Legal Seafood Spots On WBZ re Boston-Radio-Interest Digest, Vol 14, Issue 156

[Sid Schweiger]

"there is a weird or maybe a bunch of weird ad agencies out there that seem to have hired "abusers" as their copy writers. 
The current Volkswagen commercial with the people hitting their companions when they see a Volkswagen product and the now hopefully discontinued Castrol Scottish think with your dip stick assaulter come to mind. The Hanes commercial is close with their insulting commercials. I think someone did a focus group and figured out that that was a way to reach the a#$H)#% crowd. 
Either that or some ad agency has been taken over by sadist and their is some demographic that tells them it reaches the crowd they are aiming it at. 
Anybody got any better insight?"

Listen to Opie & Anthony, or any of their spawn, for five to ten minutes and you'll see why this is done.  Abuse and humiliation are apparently what today's young people think is funny and gets their attention.  The VW ad, however, is not in that category.  It's showing what is actually a very old children's game, typically played on a long car trip.  (Note the musical accompaniment:  the theme from The Andy Griffith Show, plainly meant to evoke an earlier era.)

Sid Schweiger
IT Manager, Entercom New England
20 Guest St / 3d Floor
Brighton MA  02135-2040