Advertisers and their games

This archived article was written by: Janine Thompson

Watching the television everyday, we all see them, the commercials that tweak our emotions in order to bind our checkbooks to that of the industries, charities and organizations of not only this country but to the world. While money is a topic they seem to hold over our heads and flaunt as if it is shooting through our nose waiting to be spent, advertisers lately seem to have found the ways in which to humble our endless possibilities and satirically push us into the vices of unnecessary debt. How do they do it? They illustrate our stupidity and mock the American culture in order to make us chuckle, while really, most don’t ever realize that the advertisers are the ones laughing.
These advertisements have been in abundance lately, and can be seen with every flick of the channel. While many have stood out throughout the years, some can be thought up which are still on the air. One that gave me a fit of laughter and made me rewind the TiVo was Free Credit Report.Com‘s latest catchy tune. While it shows a bachelor hanging out singing about his wife’s poor credit from bachelorette-hood, he describes having to live in her parent’s basement, and ends it with, “I could have been a happy bachelor with a dog and a yard.” If you found this as hysterical as I did, you also fell into the pit. While it is funny, and amazing enough to rewind and sing to your friends later, the industry had you. I will be first to admit, I loved it, but after discovering that it made fun of the rather materialistic ways of our life, and the unimportance of love in marriage, I still thought it was funny. Without letting people know, the advertisers critically described an American way, while undoubtedly convincing you to check you credit, and marry happily ever after.
Another that had me laughing with Kool-Aid falling from my nostrils was the car commercial that end its otherwise boring commercial with, “But if you don’t have a job you probably shouldn’t be watching TV.” While they found a way to practically beg their viewers to buy their product, they also made it a point to display the laziness of the viewers they are trying to persuade. How is it that they can so blatantly tell us how worthless we are, while making us believes that their product is completely necessary? That is where their talent shines through.
While there are those that aren’t so gut wrenching and laugh out loud, there are those that find ways in which to make your life easier in order to make your financial life even more fun. Lately there have been previews telling of how YOU can rent easier using services such as Gamefly and Netflix. While this is yet another tool many I know use, and I myself have thought about, what does it say about us when we are too lazy and engorged in the television to drive down to the local video store and grab a movie. It gets better everyday how they feel that they must make our oh-so difficult lives “easier.” While you may also think this, it is apparent that most of us have found a reason to sit on the couch and wait for the long awaited movie to arrive.
As you flip through the channel a bit more, you can see the endless food commercials. The ones for the joints we rely on to prevent the dreaded time of cooking dinner. One that has stood out to most lately is that of Burger King’s new commercial showing the discontinuance of the whopper. While they bring in the reality TV feel Americans have come to love lately, it too has a message. Has it really come to the point in time where a certain burger being discontinued and taken from our everyday routines and people “freak?” Basically what it is showing is the absolute ridiculousness of Americans when they lose something “so dear to them.” Although it may only be a burger, it is apparently enough for people to lose their cool over.
So there it is. While there are countless commercials that make fun of our current society while bribing us to spend every penny, these come to mind first. The next time you grab that remote and set up camp on the couch to see those comedic commercials, just think, every time you find yourself blowing milk through your nose, really it is the producers laughing at you.