We have to say we're not surprised by the results. We trust that Campbell's understands chicken soup manufacturing.

Let Jesse Buy It: Noodles [KING 5] (Thanks,Cherise!)

"We wanted to remind people how the soup they love more than any other is full of the stuff they love most," Eric Christianson, business director — Campbell's condensed soups, said in a statement. "Our TV commercial, 'Slurp,' as well as our print ads, use the billboard and giant noodle imagery to drive home the value we offer in each can. It just made sense to bring that same idea to life with a real billboard above one of the busiest intersections in the world."

Campbell's estimates 1.5 million people will see the billboard over the next four weeks. Its 2009 soup season campaign is titled "Slurp," which sounds sort of gross and certainly lacks the smoothness of Don Draper's "Toasted" cigarette ad push.

Campbell Wants to Show You Just How Long Its Noodles Are [AdvertisingAge]
(Photo: edEx)
(Thanks, NORMLgirl!)

Apparently, AT&T is quite concerned that less technically savvy potential customers will look at the maps and think AT&T doesn't work in Montana or something.

Verizon has already changed the commercial to include a disclaimer that voice and data are still available in the white space on AT&T's map, and have removed a reference to AT&T customers being "out of touch." This, however, was not enough for AT&T.

From their lawsuit:

By continuing to use a "3G" coverage map in its advertisements, Verizon is still conveying the message that AT&T has no coverage in the white or blank space included in the map, and thus AT&T customers cannot use their phones in large portions of the United States.

You can read the lawsuit here.

AT&T sues Verizon over 'there's a map for that' ads [Engadget]

The network apologized for serving up serving Adobe exploits CVE-2008-2992 and CVE-2009-0927 on its flagship blog by saying simply, "Sorry About That. Our ad sales team fell for a malware scam. Sorry if it crashed your computer." Silicon Valley Insider has the scoop, including the full email exchange between Gawker ad-sales guy James Del and the scammers.

The ad ran for "less than 5 days last week," Gawker's James Del told Threat Level. "This was a very malicious piece of code that seemingly took advantage of unpatched Adobe software, though we don't have details on how exactly that worked. It was not a ‘trick' ad, wherein users were prompted to install something … It simply strong armed it's way through a vulnerability and infected the computer."

Note that while Gawker still hosts us for the time being, they do not serve any ads to Consumerist readers.

Protect yourself while surfing from ads both dangerous or simply annoying by using Firefox with Adblock and Flashblock.

Gawker Scammed By Malware Crew Pretending To Be Suzuki [Silicon Valley Insider]

For further reading, the Dec. 1962 Popular Mechanics article, "Here Comes UHF-TV" explains the hows whys and costs of UHF-TV transition.

The technology may be new, but but the struggles with communicating and adapting to the change are fresh each time.

(Thanks to Lee!)

It's bizarre that Spade, a close pal of Farley's, went along with this. He and DirecTV must have miscalculated the ad as a tribute to a great movie moment rather than a disturbing, insensitive money grab.

Or maybe Comcast put together the ad as a way to drive people away from DirecTV.

DirecTV Profits Off the Dead [The Mep Report]
(Thanks, Russ!)

Here at Consumerist, we can tell you a lot about Cash4Gold. But the smart grid technology advertised by GE has fared a lot better...due to federal stimulus money.

About $4.5 billion in federal stimulus money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is being doled out by the U.S. Department of Energy to help utilities turn the existing power grid into a smart network. This modernization is designed to enable two-way communication between utilities and consumers.provide safer, more-efficient management of the electric grid, and save you money.

One might call it Cash4Current. No?

A tale of two Super Bowl ads: GE's smart grid and Cash4Gold

RELATED:
Consumerist's Super Bowl Ad Liveblog
Cash4Gold's Superbowl Ad Targets History Buffs With Mc Hammer And Ed Mcmahon

I had been receiving text messages from Payless Shoes about special offers. I remember giving out my number to them (I know, I dont know why I did) but they never mentioned anything about text messages. Here's a letter I sent to them. I admit I was a little mean, but I was annoyed.

Dear Payless,

Please Stop sending me text messages. I have "opted out" two times already yet you still send them. My number is also on the do not call list and you are ignoring it.

As a matter of fact getting these so called "offers" actually reminds me NOT to shop in your stores.

To be honest, I would rather tie dead fish to my feet than buy anything at Payless ever again since you keep sending me these texts and ignore your customers requests.

My number is [redacted], do not send me text messages again.

-Peter"

They sent me this:

Dear Peter,

Thank you for contacting Payless Shoesource.

We apologize that you were inconvenienced by our message. Please rest assured that your comments have been forwarded to our marketing staff.

All of the phone numbers called during this marketing campaign were collected at the time of checkout in our stores. These numbers have not been bought or sold through any outside marketing firms. Your phone number has been removed from the data base.

Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback.

Katelin
Payless Shoesource Customer Support Center

That should have been fine, but I thought about it and well... I got a little snotty with them.

Katelin,

I understand that, and while its good news, I was wondering if Payless will re-pay me my fees for the text messages I received TWICE. I had opted out and got them again.

I think its 5 cents a word and it's 27 words. Thats $1.35 x 2 = $2.70. Plus I had to text "opt out" and that was an additional 10 cents.

Please, in these tough economic times it would mean a lot to me to pay me back my $2.80, since at NO TIME did your employee tell me BEFORE that my number would be used in this manner. Not to mention you name is "Payless" and I ended up paying $2.80 MORE upon visiting your store.

I'm awaiting your response.

Sincerely,
Peter

You're not gonna believe this...

Dear Peter,

Thank you for contacting Payless Shoesource.

I can send you a Payless Shoe Source Gift Card that can be used on www.payless.com and in any U.S. Store. Please reply back with your address if you would like to accept the Gift Card.

Thank you for your time.

Katelin
Payless Shoesource Customer Support Center

So, Im not sure what the amount is... I'm really hoping it's for $2.80, but I took the deal. Thought I'd share.

Hey, it never hurts to ask. We're not sure what insane cellular provider charges Peter 5 cents per word, though.

Update: Peter wrote back to us:

I think you're right about that pricing. I think it's $.20 a message. I honestly DON'T text and wasnt sure what it was.

Plus I had a bit of an attitude with them that was a little unwarranted. I'm not sure if Consumerist.com is interested but I don't mean to be a bully, I just dont like spam. So I sent them this letter.

Thanks again!
Peter

Katelin,

Thank you for your quick reply. I would like to take this chance to apologize for being rude. You have gone above and beyond and have kept a customer in the process.

Thanks again,
Peter

(Photo: crschmidt)

If you're wondering (and of course you are) the burger is over five inches tall, weighs more than a pound, and has 2,120 calories. Wait, why didn't they market this in the U.S. again? Foreigners are eating gut-busting fast food and we're stuck with house parties. Hmph.

Burger King Japan selling Windows 7 burgers [Electronista]
Burger King's Windows 7 whopper: 7 patties, 2,120 calories [Japanator]

You may notice that this bears a strong resemblance to that stupid Levi's viral video and that stupid Ray Bans video and that stupid Coor's Light video. With this quadtych, I hereby declare using fishing line to yank stuff and then running the film in reverse to make it look like it's thrown an official viral video format.

We're not sure this will teach Ralph Lauren anything about the Streisand Effect, but it's still fun to see a company mangle its own heavy-handed intimidation tactics.

Update: Our original post said that Photoshop Disasters caved to the takedown notice, but that was incorrect according to several readers. A commenter below writes, "Photoshop Disasters didn't cave - Blogspot policy is to remove the offending post until the investigation is complete. PsD had a post up about it yesterday." We've changed the wording in the first paragraph to more accurately reflect what happened.

"The criticism that Ralph Lauren doesn't want you to see!" [Boingboing]

In the episode, Jay mentions Cialis, Snuggies, Starbucks, Pillsbury, Walmart, and Red Lobster, all before having a conversation with the Wendy's mascot. It seems like Jay likes to talk about products and brands almost as much as we do. Almost.

If you enjoyed this video, there are also far less interesting and much more paranoid examples from David Letterman and Conan.

Too many products in 'Jay Leno Show'? (video) [The Live Feed] (Thanks, Klay!)

The real reason for the FCC study—due this coming February—is to figure out a way to make our broadband infrastructure more robust, but from the Consumerist standpoint, we just want to know why ISPs keep lying to us.

Joel Kelsey, a policy analyst at Consumers Union, says he's heard many such complaints from users and has pushed for the Federal Trade Commission to take up a review under truth in advertising laws.

[...]

"This speaks to consumer empowerment. And if you are advertising one speed but delivering another, that takes power away," Kelsey said. "Consumers can't make accurate decisions based on quality of service from one provider off another."

"Internet Speeds Are Often Slower Than What Consumers Pay For, FCC Finds" [Washington Post]
(Photo: psyberartist)

The last one on the list shows a mascara ad where the model's mascara weeps, which is a perfect time for me to link to this creepy New Zealand billboard safety campaign where children bleed from their faces when it rains. Please god don't let the hemorrhoid doctor find out about this technology.

"50 Extraordinary and Attractive Billboards " [10Steps.SG via Very Short List]

Consumer Reports tested the "miracle" Heat Surge Roll-n-Glow Electric Fireplace back in March and found it performed the same as a normal electric heater.

The device is currently $349 online, or you can, as the Heat Surge VP told the NYT, get a space heater for $29.99 from a big box store. You can answer for yourself if you the fake fireplace and rollability features are enough of a "miracle invention" to be worth the extra few hundred bucks.

Note: purple scare-quotes photoshopped.

"We did some focus-group research and it really indicated that people were receptive to receiving offers from U.P.S.," Ms. Lynn said. "What we heard was, ‘If U.P.S. brings it to me, it's not junk.' "

Still, the company is taking several steps to try to ensure that a Direct to Door Pak is received more like a gift than another application for another credit card.

For one thing, the offers inside each box are intended to be special rather than "mass offers distributed through other channels," Ms. Lynn said.

Companies participating in next week's test include Sephora, Finish Line, Pottery Barn, and Men's Wearhouse, among others. The packages will contain either special offers or free samples.

We're sort of amazed that this didn't start decades ago.

Delivering Something Extra [NY Times] (Thanks, Jason!)

In the ad, a corporate rumor-squasher (read: PR spokesbot) responds to a rumor-mongrel's (read: pudgy gadget blogger) request for comment about a tip he got about a PS3 price-drop. "You can't believe everything you read on the Internet. Otherwise I'd be a Nigerian millionaire by now."

In response to this false, defamatory and confidential claim, Nigeria demanded an immediate recant. "Nigeria also demands an unconditional apology from Sony Corporation for this deliberate negative campaign against the country's image and reputation," said a spokesman for the Nigerian government.

Sony Corporation portrayed Nigeria as home of fraud [Vanguard NR via The Raw Feed]

Top 25 Most Valuable Brands

1. Coca-Cola
2. IBM
3. Microsoft
4. GE
5. Nokia
6. McDonald's
7. Google
8. Toyota
9. Intel
10. Disney
11. HP
12. Mercedes-Benz
13. Gillette
14. Cisco
15. BMW
16. Louis Vuitton
17. Marlboro
18. Honda
19. Samsung
20. Apple
21. H&M
22. American Express
23. Pepsi
24. Oracle
25. Nescafe

The big losers on the list were mostly car brands — Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW all slipped at least one spot on the list compared to 2008. American Express also took a big hit - dropping 7 places on the 2009 list.

(Photo:balmes)

In their ever-expanding quest for new subject matter, Rhett and Link are asking people to nominate their favorite local business to win a free, customized commercial. To make a nomination, you can visit the website, where you can also view the businesses that have been nominated so far.

Rhett & Link will make your next local TV ad [Adfreak]

"A Campaign With an Edge" [UglyDoggy via AgencySpy]

According to 9News, VisitDemark initially defended the stunt, calling it "a good and sweet story about a mature, responsible woman who lives in a free society and shoulders the responsibility of her actions."

There's that. But then there's also the message, "Come to Denmark, where you can impregnate beautiful women and disappear the next morning!" It's the Denmark-as-Vegas model, but "What happens here stays here" was already taken.

Naturally, there's already a parody video (and, actually, it's pretty funny).

Denmark sorry for 'one-night stand' hoax [9News via Brandfreak]

PREVIOUSLY: Gird Yourself, Video Advertising Is Coming To Print Magazines

The Chamber of Commerce insists that the CFPA reserves the right to exert control over mom and pop stores—their example is a local butcher—who extend credit to consumers. The language of the CFPA indicates it would monitor any business that directly or indirectly offers a financial product. So does that cover small-scale lines of credit from a shop owner to his customers? We don't know. And we're not sure that just because a business is small, it shouldn't have to follow some basic rules for how it extends credit. At any rate, you may start seeing or hearing the ads soon:

The business lobby intends to expand its campaign to include nationwide TV and radio ads later this month. Its lobbying push could feature other small-business owners, such as accountants, landlords and event planners.

Also, if you want a good laugh, please check out this outrageous statement by a lobbyist who argues that financial institutions are here to help, not take advantage. (If I were king, lobbyists would have to wear clown makeup.)

"We want to protect consumers. The CFPA doesn't accomplish that goal," says Scott Talbott, lobbyist for the Financial Services Roundtable, which represents big financial companies such as Citigroup, GMAC Financial and Capital One. "Each state could write its own laws. This will destroy uniformity, increase costs and confuse customers."

"Chamber Ad Campaign Targets Consumer Agency" [Wall Street Journal]
"Industry lines up to fight consumer protection agency" [USAToday]

Reporter Chadwick Matlin is refreshingly upfront about how these ads have ended up on perfectly respectable web sites such as, well, Slate. He traces the chain of responsibility from the publishers to the ad networks. While someone probably should be responsible for stopping these ads, he finds that no one actually is.

But when I sent [ad network Pulse360 CEO Jann] Janes a link to a weight-loss product feeder site, he clammed up. The site is undeniably sketchy, and I found it on TBM via a Pulse360 ad. It's a site with fake personas and dozens of links to a "free trial" product that actually costs $88.90 a month. I asked over and over again whether this was something that fit under the same ad guidelines that state "text that is not representative of the product/service being offered" is not allowed. Janes would not answer the question with a yes or no. Like a needle stuck on a record, he only repeated that if someone complained, "We have a responsibility to help the consumer and have a conversation with the advertiser about it." He ended the conversation by saying, "The responsibility lies with the advertiser. Our responsibility is to run ads subject to our guidelines and terms and conditions." But he still would not answer whether these ads were in compliance with the terms and conditions. Considering Pulse360 approved the ad, you would think he would say yes and stand behind the site. But no.

We don't begrudge publishers running ads to make money, or ad networks making money in turn, but this is a case where everyone involved knows that these ads are a scam, and still let them proliferate. Hand me my Adblock.

For the Love of God, I Don't Want Whiter Teeth or a Flatter Stomach [The Big Money]

RELATED: Easy Weight Loss And Free Cash: A Dubious Product Online Marketing Empire Revealed

(Photo: Werwin15)

"Use Firefox to Fix the Web's Biggest Annoyances" [Lifehacker]

For example:

We'll give you $4,000 for your trade no matter what the condition: This ad is infamously known as the "push-pull-or-tow-it-in" concept, which dates back to the 1950s. If you believe this ad, you have to believe the dealer is so stupid and so eager to sell cars that he is going to pay you far more than that old clunker is worth. Don't believe it. If he's paying you too much for your trade-in, he's adding that and more to the price of the new car and taking away your negotiating power at the same time. The best defense to this ploy is to become aware of the value of your car through such Web sites as Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds.

All of this is interesting but we still prefer to "shop like a millionaire," and avoid car dealers.

Beware Bogus Advertising Slogans [Yahoo!]
(Photo:frankieleon)

GamePro brings the past to life by selecting its five greatest console wars, disregarding the in-progress donnybrook between the Xbox 360, Wii and PlayStation 3, which is destined to crack such future lists.

The choice for No. 1 was easy: the early-1990s clash between the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis. GamePro's McKinley Noble writes:

With initial sales in Japan turning up nothing, Sega USA used the success of Sonic the Hedgehog, along with an ad campaign that got more ridiculously campy as time went on, to start turning up the heat on Nintendo. Fans started digging trenches and hurling slogans at each other, while TV commercials told the public that Sega's Genesis could do "What Nintendon't". It was magical, and the war went on and on.

The story hardly scratches the surface of the Nintendo-Sega battle for youth gamer mindshare, including Sega's ridiculous "blast processing" ads. So effective were the respective marketing machines, daring you to choose a side and stick to it with ferocity, that it seemed almost sacrilegious to own or profess fandom of both. The ingrained fanboy bias grew up with a generation that refused to put away its childish things and continues to drive up the average gamer age.

As a lifelong Nintendo fanboy, only recently have I managed to separate myself from my taught, ignorant prejudices to respect the greatness of the Genesis classics. But I still hate Sonic the Hedgehog, Mario's spastic rival for the same unquantifiable reason I despise the Dallas Cowboys, and always will.

What about you, Consumerists? Which way did you swing — Nintendo or Sega?

The 5 Greatest Console Wars [GamePro]

And rather than moan that print advertising plunged 30 percent, let's point to the rosy news that online newspaper advertising was downright robust in comparison, dipping only 16 percent.

The Newspaper Association of America is not amused at the results, but is trying to put the awful quarter behind it:

"This data represents a rearview mirror perspective on what we all know was a terrible stretch of bad road," John Sturm, NAA chief executive officer, said in a statement.

We'll end with still more good news: While the last quarter, as well as the past several years, have been awful for newspapers, they're probably nothing compared to what the next quarter and next few years will be like. A terrible stretch of bad road is always preferable to a cliff.

U.S. Newspapers Post Steeper Declines in Ad Revenue [Bloomberg]
(Photo: picaday)

Yesterday my kid brother told me that a commercial had started in the middle of a cartoon (not a normal commercial break) and when the commercial finished, the cartoon ending credits were playing. I figured it was just a glitch in their system, then I witnessed it for myself. Right after a standard commercial break, the show I was watching resumed and not even 2 minutes into it, a commercial for a local pizzeria had started playing, followed by local car dealership commercials, and by the time they were done i had missed a good chunk of the show.

Chris said that it happens with network TV commercials as well.

If you're a Comcast customer and have this problem, we'd encourage you to call Comcast directly and complain. You can even reach them on Twitter (@comcastcares). You may also want to contact the advertisers, who probably aren't aware of what's happening and should be concerned about angering the people they are paying to reach.

Anyone else in South Florida have this problem?

(Photo: someToast)

Jailbait-pandering, pop-infused ads seem geared toward a demographic not allowed to purchase the product. The study says teens are exposed to an average of 200 alcohol ads a year.

Science Daily writes about the study:

"Alcohol advertisers have pledged to avoid audiences made up of more than 30 percent underage viewers - such as children's programming," said David H. Jernigan, director of the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth and an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "However, many other shows have adolescent appeal. This research suggests that ads are aimed at groups that include a disproportionate number of teens and that the alcohol industry's voluntary self-monitoring is not working to reduce adolescent exposure to ads."

It's off-putting stuff for parents who'd like to think their children will be able to avoid the onset of ad-induced alcoholism until at least a few years into college, but the source of the info, though it used reputable, peer-reviewed methodology, seems less than neutral. If your Center is called "on Alcohol Marketing and Youth," it's sort of your job to produce such findings, otherwise you really don't have a reason to exist.

Alcohol Advertising Reaching Too Many Teens On Cable TV, Researchers Say [Science Daily]
(Photo: tubes.)

According to the BBC, select copies of the September 18th issue of Entertainment Weekly will include little LCD screens that work pretty much the same way those singing greeting cards work:

The first clips will preview programmes from US TV network CBS and show adverts by the drinks company Pepsi.

• Screen uses liquid crystal display (LCD) technology
• Each is 2.7mm thick with 320x240 resolution
• Can store 40mins of video
• Battery can be recharged via mini-USB
• Rechargeable battery lasts up to 70 mins

The company behind the gimmick, Americhip, calls this "multisensorizing," apparently because their website copy was written by email scammers. (Warning: their website is an assault on the ears even after you press the "no music" button.)

Really, the good things about marketing stunts like this one—including the e-ink screen on the cover of Esquire last year and the USB flash drive that some car company handed out in EW a few years ago—is that you can re-use the technology if you're handy with things like that. Or, if you're like me, you can just keep opening and closing the page until the battery wears out, so mesmerized by what's happening that you manage to ignore the message entirely.

Here's what the technology looks like—and despite our "no Tivo remote" crack above, they do demonstrate a "Skip" button. We'll be curious to see whether that makes it into the final version.

Also, that's gonna be one bulky Entertainment Weekly issue:

Here's a video of the actual ad as it will appear in the magazine.

"Video appears in paper magazines" [BBC via toni_jane]

A New York Times story on the film indicates that many of the catch phrases were accidental, and upon creation were not exactly seen by the ad wizards as the cultural touchstones they'd become:

Dan Wieden, who first realized that a slight tweaking of Mr. Gilmore's last words might make a good slogan for athletic gear, said the resonance of "Just Do It" was completely inadvertent and unforeseen.

"I like the ‘do it' part of it," Mr. Wieden, a co-founder of Wieden & Kennedy, says in the film, recalling the moment it dawned on him to use the phrase. "None of us really paid that much attention. We thought, ‘Yeah. That'd work,' " he says, adding, "People started reading things into it much more than sport."

Other than "Got milk?," which seems to be on the downslide, there seems to be a dearth of clever, quippy ad memes floating about these days. What's your favorite? I'd go "Snap into a slim Jim," all because of Macho Man Randy Savage's delivery.

The Birth of ‘Just Do It' and Other Magic Words [New York Times]
(Photo: phototaker)

Keep in mind that this poll is not specific to what's happening with Glenn Beck's show. We're not trying to be political here; it could be anything-companies that advertise heavily during Yankees games, companies that run ads during awful sitcoms, whatever. We want to know if you actually care. So...

If you have a different answer, let us know in the comments.

(Photo: Ryan Brenizer)

The Rockwall Herald-Banner highlights the case in a column about unscrupulous, often cheesy, lawyer advertising.

Despite the best efforts of bar administrators, lawyer ads that push the boundaries of bad taste continue to occur. In late July, 2009, New Jersey's Committee on Attorney Advertising held a hearing to determine whether legal ethics lines were crossed by the placement of a lawyer's flyer on the windshield of a rape victim's car. The victim, known in court papers as K.D., had been sexually assaulted in December 2006 during an inspection of her federally subsidized apartment by a Newark Housing Authority employee. After K.D. reported her rape, four other female tenants came forward to testify about similar incidents, and the rapist was caught and sentenced on multiple counts. But about two months after the assault occurred, K.D. found an orange flyer on her car's windshield from Fred Zemel's Newark law firm touting the lawyer's services to anyone who'd been the victim of "rape and assault in your building or apartment."

Zemel says he wasn't advertising to the rape victim in particular, just going about his usual business placing flyers on car windows. Objection overruled.

‘Low points in lawyer advertising' [Rockwall County Herald-Banner]
(Photo: Boston.com)

The photo attached to this post is an example of the campaign's approach, which plays Mad Libs with the phrase "That's so gay," substituting "gay" with names of high school cliques to get you to, well, think B4YouSpeak. Examples inlcude "gamer guy," "jock" and "cheerleader."

ThinkB4YouSpeak explains on its site:

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) teens experience homophobic remarks and harassment throughout the school day, creating an atmosphere where they feel disrespected, unwanted and unsafe. Homophobic remarks such as "that's so gay" are the most commonly heard; these slurs are often unintentional and a common part of teens' vernacular. Most do not recognize the consequences, but the casual use of this language often carries over into more overt harassment.

This campaign aims to raise awareness about the prevalence and consequences of anti-LGBT bias and behavior in America's schools. Ultimately, the goal is to reduce and prevent the use of homophobic language in an effort to create a more positive environment for LGBT teens. The campaign also aims to reach adults, including school personnel and parents; their support of this message is crucial to the success of efforts to change behavior.

The campaign seems fairly "jock" to me, with a better chance of being laughed off by students who will pass it off as pretty damn "cheerleader" rather than making any sort of positive impact. For starters, cheerleading, sports and video games are activities people choose, and the ads' use of those terms rather than genetic attributes such as ethnicity, hair color or heterosexuality only plays into the backward myth that sexual orientation is a choice.

People use the word "gay" in offhand ways not to disparage people, but as a slightly edgy synonym for "lame." The derisive "gay" has nothing to do with homosexuality and has evolved as a homonym. That's not a defense of the practice, which even if benign is still offensive.

While it's a worthy cause to stamp out the use of "that's gay," this campaign is going about it in a decidedly "gamer guy" way.

As part of my exhaustive research for this post, I IMd my sister, Linda, a certified lesbian who is self-proclaimed spokesperson for all gay people.

Me: Does it offend you when people say "That's gay?"

Linda: Haha, no.

Me: There's an ad campaign that's trying to get people to stop saying that.

Linda: Tell them to shut their pie holes.

ThinkB4YouSpeak [ThinkB4YouSpeak, via Joystiq]
(Photo: ThinkB4YouSpeak)

The story says the flood of channels have made for a shallow pool. Viewers have so many choices that it's become a buyer's market for advertisers, and sustainability will be tough unless networks adapt a new model. Can you say "paid content?"

Slate ad writer Seth Stevenson sure thinks so:

Stevenson says TV networks have two other bold options: Start making more TV shows online-only to cut down on costs or (gulp) consider charging for subscriptions like HBO.

But the truth is that television's crisis isn't just an ad crisis. It's also a content crisis. In an age where you can watch television shows as a unified narrative — a full season on Hulu or a few seasons on TiVo — it calls into questions whether serialized television is necessarily the best way to consume those stories in the first place.

Excellent point, that. DVD, DVR, on demand and online viewing have trained viewers to detest commercial breaks. And I'm not seeing a future in which ESPN 2 is able to command Showtime-level subscription fees.

Internet, why you gotta go and kill everyone?

Television: The Next Victim of the Advertising Famine [The Atlantic]
(Photo: ashi)

The Examiner wrote that an orchestrated campaign resulted in 100,000 complaints to Fox News execs.

TV Newser writes that the advertising pulls aren't effecting the network's bottom line:

A Fox News spokesperson told TVNewser that the advertisers simply moved their spots from Beck to other programs on the network, "so there has been no revenue lost."

What do you think, Consumerists? Is this an inspiring, power-to-the-people tale, a frightening display of free speech being crushed, or both? The way I see it, Beck has the right to say whatever he wants but so do his political enemies and advertisers.

Glenn Beck loses advertising because of black blogs complaints : is Rush Limbaugh next? [Examiner]
(Photo: phototaker)

From Slate:

Volume sales of Bud Light, the top-selling brew in the U.S., have fallen this year and may register their first annual sales decline in the brand's 27-year history.

The new ads, set to coincide with the start of the U.S. football season on networks such as ESPN, will include more of the humor that drinkers have been accustomed to seeing from Bud Light over the years. The ads will refine the company's "Drinkability" campaign — which sought to persuade drinkers that Bud Light is neither too heavy nor too light in taste — that began last year and has struggled to gain traction.

Do you like the "Drinkability" campaign? Are we the only ones who find it really annoying?

Anheuser Refreshes Bud Light Campaign [WSJ]
(Photo:Dyanna)