Chevron Thinks We're Stupid: the step-by-step guide.

A colleague of mine sent me a great collection of links pertaining to a recent Chevron greenwashing campaign, and it is with great pleasure that I repost them here.



It's really worth visiting the Chevron YouTube Channel to view the comments associated with this video, which include the following most popular comments, as voted by viewers of the above video: "In California, Chevron spent $4.1 million lobbying legislators to change regulations so it can refine a dirtier grade of oil at its facility in Richmond without conducting any environmental review on what the change would mean for the low-income community surrounding it." and "In Washington, Chevron spends millions each year lobbying Congress to make sure we don't get a cap-and-trade bill, or anything else that might harm their profit margins.In the Arctic, it wants to drill for oil even though knowing such operations would be risky and hard to clean up.It's also one of the chief sources of funding for disinformation about the causes of global warming."

As is becoming more and more prevalent, there has been a response to this ad, this time found at Funny or Die, and apparently credited to the Yes Men (there is more information on the campaign on their website).

 

Chevron Thinks We're Stupid from The Yes Men

And to drive the point home, sketch comedy style:

Anatomy of a Greenwash from Paul Scheer

10:10 No Pressure

Wow. Well, you can't fault someone for trying (most things), below is an short film for the organization 10:10.

I suppose one way to broach the notion that not doing something about climate change is fundamentally suicidal, is with dark humour. It's an uncomfortable notion, but many feel that there is folly in our current laissez-faire approach to climate change. I guess the folks at 10:10 were thinking that subtleties are best reserved for non-urgent situations. However, given how defensively some have reacted to the piece, it might not be terribly effective in terms of bringing people "into the fold" of environmental action. But strangely enough, that is not likely the point of this campaign.

For those who "get it" this wee film could likely serve as a kind of in-joke, reminiscent of the now famous Apple/PC ads. As a result of that particular campaign, PC people might think Apple users are - more than ever - self-righteous assholes (not my opinion, btw). However, Apple users will be more likely to further identify with their computing choice, as they come out looking like the cool kids in those pieces. Cool kids, in the case of the "No Pressure" film, are the folks not blown to jelly-coloured bits (the majority of those depicted in the film).

The film was pulled within hours of its release, as it was said to cause some embarrassment for the organization. But I think these clever folks are well aware of the power of the internet and are letting the video live on, in YouTube-land. It'll likely have a bigger impact post-pull than it ever could have without this controversial chatter around it.

Advertisement and it's many sexisms.

As a bit of a follow up a few previous posts on gender and advertising, below is a short clip from the BBC comedy series "That Mitchell and Webb look." I find the dialog that ensues in the comments section interesting, especially the notion of "reverse" sexism through the use of stupid men in advertisement - which is something I've heard discussed in an intelligent fashion on Terry O'Reilly's Age of Persuasion.

O'Reilly mentions that the "why are men portrayed as morons, while women are portrayed as brilliant?" question in one of the most common posed to him as an ad expert. In the radio piece on this topic, he suggests that as women are the main consumer decision-makers in most households, depicting the women as the "comic foil" in an advertisement meant to sell products would constitute "biting the hand that feeds you." Further, as this remains a Man's World, it's simply funnier to see men as the butt of the joke, whereas it's not generally understood as funny to kick a (wo)man when s/he's down. Advertisers, in their creepily intense understanding of human psychology, get this and suggest that guys should just grow a pair and learn to deal with this mostly silly form of advertisement.

Comments on Terry's page with regards to his explanation behind this kind of "reverse" sexism, are still called "lame" by an astute/anonymous poster (who naturally provides no additional understanding of the topic). One thing not addressed in the piece, which I think is also important to point out, is how these ads in being humorous or silly, are in no way suggesting that men should start acting like morons - or that there would be some kind of advantage to this sort of moronic behavior. It acknowledges the power dynamic in the home by directing the advertisement to the women and makes a simple joke at the man in the advertisement's expense. While it may imply that men are morons, it's not suggesting that this is a good thing to be. This is in contrast with the kind of sexism generally directed towards women in advertisement, which tends to far more persuasive if not subtle and is often meant to encourage behavior change in women. Purchasing in this case comes from repeatedly pointing out supposed shortcomings in the target population and suggesting that the product in question can help one overcome these shortcomings. And it's this very point that this little bit of sketch comedy seems to really get.

The best of Target Women

The great thing about living in a 1,000 channel universe is the increased likelihood that there will be something worth watching on TV.  Most auspicious for us is the coming together of both a 1,000 channel universe and the internet age, meaning that in order to watch said "good TV", you don't really need a TV at all.

As evidence, I present you the best of "Target Women", a regular segment on infomania,  where comedian Sarah Haskins considers the often ridiculous way marketers and the media more generally "reach out" to women. Smart, sad and funny all at the same time.

Woman's Last Stand.

A clever response to an superbowl ad about oh-so-oppressed hetero men. I love the rapid-fire response of internet-land.

Way to go Dodge! Congrats on alienating half the market - though maybe not your market (anymore). Clearly, the market for new so-called muscle-cars isn't 100% tapped. Anchor down boys, make it yours! Maybe you can make up for the last "sports" car you lost during bankruptcy protection.

According to Julia Bonstein in Business Week: "It's long been known that the woman's role in car purchasing goes beyond choosing the color. Consulting firm A.T. Kearney estimates that women determine 80 percent of consumption, purchase 60 percent of all cars and own 40 percent of all stocks."