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Opinion | Features
Innovation is the remedy for the ailing magazine industry
With magazine circulations plummeting, FHM closing and rumours rife on future ownership of ACP Magazines, Paul Merrill says the only way forward is launching new titles.Eight years ago in the UK, nearly a quarter of all magazine sales came from magazines that were less than four years old. In Australia, the figure was slightly lower, but still significant. Today, the situation is very different. For a start there are so few new magazines. Yes, Masterchef briefly flared, and Top Gear made an initial impact. But Grazia and Alpha fizzled, and now ACP has shelved their plans to launch Elle.
More than a game: broadcasting the Olympics
The 2012 London Olympics will be the biggest televised sporting event of our time. Brooke Hemphill discovers the logistical challenges and technical requirements of producing the event.
From July 27 to August 12, the Australian media will go sport crazy as the Games of the XXX Olympiad, aka the 2012 London Summer Olympics, unfold. The games will be the most televised sporting event of our time as broadcasters look to master every manner of technology at their disposal.
The Voice - Australia's best example yet of social TV
In this guest post, Sputnik’s Rodd Messent has a theory on why audiences have taken to The Voice .I am an addict of Channel Nine’s hit show The Voice. Such is the extent of my addiction I seriously think my housemate might kick me out of our apartment for the semi-frenzied yelling and tweeting that ensues in our lounge room each time the show airs.It’s the first time in almost three years that such disagreement has resulted in less than civil behaviour towards one another, and it’s made me think it might be a microcosm of the large volume of online debate about the show and, correspondingly, an explanation for its success as a social TV experience.Why brands are the US Army - and culture jammers are the Viet Cong
In this guest posting, Dave Burgess, who painted ‘No War’ on the Sydney Opera House, claims that ‘amoral’ advertisers have copied his idea.
Culture jamming is a 28-year-old term coined by the San Francisco-based band Negativland, who declared that the ‘Studio for the cultural jammer is the world at large’.
Branded content is dead. Long live branded content
In this guest posting, Anthony Freedman argues why branded content is making a comeback.
A few short years ago, probably concurrent with the advent of the PVR, a new term emerged within the marketing communications industry; branded content. This was really synonymous with advertiser funded TV shows where programming was created by brands and deals struck with networks to broadcast them.
There were varying degrees of success with this model.
Shock advertising: 30 ads that would give Australia's ad watchdog a coronary
Is shock an underused weapon in Australian advertising, asks Robin HicksToday, Sydney agency The Cabana Boys used an image of a mouth sewn together to shock people with the idea that problem gamblers lie to conceal their habit. Is it the most disturbing image ever? No. Will it get banned by the Advertising Standards Bureau? No. But it did make me wonder why shock is not used more often in Australia – and not just by charities and government bodies. (WARNING: NSFW)
The making of ratings blockbuster The Voice
Jason Mountney goes on the set of Channel Nine’s talent search series, The Voice, to see how the format, based on an international franchise, has come together. What ingredients have gone into making this certified hit that’s rated more than two million viewers on three consecutive nights?
Mike Goldman has one of the toughest jobs on the set of the Nine network’s new talent show, The Voice. He not only has to narrate the show, but also keep the audience from losing their enthusiasm as they realise shooting TV programs takes a lot longer than the one-hour bursts they see in their lounge rooms. A lot longer.
Nine problems stopping The Global Mail from getting an audience
While it’s a shame The Global Mail has failed to make an impact on the media landscape, the signs have been there for some time.I love the concept of a well resourced, philanthropically-funded independent news site. Anywhere in the world, that’s a rare and wonderful thing. In Australia even more so. So I hope that Grame Wood gets to see his investment make a difference.
And I have no inside info on whether Monica Attard’s sudden departure is linked to the site’s failure to find an audience so far.
Regardless, here are nine areas they can easily start to address:
Journalism’s new model?
Does the launch of philanthropically funded news site The Global Mail signal a new era for journalism or is the model destined to be a passing fad, asks Cathie McGinn in this article first published in Encore magazine.With little fanfare, philanthropically funded news site The Global Mail launched in February this year.
The online-only title received a generous five-year funding commitment from businessman Graeme Wood, founder of accommodation website wotif.com, who donated $15million.
Five things that make a great suit
In this guest posting, Gareth Collins argues that the role of a great account manager is to make the work betterI’m surprised at how many suits I meet who don’t know their role in the advertising business. The question ‘what does an advertising account manager or director do?’ is frequently met with answers such as project manager, relationship manager, plate spinner or go between … and those are the nice ones.
Success is judged on the ability to manage a process, be strong administratively and get stuff done. And while a good suit needs to do all of these things brilliantly, if these are the traits that define a great suit, then I’m in the wrong job.
What the hell is transmedia?
From advertising campaigns to online video series, the term ‘transmedia’ gets quite the work out. But what does it actually mean? Cathie McGinn trawls the media landscape for a definitive definition.
Transmedia, all media and multiplatform are terms often used interchangeably when referencing modern storytelling techniques. Yet, depending who you speak to, there are distinct differences between them.
The top seven...most patronising pieces of communication
Sometimes brands have big ideas. Sometimes marketers get so caught up with a grandiose idea that instead of finding engaging ways to sell breakfast cereal, they start to believe their own rhetoric. And sometimes it’s just lazy marketing. Here are my top seven inadvertently patronising pieces of communication…
1) Last night thousands of women gathered in Sydney’s Centennial Park to take part in She Runs the Night, an event created by Nike.
TV audience measurement – why big isn’t always beautiful
In this guest post, Chris Walton argues that the media industry needs to take a new approach to TV tradingThere has been a significant amount of coverage recently about how successful The Voice has been. Indeed, audience figures of 2.6m+ people are very impressive these days. Based on reports, this is apparently double the size of audience that Nine was hoping for in the lead up to the programme launching.
How do you solve a problem like Blunty?
So if you were the proposed News Standards Body, how would you regulate Blunty?The News Standards Body, in case you didn’t notice, is the new organisation proposed by the Convergence Review this week to regulate news and commentary, regardless of platform.
Blunty, in case you didn’t notice, is the video blogger who this week went viral after he filmed a guerrilla marketing demo outside Apple’s Sydney store apparently as a coincidental bystander, but later admitted he’d been put up to it by BlackBerry.
40 ads where music made the difference - and why agencies should think of music first, not last
Music can make an average ad great. So why, Robin Hicks asks, is music the last thing a creative thinks about when writing an ad?My favourite TV ad of the year so far is the Let Yourself Go spot for Kangaroo Island.
When it didn’t win Mumbrella’s Ad of the Month for March (it came third) I felt aggrieved for the agency that made it. But less so a week later when it emerged that the agency had paid celebrities to tweet nice things about its work.
Let Yourself Go is a stunning spot with lots of pretty images. But it would probably have had a similar effect on me if I’d watched a blank screen for 60 seconds.
Ad board decides Westpac ad used gay stereotype but did not breach rules
A Westpac Bank ad featuring a camp male couple talking about slow payments has been cleared by the Ad Standards Board of complaints that it used gay stereotypes.
One complaint to the ASB said: “The two characters were being portrayed as gay men with horrible stereotypes that inaccurately portray gay people and is both inaccurate and offensive to gay men.”
Westpac defended the ad, claiming it was popular with the gay community.
It said: “Since launch, we have had some resounding positive feedback, with very high preliminary awareness and recognition figures especially from the gay community who have embraced the humour and its intent and congratulated Westpac on our depiction of these characters.”
The ASB ruled that the ad – among the first work for Westpac by its new agency Lavender – did not breach advertising rules. It said: “The Board agreed that the men are represented in part in a stereotypically effeminate manner but they are also represented as business owners. The Board considered that the men are presented in a manner which, although somewhat stereotypical, focuses on their frustration as business owners and is not negative.”
January 30th, 2011 at 8:19 pm
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Comments
31 Jan 11
2:44 am
Advertisers use stereotypes all the time — “women,” “soccer moms,” “pierced/tattooed delivery guys,” “college-educated businessmen,” etc. The only reason Westpac’s ad is getting any attention is because it deals in gay stereotypes.
31 Jan 11
11:52 am
Jeffry,
You’re right mate, everyone does get stereotyped. And to a degree I also think, ‘oh stop whinging, everyone cops it’ – all granny’s aren’t senile pilots of motorised wheelchairs either, but you know, it’s kind of funny and stuff.
I suppose the difference when we’re talking about this distinct minority in the community and they are a minority, is that soccer mums, and tattoo delivery guys are afforded (at least in Australia) all basic human rights as citizen of a democracy.
The continued perpetuation of this stereotype sadly lumps queer men into one big basket that makes it easier for everyone else to sit by and blindly allow our governments to treat them as second class human beings.
And we socially minded left of centre advertising folk passively sit around thinking, “hey man, I don’t care if you’re gay, big whoop. Why even make an issue about it?”
If we ignore the issue, will it go away?
31 Jan 11
12:26 pm
It was lift from the movie “Best in Show” – nothing very original about it.
31 Jan 11
12:38 pm
is that alex perry on the left?
31 Jan 11
12:53 pm
Why would a character in a TVC be anything other than… wait for it… a character in a TVC?
One could take it to mean all sorts of things, but one could also take it to be …. wait for it … a TVC.
Of course, the reason these things are supposed to be funny is that if you are not part of the group being portrayed it is funny to laugh at, but if you are in that group, it is potentially offensive. That is how politically incorrect jokes work.
31 Jan 11
12:56 pm
Looks like an episode from Will & Grace or Modern Family…
There’s definately something wrong with people who complained.
31 Jan 11
1:17 pm
“…the gay community who have embraced the humour and its intent and congratulated Westpac on our depiction of these characters.”
Yeah right. The ad is about as funny as a shark attack and offensive to boot.
31 Jan 11
1:20 pm
I can’t imagine why anyone would be offended at this advertisment….other than to say its probably not the best ad I’ve ever seen and is poorly scripted. However, in terms of being stereotypical? I can think of a hundered other more stereotypical scripts that could have been written and in terms of a look; well its about a million miles off Dick Emery’s gay spoofing so I wouldn’t be complaining.
I think it shows a great approach to considering that Gay couples could be portrayed as customers. We know they’re out there so why not show that they live in the real world.
31 Jan 11
1:34 pm
What a crock ! Ongoing use of creepy creative to cloak the greed of the big banks ! What about the tripe being served up by the Commonwealth Bank!? They must think we’ve no recall of “we’ll sack staff and replace them with ATMs and that’ll reduce people’s bank fees” or “there’ll be no reduction in competition in the banking sector if Westpac buy St George” – truly so mauvaise foi – they’re living in their own private Idaho!
31 Jan 11
1:53 pm
A very very, clever ad. Nice to see ANZ being shown up on banking humor. And no doubt that is Alex perry. wonderful!
31 Jan 11
2:59 pm
The biggest gay festival in Australia, the Mardi Gras, is essentially a bunch of gays parading down the street dressed in drag/on motorbikes/covered in sequins. Basically it’s a competition to see who can be the biggest gay stereotype, and yet it’s embraced by the gay community.
But this is somehow offensive?
31 Jan 11
4:23 pm
“…the gay community who have embraced the humour and its intent and congratulated Westpac on our depiction of these characters.” … really? I wonder how many thay actually spoke to!?
31 Jan 11
4:24 pm
Oh, and I’m not offended by it, I just think it is a bad ad
31 Jan 11
5:48 pm
The bottom line is that this is a very hollow brand strategy from Westpac. This campaign is “executional” at best and “category generic” if you give them any credit at all.
Forget the stereotypes – the real story is the impending agency pitch.
31 Jan 11
7:46 pm
As a heterosexual male I’ve decided to boycott all ads that portray me as dumb, hapless, useless ’round the home, a bad driver, terrible cook, useless husband/father, can’t read a map, scared of my mother-in-law, can’t fix a washer, can’t read instructions, can’t use the washing machine, can’t use the most basic technology, can’t shop, slight pervert, can’t change a nappy, can’t even distinguish what washing powder is, all while being a slightly chubby and oafish VB drinker. I WOULD boycott those products, however as that’s the advertising industry’s ONLY way of portraying heterosexual males, I’d most likely starve!
31 Jan 11
10:02 pm
can anyone cite examples of gay/lesbian characters in advertising that aren’t stereotypes? note I said characters, not ian thorpe.
31 Jan 11
10:10 pm
…. oh, and particularly ads that believe i don’t have the slightest knowledge of the female menstrual cycle and female sanitary hygiene products… (Although, in all truth, I do prefer to play a little dumb to all that lot….!)
31 Jan 11
10:23 pm
Keef
You should also ban the company that claims that if you don’t fix something round the home yourself, your wife is going to sleep with the handyman. Although it is a hilarious ad.
Dave
1 Feb 11
1:00 am
Sorry, what’s the stereotype? That they’re seamstresses?
Westpac should be applauded for thinking the mighty pink dollar might add value to their bank.
1 Feb 11
7:56 am
why is it that advertising is subject to so many complaints like this, yet movies and tv shows are rife with similar material and they don’t get pulled off air?
1 Feb 11
8:44 am
I would be offended as a gay male NOT because I was offended by the concept, but the performers are HORRID and the script shocking.
A crap ad inclusive, or exclusive of homosexual people is still a crap ad.
1 Feb 11
8:52 am
If we’re so worried about perpetuating stereotypes, why do we tolerate drag queens and flambouyant gay men, and über-butch womyn in our parades? Aren’t we(they) also perpetuating the same negative stereotypes we complain about here? And we all know effeminate gay men, we know “butch” gay men, we know effeminate straight men, and effeminate lesbians. Let’s stop being so sensitive and PC!
1 Feb 11
10:31 am
Curious, rumour has it that these two in the Westpac ad were both pulled off air…by each other.
1 Feb 11
1:08 pm
Go to bed Jessica!!!
2 Feb 11
4:05 pm
I wasn’t offended by the gay people, didn’t even cross my mind. I was offened by the mention of the Easter Show – it is so Sydney centric! And the bank wants to make money all over Australia….quietly irritated.
2 Feb 11
7:42 pm
i was offended, mostly by the blatant rip off of Best in Show…
23 Feb 11
12:20 pm
I am gay…you silly queens..get a life…It is funny. How different is it to a drag show? We created humour….dont kill it..go and get a good fuck!
23 Feb 11
1:56 pm
Boring ad. Nothing offensive about it.