Law & Order” that was based on real-life incidents that occurred in NYC involving Puerto Ricans, but I don’t begrudge Puerto Ricans for feeling angry and lodging a protest…they’ve a right to feel any way they want. I’d never wave their complaints aside and say “Oh, grow up” or “Get over it.”
My thought on the commercial was…
Well, sure he may be a wife-beater, but he’s got the cash!
Somehow, I think that a father would look for more than just a bank account.
Yeah, this is what gave me pause. First time I watched the commercials, they happened to be almost back-to-back, so my perception was skewed. Then I sort of thought, “Huh. Is this negative, or is this… progress?” So I did question my knee-jerk reaction.
I still wouldn’t want to be the ad exec who greenlighted the spots, because of the potential for misrepresentation by Al Sharpton types who look for race-baiting conspiracies everywhere. As poohpah chalupa points out, offensiveness is sometimes in the eye of the offended…
if you show one of Bill Gates set aflame in his fire place that would be a good commercial!!!
dodgy
FWIW, my fiancée is Asian, born and raised in PR China, and she thinks the commercial is amusing. Maybe her attitudes are a bit different than what you’re looking for though because she’s not from the 'States originally, or maybe it’s because she’s not Japanese.
[slight hijack]
MS’s announcement, a few years back, that they were creating a women-oriented area on MSN called “Underwire” really bothered me. What a stupid, inappropriate name, I thought.
I think it bothered me because I have these lingering notions of bras as symbols of male oppression, having heard the stories of bra-burnings in the '60s… I don’t know.
Did that bother anyone else?
[/slight hijack]
I’m glad to hear that I wasn’t the only one who wondered about the appropriateness of MSN’s commercial. So comforting to know I’m a member of a hysterical minority, instead. :rolleyes: Ah, well, I am not Asian, so I guess my thinking it’s offensive isn’t worth a hill of beans.
Originally posted by stuyguy
Hmmmm. So you have, respectively, a woman and a girl, both resourceful, both confidant and comfortable with computers and the Internet. Aren’t these positive role models? Or should we view them as devious, rather than resourceful?
Look, St. Attila, I – and others who I’ve talked with who find those ads offensive – have no argument with the portrayal of “a woman and a girl, both resourceful, both confidant and comfortable with computers and the Internet.”
The problem, in my opinion, is that they are not “resourceful,” but in fact “devious.” The first (cafe gal) is dubious and an out-and-out thief (theft of internet service), and the second (grounded gal) is unabashedly undermining her mom’s parental authority.
Perhaps these ads would “go down a little easier” if there was some indication that the two protagonists were somewhat justified in their actions, say, if the young man in the cafe was a cheating boyfriend or if mom had accused the daughter falsely. Then I might consider the gals “resourceful.” But there is nothing that points to that. The young man and the mother are innocent dupes.
Hmmm, we’ve got a punchline which places two characters, one devious and decietful, and the other gullible and easily manipulated in a situation using an internet product. I suppose its sexist because one of the characters is female. Or is it sexist because one was male? Either way, its just a story about people! People who might frequently be mean, treacherous, stupid or horny. I’d hate to live in your world where there are no negative personality traits on your stories. I think that’d make for some awfully boring fucking plots.
I think stuy’s point (correct me if I’m wrong) is that these commercial’s portray the users of MSN, the very people we commercial watchers are supposed to identify with, as devious and deceitful.
There is nothing wrong with having bad people with bad personality traits depicted on T.V. and commercials. The part that I find disturbing is that the consumer is supposed to think “Wow, that girl just dissed her parents for no good reason and that woman just stole these services. I want to be just like them and buy MSN.”
As for the ethnic make-up of all these commercials mentioned, I never noticed. Not until I read this thread. I think this is because it never occured to me that only white people can and should be the butt of all jokes.
There is real discrimination out there. Fight it with all you are worth. Pick your fights carefully and don’t waste your time and energy on stupid MSN commercials.
There was plenty of tackiness in that commercial, but it wasn’t limited to the Asian stereotyping.
Honestly, I think the only way the commercial could have been more offensive is if we discovered that the girl was dating the guy because he was rich.
Originally posted by stuyguy
Let’s separate intent from interpretation, here. Perhaps you could explain how it is to MSN’s advantage to portray their users as devious? I suggest that is not their intent, but your interpretation.
Interpretation is inherantly subjective, and depends on the sensitivity of the interpreter. Where do we draw the line? If the woman dumped soda on the guy, should we assume that MSN is biased against milk drinkers? To draw the line, you have to take intent into account.
The line is crossed when someone promotes a stereotype. Is it a stereotype that women and girls are devious? If so, that’s a new one on me.
Likewise the “cheese on your face” ad. Are there racist stereotypes of blacks that involve cheese? I can think of some other foods that really would have been inappropriate, but AFAIK cheese isn’t one of them.
[rant]
I am no fan of MSN, but they just can’t get a break. With the overly-sensitive PC police, you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t.
What was the intent of the Raisin Bran commercial, for example? (I’m picking on the ad, Cervaise, not you.) Why would someone (black or white) milk a bull (boy cow, whatever)? 'Cause they’re from the city! They’ve never seen a live cow! That’s the joke!
Should the city-slicker have been white and the yokels black? Gee, I wonder if anyone would have had a problem with that.
Maybe they should have all been white? Only if you want to be criticized for discriminating against black actors.
Or maybe they should have all been black? Then you’ll hear, “what’s the matter, Raisin Bran not good enough for white folks?”
It never ends. We’ll have to eradicate all forms of humour or someone’s feelings might get hurt. What a wonderful world.
[/rant]
I’m Japanese. I thought it was pretty funny.
Well, I’m not saying MSN is biased against anybody. I’m saying these commercials are stupid. And they are stupid for the very reason you give. If the intent was not to show MSN customers as deceitful and devious, then the advertising agency did a godawful job of it.
MSN is not the only one that show themselves in such a bad light. How about those invisible braces commercial.
All this has nothing to do with racial stereotypes. Just bad advertising.
I am a middle-aged white male who has met the guy who made Bill Gates’ fabled fireplace, and, as a member of the ruling class, I am expected to think you people are just a little over-sensitive. 
Does anybody remember the Calgon “Ancient Chinese Secret” ad? The Frito Bandito? And you think that Taco Bell ad is offensive?