September 19, 2008
Charity Breast-Cancer TV Ads Under Fire
A new television ad campaign to raise money for breast-cancer prevention and treatment has drawn some negative reviews.
The advertisements are meant to promote T-shirts, the proceeds of which support breast-cancer groups. But to make their pitch, the commercials make fun of a sexist practice — men leering at women in the workplace.
In one TV spot, a young man in an elevator stares at a woman’s chest. “Nice,” he says. At the end of the ad, the camera reveals that he’s referring to her charity T-shirt.
“This ad makes me uneasy,” writes an anonymous writer on Jezebel, a blog about fashion and celebrities. “Breast cancer is a serious disease that has far-reaching effects on women, children, and families — and men, obviously.”
Jeff Trexler, a professor of social entrepreneurship at Pace University, agrees. “Baptizing the workplace leer in the name of do-goodery is not funny; it’s perverse,” he writes on his blog, Uncivilsociety.
The ads are part of Fashion Targets Breast Cancer, a campaign by the Council of Fashion Designers of America and its partners in the fashion industry. Since its start in 1994, the effort has raised $40-million, according to the campaign’s Web site.
What do you think? Are the ads tasteless or clever?
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Tasteless.
In another context, outside of a work environment, the premise could be clever and catchy, and could mean the difference in reaching a demographic of young women who may not be thinking about their health. But a guy in a suit and tie leering at a girl in a t-shirt in what is clearly an office setting is demeaning and cavalier on multiple levels — none of which elevates awareness of the importance of breast cancer as something to be prevented vigilantly, diagnosed early, and treated aggressively.
— Lissa Sep 19, 12:26 PM #
Tasteless.
— BethP Sep 19, 12:45 PM #
Tasteless.
Although negative attention is still attention, and this will certainly get people talking. My concern is will they be talking about? Will this raise awareness for Breast Cancer, or simply cause a buzz about the ad itself?
— Virginia Sep 19, 12:55 PM #
Tasteless. But a lot of breast cancer t-shirt slogans are tasteless too (“Save the TaTas” for example).
— EAllison Sep 19, 02:18 PM #
Tasteless. But I agree with EAllison that “Save the TaTas” is tasteless as well. Isn’t the primary goal of breast cancer research to save lives? What’s next, women leering at men’s crotches in ads for prostate cancer research? Getting attention is good; devaluing your work is not.
— Melissa Sep 19, 02:28 PM #
Clever—lighten up! And if you call that a leer, you haven’t been leered lately.
— JulieB Sep 19, 02:35 PM #
neither. Granted, I have not seen the actual commercial, but from the sound of it the ad is not “clever,” because it’s not a new idea or even a new twist on an old idea. However, it isn’t tasteless. No, it’s not tastefull, but there is something between the two, and that something is where this generic attempt to “break through the clutter” sits.
People tend to get caught up in the wrong emotions. The sole purpose of the ad is to sell t-shirts that raise money for breast cancer, and to raise awareness in the process. The fact is, whether you find it tasteless or not, we are writing about it on a national forum in response to a nationally read eNews article.
— Jacob Brier Sep 19, 03:01 PM #
Tasteless! I agree with Jeff Trexler.
This might have been a good time to have used focus group to provide valuable feedback before the spot is out there.
— Kevin Feldman Sep 19, 04:33 PM #
I think its taseles and insensitive. Some of the folks those shirts are raising money for have lost those very breasts the men are staring at.
— laura Sep 19, 04:35 PM #
These things tend to stick in the mind in a way that banal preaching doesn’t. If you have time, check out this awareness clip for prostate cancer – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fjevnQvvG4
— Chris Casquilho Sep 21, 07:10 AM #
@Chris C: When designing a media strategy, we should be careful to avoid false dichotomies. Charities do have other options besides banal preaching and crass sexism.
@Jacob B: Charities really need to be think about whether they want to buy into the notion that publicity and revenue are ends in themselves. There’s a fine line between strategic utility and moral nihilism, and it seems to me at least that some charities have become all too willing to cross it.
— Jeff Trexler Sep 21, 03:40 PM #
How about this one?http://www.declareyourself.com/index.php
— Suzy Sep 22, 04:21 PM #
Or this one?
http://www.freeyourvote.net/
— Suzy Sep 22, 04:27 PM #