Real vs. Fake Ads

Posted by admin on Jun 25, 2008 in Commercial Culture, Innovation | 0 comments

It’s getting harder and harder to tell what’s real and what’s fake anymore in terms of new media advertising. There seems to be almost a free-for-all in terms of web videos.

A viral video that’s been making the rounds supposedly shows survelliance camera footage of an office worker freaking out. It turns out that it was actually created by Timur Bekmambetov, the director behind the upcoming movie Wanted, starring Angelina Jolie. Apparently it was a viral stunt about breaking out of your workaday drudgery, as the geeky main character does in Wanted.

Even more surprisingly, a fake tv commercial for JC Penney recently won a bronze at the Cannes Lions International advertising awards show. JC Penney has publically reprimanded its agency – Saatchi & Saatchi – for entering the spot in the awards, saying it was never intended to be seen by anyone. The spot is clever, but seems to promote teens having sex.

With all this crazy marketing going on, it makes you wonder whether or not this was really planned or not.